In defense of citizen journalism

• 1. by : JesadehTecee Boley

2. Private individuals doing what originally professional journalist do. It is based upon public citizens "playing an active role in the process of collecting, reporting, and disseminating news and information." 3. The World Wide Web and availability of gargets has boomed citizen journalism and is altering traditional journalism. The proliferations of news outlets, blog sites including Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr are creating too much information. How exactly do we define news? Theres a big discrepancy in this, as everyone has their own idea of what is considered important. The removal of the gatekeeper role ( authenticity, verification and accuracy) . Citizen journalists have no formal training in reporting. Less or in some cases no profit for media institutions. Credential of Journalist under attack: Who is a journalist? A blogger( World Press), a person who gives information on Facebook and twitter? 4. It provides the community with a different perspective, from one of their own who lives and breathes what happens there every single day. Helps to get local citizens more engaged in the issues affecting their lives. For activism. It makes possible the coverage of events that the mainstream media might otherwise miss. 5. "Citizen journalism: It's one of the hottest buzzwords in the news business these days. Many news executives are probably thinking about implementing some sort of citizen-journalism initiative-Steve Outing With all its drawbacks such as removal of the gatekeeper role, citizen journalism has been responsible for bringing many things to light. It presents a whole new opporunity of exposing stories that media institutions in some cases may miss. News organizations and public relation institutions are all moving towards this form because it has proven to be a great way of promoting democratic participation and presents many options for information dissemination.