Citizen Journalist showing good returns

As journalism continuously undergoes changes, one of the most constant themes is bridging the gap between traditional journalist and the consumer. Some of the earlier measures have including feedback areas and other forms of voicing their opinions, but the newest wave is citizen journalism.

Citizen journalism has been a somewhat common practice at smaller publications where the number of staff was low, but now it is being utilized by bigger media corporations for breaking news stories and more.

This form of journalism had its break into the mainstream landscape during Hurricane Katrina in the fall of 2005. During Katrina, when access into the gulf coast region was difficult at best. Using citizen journalism, the stories in remote areas and of those demographics getting overlooked were able to be brought to the public’s attention.

MSNBC, the company which ran the above Katrina coverage, has their own section on its page for citizen journalist to send in stories and add to the ongoing coverage of breaking stories. Recently, this has also been employed by major outlets in the coverage of the wild fires in San Diego and other surrounding areas.

In The Baltimore Sun, it talks about stories from people directly affected by the fires and what they went through in the process. As said in a quote from Nancy Lane of CNN, you just can’t get those types of stories from a professional journalist.

Now, citizen journalism won’t make traditional journalist obsolete, but it is a real part of journalism going forward. With more staff cuts each year and the area of coverage growing, newspapers and the Internet need reporters at all possible scenes to bring their readers some sort of coverage on breaking news stories until their reporters can get there. From the early returns, they aren’t have bad at it.

E:60 carries on news magazine movement

Journalism has taken on many forms over time and has undergone many changes in the process. From print media to the first broadcasts, journalism has been shaped and reshaped time and time again.

One such change has been the emergence of television news magazine shows, which was pioneered 40 years ago by CBS with “60 Minutes”. The show was revolutionary for television and provided a staple for American culture with the ticking clock

Roughly 28 years later, HBO unveiled the sports counter-part to “60 Minutes,” with Real Sports hosted by Bryant Gumbel. The show has pushed the issue on many topics related to sports, like race and international incidents. They also added a debriefing segment after each story where the reporter would be asked questions by Gumbel and add any more interesting tidbits for their story.

However, with the debut of E:60, ESPN’s try at a news magazine show, the landscape for this market has been changed.

Away are the stiff suites and traditional camera work and in their place are young reporters who show up to their production meetings with open collars and jeans. They have a clock too, but in 2007, the clock has turned digital.

E:60 has video of the production meetings, see why the reporter wants to do the story and what problems they have with the story. They also have “web bios” for each of the reporters that allow you to get to know the people telling you the stories.

So, for news consumers today, there is the traditional (60 Minutes), the modern (E:60) and the in-between (Real Sports). With journalism organizations trying to find what connections to the young adult demographic, has ESPN hit the mark with their new show?

E:60 will have to overcome some issues in breaking away from the conventional way of doing this type of show, but being bold and being committed with air time and money will make this show a success and change the way we as a society look at in-depth reporting both in sports and other genres.

Digital Problems getting real-life answers

We have seen great advancements in technology over the last few decades, but with that, we have widened the gap between those with access to the technology and those who don’t. This gap has affected those in this country and around the world.

One such problem area is in rural areas, where connectivity is kind of sketchy. Some Canadian Township decided not to invest in newer technology to improve wireless service, but they were then without internet for some time, the article said.

They eventually had to make the financial investment and upgrade, but it is these issues that communities and society in general have to deal with in deciding which side of the divide they want to be on.

One quote in the article stated that not having high-speed internet for your kids puts them at a deficit in school.

However, there are programs being developed that will help erase some of gap. In North Carolina, there is a new project underway where used computers are collected and upgraded to then be given to families who need them.

There is a similar program gaining national attention with the XO Laptops. In this program, you can buy a laptop for $399 and in the process, you also buy a laptop for a child in a developing country, the article said.

Programs in theory and on a small scale are nice, but unless policy is behind it, the movement will flame out without much concrete results. While it isn’t a mainstream issue like the war in Iraq, health care or the budget, the digital divide is gaining traction around debates, like the one shown in the YouTube video below.

Is the divide ever going to disappear? No, but if we can continue to see these programs implemented and have serious political discussion on the issue, the gap can shrink and information can be received more freely.

Community is just a click away

Community is a word that has a different definition for each person, depending on their upbringing and their current state of mind. It is dependant on age, race and sex. So, with all of these factors, you can imagine the conflicting views on community.

Generally speaking, a community is a group of people who share many of the same likes and dislikes and can count on one another. This can range from talking about your favorite sports teams to your family to how to beat the newest game on Xbox 360.

Over the last half century, this sense of community and togetherness has been reshaped to bring in the Internet. Some of the same characteristics of a community still apply in that it is a group of mostly like minded people who have come together to meet new people and lean on each other.

An online community is just that. It is a community space entirely online where you know the person’s screen name and preferences, but not much else. There are many benefits to being a part of an online community and it starts with not having to sacrifice.

In a “meat” community, you won’t find someone with all of your likes and dislikes and your passions will differ. Online, communities are tailored to enhancing your passions by bringing together people who share that passion.

The biggest difference though is that your community doesn’t exist of Matt’s, Kevin’s and Lindsay’s from Yuba City. Your best friends in an online community are FBAddict, Muddenguts and superle, from NorCalPreps.com.

Message boards aren’t just for niche sites like NorCalPreps.com either. Media giants like ESPN and CBS have also joined the game. In the end, when you are trying to get out your opinions or information, it isn’t about who you know, but what you know in online communities.