The Media Guardian (reg required) looks at the rise of citizen-journalists. PressThink's Jay Rosen is one of the experts quoted:
He calls this a "1989 moment" for news media, and thinks the hybridisation of blogging and traditional journalism is at the heart of the revolution. But is there not a danger that amid the excitement we will lose the hard-won strengths of professional reporting? [...]
"It's true that we are used to a steady diet of verified information, and that there is nothing that guarantees that it will stay. But the problem of finding a way around the tension between democratic news and reliable news is a practical one for news consumers. It won't be solved by talking, but by doing. You can bet that people will find ways of getting the information they want, and making sure it is true."
And the future for the major players? That, says Rosen, is too unclear to predict: "No one knows if the major news providers will survive the rise of these sites and others like them. But just that fact is indicative of the magnitude of what's happening. These players - Fox, CNN - used to be giants that strode the earth. Now we're wondering if they'll still be here in 20 years."
There's also a mention of Matt Foster's blog, Citizen Spin. I hadn't come across it before. Definitely one for the blogroll.
Hi there - I thought I’d just flesh out some of my thoughts a bit more. I’m actually lead trainer for Network Radio here at the BBC, having previously been a journalist. I’m currently undertaking an MSc in Corporate Communications - specialising in the internet as a communcations channel.
You’ll find my posting following the discussion with the Guardian journalist here: http://citizenspin.typepad.com/citizenspin/2005/08/uk_consumer_gen.html
... and today’s posting on the subject:
http://citizenspin.typepad.com/citizenspin/2005/08/bbc_further_emb.html
… which is a good example from the BBC as to how they’re embracing citizen-journalism.
Matt
Posted by: Matt Foster | Monday, August 15, 2005 at 05:24 PM