My photojournalism students are struggling with the concept of citizen journalism. What's the difference between a journalist, a citizen journalist and a blogger?
One student defined her new role as a collegiate journalist/blogger this way:
"The point I keep coming back to is 'using the press tools they have.' If you do not have press tools (or knowledge of them) then you cannot use it (the title of citizen journalist). In this class, we are learning the tools of the press - editing, ethics, establishing facts and writing skills. Once we have them, then we can employ them to become citizen journalists. Those bloggers that do not employ even the smallest bit of press tools are just citizens participating in the social media via blogging. This issue is not about one being bad and the other good. They both have their place in society but we do need to recognize which category they fit into."
Yes, I think Kathie gets it. Press tools make the difference, and one of those tools is verification. According to The Elements of Journalism authors: The essence of journalism is a discipline of verification. That's a pretty simplistic statement, considering they compare verifying information to the science of reporting. Science? Yikes.
They then break down the intellectual principles of a science of reporting to these core concepts:
1. Never added anything that was not there.
2. Never deceive the audience.
3. Be as transparent as possible about your methods and motives.
4. Rely on your own original reporting.
5. Exercise humility.
These are easy enough to understand. But, of course, there is more to verifying information than these five concepts. But it's a start.
Good points; they can post as a citizen but should be treated as a journalist only if they make an effort to verify and attribute
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