NDM News: Citizen journalism and hyper-reality

The rise and rise of UGC
Sara Mills explores the rise of the citizen journalist and considers the impact of user-generated content on news stories, the news agenda, and the role of the professionals.

• Examples:

- Rodney King was an  African American, who was beaten up brutally by four Police Officers from Los Angeles. He was involved in a chase, where he was tasered and beaten up with clubs. This tragic event was filmed by an onlooker, the video made prime time news and was viewed by many. 

- The Asian Tsunami, this natural disaster was recorded by citizens who were nearby and saw the incoming waves.

- London Bombings of 2005.

- Mumbai Bombings. 

- Hudson River Plane Crash. 

• Theories:

Benefits to institutions:

-Institutions benefit from this, as their viewers would increase due to having more, first hand footage.

-Journalists wouldn't have to go to places in order to capture footage and record.

-Institutions seen as reliable for having exclusive footage. 

Benefits to audiences:

-Audiences are able to record and share what they want.

-They are able to inform other people about what is happening. 

-Content recorded and published has more of a realistic feel.

Wider issues and debates:

-Allows people to be exposed that are in the wrong.

- UGC allows audiences to voice their opinions and beliefs. 

SHEP:

Social - audiences voices and opinions are allowed to be expressed through UGC, without the intrusion of gatekeepers. 

Historical - Rodney King, a black African american who was brutally beaten up by four police officers.

Economical - many big institutions were effected due to audiences focusing more so citizen journalism. 

Political - Political or even racial events were easily recorded and shared. 

What is meant by the term ‘citizen journalist’? 

The term 'citizen journalist' is used when normal/everyday record and capture footage using phones or cameras, and make it to news.

 What was one of the first examples of news being generated by ‘ordinary people’?

One of the first examples of news being generated by 'ordinary people' was the Rodney King case.

List some of the formats for participation that are now offered by news organisations.

- Message rooms

- Chat boards

- Q&A's

- Polls

- Blogs

What is one of the main differences between professionally shot footage and that taken first-hand (UGC)?

Professional shot footage is more clear and the quality is better. Whereas the quality of citizen journalism is more shaky, realistic and the footage isn't as clear.

What is a gatekeeper?

A gatekeeper is someone who mediates the news, deciding whether or not the piece of news should be published or not. 

How has the role of a gatekeeper changed?

The role of the gatekeeper has changed, as the audience has the power of being able to publish whatever they want.

What is one of the primary concerns held by journalists over the rise of UGC?

One primary concern held by journalists is that their jobs can be lost if user generated 

content increases.

Offer your own opinion (critical autonomy) on the following:

• news stories:

Despite the quality of the footage not being so professional, it creates more of a realistic feel with less editing and more stories.

• the news agenda (the choice of stories that make up the news)

News industries are almost dependent on the content citizens manage to capture. 

• the role of professionals in news

Professionals need to ensure that the content they publish looks legit. 

Hyper-reality and the digital renaissance

1) The article was written in 2009. Offer three examples of more recent social networking sites or uses of technology that support the idea of a 'digital renaissance'.

-Twitter

-Snapchat

-Instagram

All three of these apps support the idea of 'digital renaissance'. Firstly, Twitter allows audiences to voice their opinions and express not only social views, but political views as well. Instagram allows audiences to post pictures and videos, along with snapchat. Through this, audiences are able to represent the way their society is shaped.

How do live streaming services such as Periscope or Facebook Live fit into the idea of a 'digital renaissance'? Are these a force for good or simply a further blurring of reality?

In my opinion, I think these services offer more of realistic view of society and what people are actually getting up to. As it's 'live' streaming it can't be edited and therefore shows what is actually happening. 

How can we link the 'digital renaissance' to our case study on news? Is citizen journalism a further example of hyper-reality or is it actually making news more accurate and closer to real life?

Citizen journalism is a way for the audience to feel more connected and intrigued with the content that is being showed, as it's raw content, that hasn't been edited or shot professionally. Therefore, it is more accurate and closer to real life as it hasn't been edited. However, one may argue that the people who are recording and publishing content, could be publishing biased content and therefore, may not always be accurate.