With the rise of social media, citizen journalism continues to soar as many people are seizing the opportunity to spread news, awareness, and other valuable information to the public. Many people think it is necessary to have citizen journalism since the credibility of the mainstream media is getting questionable. Many believe that they spread news depending on the benefit of some and is somewhat deviating from the truth.
Journalism is about providing accurate and relevant information to the people by gathering facts. However, if it no longer serves its purpose, and mainstream media nowadays seem to be a form of a mind-conditioning platform, people feel the need to get involved and opt for citizen journalism. Nonetheless, everything has advantages and disadvantages. Many people may think it is beneficial to the public, but there are also some who see it as a hindrance or a mockery of real journalism and their citizen journalism ethics.
Advantages Of Citizen Journalism:
It Gives An Opportunity To Cover All Sides Of The Story
There are occasions when stories need more details to it, and since people are more involved and concerned nowadays, they have means to confirm, correct, and add information about the news from the mainstream media as there are instances when they would only focus on one part of the story, leaving other important and relevant information.
It Gives Opportunity To Local Communities And Ordinary People
News from a local or small town can now be known to all people around the world since citizen journalism is accessible to all. It gives power to ordinary people to state facts which can sometimes lack the mainstream media.
It Focuses On Small But Real Challenges
The mainstream media would only cover general or big stories. However, with citizen journalism people from all walks of like get the chance to show problems that are happening but people don’t notice because no one lets them know. A great example of this is asking help for less fortunate citizens. It is less likely that their stories would be heard in the news, but through citizen journalism, concerned individuals get the chance to seek the help of other people who would gladly help if they only know.
Disadvantages Of Citizen Journalism:
It Confuses People Whether To Believe Or Not
People know that traditional journalism follows a particular protocol or rules before they report something. For this reason, it is easier to believe it than citizen journalism. Nowadays, everyone can write or show whatever he or she wants on the internet, and it is up to the audience to believe it or not. It creates confusion as people are not sure when the truth is a lie and vice versa.
It Has a Small Audience
Citizen journalism is usually through social media, and millions of people are on it. However, how do you reach those who are not? There are places in the world where people don’t seem to give much attention to social media that’s why it is impossible for them to have access to the news, report, or blog.
It Can Be Subjective
One’s thought, and beliefs may influence citizen journalism. It could be more of an opinion rather than a fact. Many people are fanatics and theorists that they sound convincing when they tell a story. It is challenging to determine which information is real and which are pure speculations.
Citizen journalism rises along with technological advancement, and based on how we project progress, it is likely that it will now be a part of spreading information. Some may like citizen journalism and some may not, but it is up to the public to decide whether the information they see is real or fake.