Citizen Journalism

Technological advances have allowed citizen journalism to spread rapidly over the past decade. Citizen journalists can post their information through blogs, videos and social media platforms to provide possible eye witness account where the mainstream media may not have footage of.  YouTube has only been around for less than a decade and it already has a huge impact on citizen journalism.  Anyone can post videos and information on this site for anyone can see across the world.  Citizen journalist use this media platform to put their footage out for the world to see with just one click on the computer.  Citizen journalism is changing the way people get their news and where they get it from. 

Here is a video found on YouTube on some of the top citizen journalism moments from Katie Couric.

With the technological advances happening all the time, it makes it very easy for citizen journalists to get their information of videos online.  Anyone who has a smart phone or and iPhone can be a citizen journalist.  Having the ability to have something in your pocket and being able to pull it out to capture video footage at anytime and posting that video on the spot.  Here is a video on how technology is changing journalism..

I predict that the work force of professional journalism will continue to change towards more citizen journalism.  I believe that more and more professional journalists are going to have to count on citizen journalist to get their information and footage from point of view encounters.  I believe that professional journalist will need to have citizen journalist on a 'team' and provide their stories and videos to them in order for professional journalism to stay alive.  I believe that we still need professional journalist because we need someone who can look over these stories and be able to present them effectively and i believe that this is where the journalism field is going.