As online news media becomes increasingly apparent, the global rise of ‘citizen journalism’ has been made clear. Whether through Twitter’s live recount of the 2015 Paris attacks, or more recently with the Ukrainian Crisis’ domination of the TikTok FYP, the international adoption of social media is completely changing how we view the news.
Citizen journalism, at its core, is news content produced by non-professionals (Wall, 2015). More often than not, this is by individuals using social media platforms to act as on-the-scene, primary reporters of news and world events. Though predominantly evident within the Western world, this form of reporting is beginning to gain traction globally – as social media and the internet becomes widely accessible. A key example of this lies in Sri Lanka, my heritage and a country recently undergoing a crisis.
Although only 36% of Sri Lanka has access to social media, citizen journalism has played an integral role in their recent revolution. So much so, that the opposing party actually attempted to ban social media access amidst the protests. Not only has citizen journalism helped inform and connect Sri Lankan locals, but it has also placed the protests on a global stage – with hashtags such as “#GoHomeRajapaksas” and “#GotaGoHome” trending over a variety of social media services.
@blackxtormx._ For better future! ✊🇱🇰. #gohomegota2022 #gohomegota #powertothepeople #gohomerajapaksas ♬ original sound – Thevindu wijesinghe
Unfortunately however in both the case of Sri Lanka, and citizen journalism in general, this form of reporting has proven to be a bit of a two-sided coin.
On one hand, citizen journalism provides reporting that seems significantly more personal and authentic compared to traditional news outlets. This, paired with social media’s global accessibility, results in ‘mass self-communication’ – the idea that genuine, self-generated media content has the potential to reach a global audience (Meikle & Young, 2011). We’ve seen this in Sri Lanka, most recently with videos of rioters swimming in Sri Lankan parliament going viral across a variety of platforms.
Furthering this, citizen journalists are often entirely independent, meaning they’re not regulated by a government or large entity. This results in the content being largely uncensored, allowing for both niche and controversial topics to be reported on. In the case of Sri Lanka, citizen journalism has done a great deal in publicising the crisis, especially compared to the number of mainstream media giants that have failed to do so.
On the other hand, however, citizen journalism has lent itself to a variety of problems. Firstly, the uncurated and unmoderated nature of social media often leads to a plethora of malicious or fake accounts. These accounts intentionally misinform viewers, whether in an attempt to garner clicks, to push a political agenda or simply by sheer ignorance. This spread of deceptive information is especially dangerous when you consider that our political beliefs are shaped by social media more than any other factor (Koc-Michalska et al., 2020). Moreover, a number of large news organisations get their information directly from these sources. This means, if someone’s false content is convincing enough, it may bleed into traditional news outlets. Finally, as these accounts are independent entities, the content produced may be biassed or attempting to push an agenda. Again, we can see this in Sri Lanka – with the opposing government creating numerous fake social media accounts in an attempt to fight against the online backlash being received.
It’s clear that citizen journalism is an extremely complex and multifaceted topic – the true detail of which I can’t get into here. Regardless of where you look – be it Sri Lanka, Ukraine or anywhere else in the world – both the pros and cons of this approach to news media are glaringly apparent. Though at its heart, citizen journalism provides a diverse and non-traditional approach to news media, it still has ways to come before it can be considered perfect.
