Citizen Journalism Picks Up in the Mainstream with Fox News Joining the Fray

It might be considered daring by the foes of Fox News that the network is going the route of allowing average people to submit news stories via the routing of Fox News' MySpace page. CNN already started something similar a number of years ago to a mostly successful degree--until there was a false report on the health of Steve Jobs scoped out last fall. Before CNN started designating their term of citizen journalism, they used the moniker of "iReport", even though the small "i" might have given a subtle hint that the people were secondary to the true reporters who had their journalism degrees and extensive travel miles. Despite that, it was an innovative step forward in allowing the people to report on the world when they're usually there first when history happens.

For those of us who write for Associated Content, we all know that the site was basically the first place for citizen journalism to thrive--at least on the net. As with all new ideas that are a threat to those who work professionally, the site took a hit by the mainstream media who felt that people with no journalism credentials couldn't be taken seriously as writers. It's only been this year when Associated Content finally started getting mentioned in the mainstream media as a valuable website to not only jumpstart a freelance writing career, but also to gauge information on everything you can imagine--including news.

If you dialed up Associated Content during the Presidential election, you saw a bank of reporters hired out with little to no journalism experience cover the proceedings with as much aplomb as major media. And then you have the other team of writers who are the philosophers (well, count me as one in part) who usually make stronger and profundity-laden points about our world than anything you can dredge up on Google News feeds.

Of course, citizen journalism on the cable news shows means going out into the field with a video or cell camera and giving eyewitness accounts to events happening in the moment. They aren't about to let the average person write out a news script. In that department, the cable news industry still seems to have political bias in the newsroom where the agendas are all carefully planned out on the teleprompter in morning meetings. CNN and Fox News may be the Yin & Yang in the opposites of political leanings, yet they don't always deny that they lean a little left or right, outside of Fox News playing up their fair & balanced mantra.

Now you'll find citizen message board writers writing angrily that Fox News is somehow heading left with that cable news network's sudden foray into citizen journalism. While I admit that I like and watch Fox News more than CNN, even I found it surprising that they're going to take the risk of being accused of copying CNN in the citizen journalism arena. Some sycophants to Fox News might spout that the network didn't really have to bring citizen journalism to their news division when their high ratings don't preclude having to be competitive with the competition. The network, though, obviously realizes the potential of letting average people report big scoops on news when one missed news story can mean everybody switching to another cable network over another for a long period of time.

Then there's that tiny problem with citizen journalism Fox News already experienced once when being duped by a satire story on...yes, Associated Content...
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Anybody who's written for Associated Content long enough knows about the near-legendary story of how Fox News once reported a story written here about a Muslim hate crime involving a ham sandwich. Because satire continues to fly at high altitudes over the heads of even the media, Fox News inadvertently reported the story as true back in the spring of 2007 when the article was located in the Humor section. It didn't really hurt Fox News that much then, though it might have had it happened now with Associated Content's overdue rise in mainstream respect.

Yes, when it comes to citizen journalism, there's always going to be someone out there who will make an effort to create a news story for a little fun or to make a strong point. Don't be surprised if you see Fox News have to retract a story down the road because someone designated as a citizen journalist decided to create a news story that's bogus, yet created a sea of guffaws for those who understand satire made to look as real as possible. Or, it could be just an accidental erroneous story as CNN had to endure this last fall with the false report of Steve Jobs having a heart attack.

That's the astounding aspect to Fox News picking up on the citizen journalism trend. When dealing with the average public, it's always going to be risky in the stories reported whether there's complete accuracy involved without having a fact-checker team digging deep before validating the story. In the competitive world of news, checking to make sure the story is true might take too long and, hence, the inevitable mistake and eventual apologetic retraction.

But in a lot of cases, it might be a good thing to have happen so it keeps the media and us on our toes about what's really happening out there. As I insinuated, the satire pieces are generally made as a purpose to make that very point. It wouldn't even hurt to let those through the cracks on occasion through Fox News in order to send that point to complacent viewers who think that everything they're hearing through the experienced news team is God's honest truth.

When there's clearly extreme political bias in all our news divisions, the truth obviously can't be disseminated. However, most of the populace want truth and can probably be counted on to gather as much truth as possible to the cable networks. That's why Fox News will endure the gripes and complaints about shifting left, copying CNN or not utilizing their team of reporters enough.

I dare say that the news from the people that Associated Content helped snowball is becoming more reliable and meaningful than most other media. For the first time, the mainstream media knows this, behind all those past and present vitriolic statements against it. The risk of having a few mistakes for the chance at finding more truth within our country is obviously an investment by the media so people won't turn their back on them in the future...

Source:

http://www.upi.com/Business_News/2009/04/20/Fox-News-opens-door-for-uReporters/UPI-32571240249975/