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Sunday, June 5, 2011

Citizen Journalism

Citizen Journalism or Participatory Journalism is an evolving form of journalism through user generated content. When any common man in his capacity as a citizen of a nation takes up the initiative to report things or express his views about happenings around him then the occurrence is popularly termed as citizen journalism or participatory journalism.

Citizen Journalists are not bound by the conventional term of a journalist. Citizen journalists take up an initiative to express ideas irrespective of their educational or professional background. In a way this emerging form of journalism is promising a scenario of breaking free from media bias as well as taking local news on a global platform.


Citizen Journalism is a model pioneered by the innovative media to give power to the powerless, voice to the voiceless, authority to the weak and vigour to the commoners; whose plight and predicament was ignored earlier. The fundamental objective of this concept is to empower citizens. But this ideal is still like a half-blossomed bud, hoping to flourish with time. This form of journalism has given sovereignty to the citizens who report the drawbacks in the society and give details of facts omitted by the mainstream media, which went unreported earlier.

Citizens were empowered with "freedom of expression" and "right to information", which was often stymied with the virus of corruption.

It’s not only the citizens who benefited with concept but the mainstream media also took advantage of the active reporting of the citizens who the first at breaking news. The footage of assassination of the US president, John F Kennedy in the 60s, the footage of 9/11, the first pictures of Tsunami and even the London bombings was taken by the citizens first and journalists later. The journalists cannot be present everywhere but citizens are and sometimes capture pictures of the happening before mainstream media. In the case of recent tragedies like 7/11 bombings, Rahul Raj killing etc, all these incidents were captured by citizens first.

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