Citizen journalism is reshaping how news and information is shared through the rise of blogs, YouTube, and social media. The document discusses how the concept of the "prosumer" - someone who both produces and consumes media - has grown with the ability of everyday users to both read and create online content. While this allows unofficial news to spread more widely, it also raises issues around objectivity and quality as citizen journalists may lack training and have their own biases. The role of social networks in both spreading official and unofficial information during emergencies is also examined.

1. Street Journalism
How blogs and Youtube are reshaping our lives
and how should we read them
Massimiliano Mesenasco
Media Languages B.A.
@MMesenasco
Provincia di Alessandria - Servizio Protezione
Civile
Social Media Melting in Emergencies 2012

2. Citizen journalism is based on the prosumer,
the key figure of the Web.
The prosumer melts the figures of producer and
comsumer to create a “superuser” who reads
other users’ content and creates its own.

3. The Web prosumer was born together with the
first BBS in the early 90’s but gained popularity
with the proliferation of the first bloggers in
1997.
Blog is a portmanteau for the words web log:
this expression appeared in 1999.

4. This were the first blogging services:
- Open Diary, 1998
- LiveJournal, 1999
- Blogger.com, 1999

5. Today blogging is almost overwhelmed by social
media:
- Youtube
- Flickr
- Ustream
- Tumblr

6. With the widespread presence of mobile
connections, citizen journalism hits the street:
in some parts of the World (ex. China, Australia)
wireless connections exceeded fixed lines and
this trend will become global in a few years.
2007: cellular and Wi-Fi
connectivity, 2Mp
camera
1983: just phonecalls
over TACS network

7. Web 2.0, the “New Web”, is the hometown of
the prosumer, thanks to the rise of social
networks and social media.
Every user is free to publish its own news on the
social media and boost them through social
networks.
The users create a dimension of informal and
unofficial news that spreads over the links and
the nodes of the net.

8. Since the beginning of the 21st century, this mass
of unofficial informations started to leak into the
world of the traditional media and the prosumer
has become a primary source for news
covering.
And what are the consequences of this process
for the management of an emergency?

9. Official Unofficial
Mass
a
Media
a
Peer
a
Communication
Command
& a
Control
Let’s put it into
practice...

10. Social Networks,
TV, radio,
Official statements, Official press... Unofficial Social Media,
press releases Media websites
Mass
a
Media
a
Peer
a
Communication
Command
& a
Control
Posters, megaphone, bullettins,
Social Networks, Social Media, Social Networks,
Social Networks, Social Media
e-government tools Social Media

11. Main controversies against citizen journalism:
Objectivity
Quality
These two aspects are strictly related since an
incomplete or partial piece of news could equally
be partisan and/or of poor quality.

12. Controversy: Objectivity
Citizen journalists may be activists for the issues
or within the communities they write about.
This lack of trustworthiness may affect both
social media and the traditional media who use
the citizens as a source.

13. Warning!
Even photos and videos could easily be partisan
Pics from 11/16/2012 student demonstration in
Italy
Pro
Police
Pro
demonstrator
s

14. Warning!
Even photos and videos could easily be partisan
Every frame appeals to a specific image in our collective
imagination that’s part of our cultural references.
These references belongs to the cultural system we
share with the other member of our generation, social
class, political party, religion and so on...

15. Controversy: Quality
Citizen journalists are not information
professionals so their product could not include
some informations that are fundamental to
understand the whole story.

16. Just one more reflection with no answer.
With citizen journalism, the masses become a
part of the Fourth Estate.