Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Twitter wins big

Sorry about putting this up late but the long trip home from our vacation just zapped me yesterday. During my trip, of course, the big news was the protest in Iran. The media landscape changed dramatically because of this event. As professional journalists were banned from reporting the events, everyday citizens began using twitter, facebook, and youtube to post news and video/photos of the events on the ground. CNN and the other news stations were forced to use viewer created content for their stories. This brings us to some important questions.
1. What will news channels and newspapers look like 15 years from now?
2. What role should professional journalists play in this new media world when viewers create the content?



two paragraphs on this please. also, please add your real name when posting. sometimes it is hard for me to figure out who you are from the user name.

14 comments:

marjorie said...

I think news channels and newspapers will grow over the next fifteen years. I think newspaper information will probably have to be discovered technically for less printing and more profit. Also, I think technology will also give news channels a boost. I think the events of scenes will be more visible as a result of technology.
I think the job of journalists should be to gather and record the information or facts needed to have a story. They should also show why things are important instead of just digging up dirt on people. They should be more compassionate about people's lives.

Abbi said...

I think that it is an interesting time when we as citizens are the primary source of information for the news. It brings us back to the question about whether or not the media tells us what to think about or what to think. In this case, the fact that everyday citizens were the sources it would seem that we were allowed to “shape” the story ourselves by deciding what to put out for the public to view. As to the first stated question, I think that newspapers will look very different. We are already seeing a major trend in more online newspaper sources rather than paper versions. The main thing that is sustaining traditional paper news right now is the older generation that prefers that form to the Internet version. However, soon the main generation consuming the news will be that which is technologically savvy and most times prefers an electronic version via the Internet. The main change that I think we will see is that electronic news or Internet news sites will become less and less free. In order for the paper to continue to make money (other than off of the advertisements that people have on their site) they will have to charge the readers. I’m not totally sure how that will look or how well that will go over with the public.

The second question focuses on the role of professional journalists in this “new” territory where we help provide the content. I am not sure what exactly their role will be. My first thought was to keep order, as in provide a structured and well-formatted version of the content so that it would be easy for everyone to still obtain the news they wanted. However, after I thought about it, these sites like youtube and twitter are already helping to provide that structure. I am not sure whether or not they will take over the traditional news media or if they will just provide alternative views to the things that are going on around the world.

ChaosandOrder said...

News Channels will probably look like they do now, only with more useless information and senseless hype. If they are talking about the latest break up between reality tv stars now, then there is no telling what kind of crap they will come up with in the next 15 years. Newspapers have still stayed somewhat true to their roots, but the cost to keep them printed and delivered makes them a dying breed. This is especially true since alot of advertisement and classifieds can be posted for free on the internet instead of paying for a spot in the paper.

I believe professional journalists should always check and double check their facts before presenting any kind of information they have found on the internet. The internet is a free haven for a lot of good things and a lot of things that go bump in the night. With things like photoshop being such a remarkable programs one cannot even rely on photographic evidence anymore; it could all be a hoax. It is still a good thing that people are able to get involved in the media like this becasue it can help cut down on a lot of bias.

allison said...

News channels and newspaper will be the same with alot more advanced technology going into delivering the news to people. I think they will have alot more information and probally be more accurate than they are now. Technologies and inventions will have alot to do with the way the news is interpretted to the people.
It is the journalist responsibility to make sure the information obtained is real and correct. They need to research the information that regualar people have posted. The need to check their own work with others and see how it compares. Bottom line, they need to do their "professional job" and make sure all information given to the public is correct and if they have done all the research and do not know if their outcome is correct they need to be able to let the public know of their doubts and concerns on the information they are reporting.

Jon Goldman said...

I think with the big rise in social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook we'll see more and more news stations using viewer created material. Even though this can be dangerous because the stations can't exactly check out the information being provided. But i think it does give the news stations a unique edge to receive inside information about on going news stories that they could not actually physically send a journalist to cover. This was seen with the events going on in Iran.

I think its a good idea to use the information in situations where no outside reports are permitted, such as the Iran events. But I think they should be weary of the information for just everyday use. Its okay to use it for viewer opinions, but it should not replace normal journalism.

Meryl said...

First, I do think the media is making a big change. Journalist can now literally post news by the second with smart phones and services such as twitter. Even things like sporting events are followed by a journalist, with minute by minute updates on social networds. 15 years from now i imagine news will still be like it is today, but we may see a change in what is worthy of making TV news shows and what is posted on social networks....or vice versa.
Also with these networks, like you said, anyone can post content. I think that journalist are going to have to stay on their toes. And viewer and readers need to take caution on what they believe and not believe. Professional journalist still have a job to uphold of bringing the news to their viewers.

tFisher said...

In 15 years from now, I believe that news channels and media as we know it today will be completely different. I agree that printed media will be obsolete and that this will be in the form of internet only. These printed papers are already hurting financially at this time. Until now I never stopped and thought of these online news services being a charge or membership fee to view, however I totally agree that it will turn into them focusing on profit and bottom lines. Does this mean that we will see them in turn paying that everyday citizen that submit these videos? The citizen could then choose what network to take their business to for the best profit. One other major change that is already forming is knowing more about other countries, not just what their government wants people to know. As shown in the Iran clips it allows other countries and even the people of Iran to form an opinion and protest. Twitter and other network sites have let the “cat out of the bag”.
The professional journalist role will change as more citizens create the content of the news. I hope that cell phones and video cameras will improve for fast motion so I will not get motion sickness from watching more than a minute of the amateur footage. It would also be helpful if these cameras would have a program to validate the footage shown, not allowing alteration of Photoshop and other editing programs. As far as jobs, many camera crews that work for the networks will be out of work and only multi-tasking journalists will keep their jobs due to the fast pace with internet and phone entries. With the increasing amount of content coming into these networks from the public, more jobs will be in the office section of the networks, sorting the important wanted news from the non-news. I would like to think that some journalist will still be putting together stories for the broadcast. I would rather hear about the train collision from a journalist and not a passenger freaking out and recording from inside the train.
~Terry Fisher

Unknown said...

That is something I never thought about regarding possible refacing of news channels and newspapers. I feel that newspapers have already changed because some are available online. I don't know the last time I bought a Vicksburg Post or Delta Democrat Times. I have both sites saved in my favorites and I view everything from the front page story to the obituary and the want ads. I wish our town paper would change though. Deer Creek Pilot is so...blah. There is a lot that goes on in our area that isn't reported. I look for things in that paper and never find it because it wasn't written. But they will write who came to town to visit who as well as pics of eight year olds who shot and killed their first deer! No, I'm not kidding, that's news in these parts for some. In 15 years there won't be newspapers anymore. It will be phased out by the world wide web. As far as televised news, I believe we will have more news magazine shows than actual "now with the 10:00p.m. news" type of deals. Actual hard hitting news is already being phased out with waterdowned versions of itself. Everything is about ratings these days instead of facts and importance. When viewers create content I think that journalist should keep it real. Viewers are going to give the scoop without tainting it trying to make it more than what it is for shock value. Journalist need should just make sure no laws were broken in order to gain the story or footage and give credit where credit is due.

mhayes said...

I think that these different websites are a great way to express yourself. However, people are starting to take it too far. Everyone is entitled to their opinion and they have the freedom to express but these are social networks not political ones. I think "everyday people" should leave the news coverage to the media. And the media can't get immediate access to the news they need to wait until they can find accurate information. The professionals should be careful about using the viewer created content. If they use it they should make sure they state that it is viewer created. Soon the news channels and newspaper are going to be filled with stories from the perspective of "everyday" people. We won't need newspapers anymore because these social networking websites will take the place of that. Everyone will just go to facebook to the news. For example. A friend of mine told me about Michael Jackson passing yesterday and what was the first thing I did? I logged on to facebook to see if it were true. I didn't go to CNN.com or MSNBC.com. I went to facebook. Am I the only one that does things like this?

Marquita Michelle Hayes

MR said...

Wow. This is tough. I really am not much of a news watcher, but it does concern me that random people are fueling the media with the information they are reporting on. I don't think that this can last for 15 years because at some point there is going to be a mistake that cost way to much to listen to random people.

There are journalists who get paid to find the story and hopefully it is the truth. I think the media should let them do their jobs and then leave all the social sites to themsevles. The media is making this harder than it has to be.
-MReno

Phillips Harbarger said...

I think that news channels will probably look a lot like they do now, how they report the news will probably change a good bit. I think we are starting to see the trend where news outlets are looking more towards social networking sites to report some of the news as we have seen in Iran. I think we will see a lot more of this in the future. Newspapers on the other hand, I believe will grow more towards the internet side of things. I think we will see less paper products and more electronic editions to cut cost.
I think professional journalists should always us common sense. There are so many ways to false report stories these days that its hard to find out what is true and false. People can post anything on the internet these days and it the journalists job to pick out what is true and false. They should use good judgement when reporting on information from another source.

cstone042 said...

I believe the news media will look a lot similar in 15 years as it does today. I foresee a bunch of talking heads imposing their bias views on honest hard working
Americans the only difference will be a clearer picture, bigger TV’s, and new faces. I hope we will all be watching it from free over the air broadcasts like in the old days before cable companies hijacked TV. Nancy Grace Jr. will still be presuming people guilty, on national television, before they have their day in court. Mississippi’s favorite son Sheppard Smith’s predecessor will still have a horrible fake spray on tan and MSNBC will still suck.
I believe the only differences are that ignorant people like Steve and the people that call into QVC will have their opinions heard. One might think that including Joe the plumber’s opinion would be a good thing being that we live in a democracy and that’s the democratic way. But, you have to remember that the opinions being aired will be screened by the same people who produce this yellow journalism. The viewer created content that will be aired will be spun to enhance the agenda of the corporations’ that are reporting it. I also believe that the days of print journalism will be over before 2024. Professional journalists should play the same role in the new media age as they do today. Their role is to report the news that’s it no opinions. If they want to express their opinion they should talk to Oprah.

Lanna Nations said...

I think as far as news channels are concerned, we will probably see more interactive news with the viewers. We saw during the Presidential Debate that Youtube played a significant role in interacting voters with the candidates. I think that this will continue to grow with time and we will definitely have more direct interaction with the media. I also think that newspapers will eventually die out. I think computers will our source for reading the news and this will be cost efficient and environmentally friendly.
As for professional journalists, I don't think their roles will change much. I think we look to them to provide information based on facts and research. This is why they are considered professionals because they have the education and experience to research stories. I do think that the content of what is being reported now is becoming very weak superficial, but as for news, we need someone who is dedicated and gets it right. In that aspect, I don't think the role of professional journalists will change.

Paige said...

15 Years from now, news channels and newspapers will be delivered via the internet 85-90% of the time. I think there will be a big push for IPTV and also for personal eBook readers which will automatically download your daily times.
A major broadcasting shift is occurring, with more and more social networking sites...the media is beginning to be taken over by the people. There is an iPhone app that lets you report in real time to CNN, where a moderator can release stories to the web. I think professional journalists should continue to dig stories, but enjoy the fact that much of their information now streams in from the masses. I think this new push toward viewer created content and internet connected everything will make what the media reports much more real.
-Steve Caldwell