Citizen Journalism

Printed Page 88

A final development influencing newspapers’ survival is citizen journalism, also known as citizen media or community journalism. Through citizen journalism, people who are not professional journalists—such as activists concerned about a specific issue—use the Internet and blog sites to disseminate information and opinions about their favorite issues. With steep declines in newsroom staffs, numerous news media organizations—like CNN (iReport) and many regional newspapers—are increasingly drawing on citizen journalists’ work to make up for the loss of professional journalists through newsroom “downsizing.” By some estimates, more than twelve hundred community-based Web sites had emerged by 2010, well over twice the number from 2007.