NewsTechZilla | Not Just Tech News…Tech FOR News

Some will argue that “citizen journalists” are a good idea, but the cost factor of this particular “breed” of “journalist” must be carefully considered, as well.

I spent many years in newspapers, having started as a reporter, then editor, up the ranks higher, and then back to being what I wanted and what brought me pleasure in my career: being a reporter. In all phases, though, I had to deal with the mountain of “press releases” issued by every kind of organization known to man, both near and far, and some so far off-base it was pathetic.

When you look only at press releases — the ones not sent by professional firms, but rather by many local groups and organizations — things become evident: not everyone is meant to be a writer. Sometimes, because a press release sounded promising for a feature or even as a news item, it took more time trying to find out **what exactly** was going on than it was worth. Too often, too much hoopla was added, making a candle-lighting ceremony sound more like an inaugural ceremony for a governor or a simple community breakfast focused on discussing local issues sounding like it was a forum to address ways to actually begin addressing the problems.

Even if someone submits a “story” as a “citizen journalist,” I’d be interested in seeing — over a six month to one-year period — how much time is spent by staff in cleaning up all those stories, making them ready for publication, such as fixing spelling, grammar, punctuation, correct spelling of names, etc.

During the collapse of the former Soviet Union, I used the Internet to chat with a few people in various parts of the former USSR. These were all people I had known from before the event, so trusting what they said wasn’t an issue. By using these folks, I was able to report on things happening in the former USSR during its final hours, and even provide a local twist: one person was a local resident.

Use of IRC, IM, email, FTP — no, using all available resources (part of being an enterprising journalist) — helps you overcome challenges that would often stump others. The key is to never allow obstacles to stop you from achieving your goal.

How does that transform into newsrooms for the 21st century? Many of the people my age and older — even some younger ones — that I worked with over the years who shied away from using various technologies (and some still do, as they only want to use the technologies they must, i.e., computer, Internet, email, but not IM, not IRC, etc.). It’s a top-down approach that must be taken, ensuring that the senior editors, the editors, and all news staff understand — and can use — new technologies as they are introduced. Instead of being technophobes, newsroom staff must learn to adapt to new technologies as they emerge, not wait until they are “hot items” among teenagers.