Citizen journalism is all about people collecting, reporting, analyzing and disseminating news and information especially on the social media.
This is not my definition, but that of Wikipedia.
As we all know, our world is now a global village. Therefore, we all are reporters or citizen journalists using online platforms to tell the entire world what is happening around us.
Trained journalists now rely on the social media and citizen reporters to get tips on what is happening around the world.
These tips are downloaded and then processed in accordance with the journalism ethics and then sold back to the same members of the public.
But, the truth is that hard copies of newspapers and magazines are not selling much these days. Online media platforms, blogs, forums, directories and the social media have taken over. This is good for humanity.
A citizen journalist can make a living from collecting and passing on of information, photos, tips and events for established newspapers, magazines, websites, blogs and forums for publication. This may or may be free.
But, the value of a citizen reporter helping to spread the news, good, bad or ugly will have impart on our world.
This is because lots and lots of people out there benefit one way or the other from the conventional or the social media.
These persons could be researchers, security experts, housewives, business people, bankers, journalists, lecturer, online marketers, motivational speakers, sportsmen and women, etc.
We all need the right information at any point in time to make informed opinion and decisions. And it is the media that will help us here.
Since trained journalists cannot be everywhere at the same time, the contributions of citizen reporters to informing, educating and entertaining members of the public becomes very handy.
But, the social media is not regulated for now. Therefore, some information posted on the social media are not processed. This is where our world leaders should come in.
Apart from the monetary benefits, citizen reporters will also experience a sense of fulfillment when they know that their contributions are helping to shape the world in order to make it a better place. This is immortal and goes beyond money.
I feel deep down that with time, the social media will fall in line and be able to regulate itself.
To a citizen reporter, there are many jobs out there for you and there are no limits to how much money you could make passing on tips, information and photos to established media outfits, websites, blogs and forums for possible publications.
Emmanuel Udom is editor: http://www.vicnuel.blogspot.com.ng. He is also senior correspondent with http://www.independentnig.com. Udom, a journalist, blogger, researcher and a teacher could be reached on: eeudom@yahoo.com or 2348027066807
