A recent edition of Editor and Publisher, the oldest journal covering the newspaper industry, reported on a study by the University of Missouri School of Journalism that found that the number of citizen journalists is insufficient to meet the needs of shrinking newsrooms. Here is the lead paragraph of the story:
Citizen journalism isn’t stepping up sufficiently to fill the “information shortfall” caused by cutbacks in the newsrooms of newspapers and other traditional news organizations, a University of Missouri School of Journalism study finds.
To read the whole story – CLICK HERE.
Why are there too few citizen journalists? I can think of at least five reasons:
- It is a new movement. Everything about citizen journalism is experimental, entrepreneurial or totally new-fangled. Because it is new, it has no tradition, organization or universally accepted standards.
- The movement is fractured. It has no cohesion, no leader and no original source. It is today very much like the newspaper industry was from the 1700s until 1909 when the Society of Professional Journalists, originally Sigma Delta Chi, was organized.
- Not much pay in it. Most citizen journalists are volunteers or are very poorly paid. Therefore it is not a magnet for large numbers of people or top quality talent.
- Some derision and minimal recognition. Many professional journalists see the movement as a threat to their very survival so give it little or no credibility. Some deride the movement as meaningless and even hurtful to the news business. There is very little recognition for the achievements of citizen journalists. Someone needs to start offering a price for citizen journalists comparable to a Pulitzer Prize.
- There is very little training available for aspiring citizen journalists. Several books have been written about the movement, but only one book has been written for the movement – “Handbook for Citizen Journalists.” Also, the National Association of Citizen Journalists offers online training and certification.
One significant solution for the shortage of citizen journalists is awaiting development – SENIOR citizen journalists. Senior citizens are absolutely without question a demographic that can be recruited and trained to fill the gap left by the diminishing newsrooms the University of Missouri School of Journalism report speaks of.
In my next blog, I will give nine reasons why senior citizens offer the fastest and best immediate answer to the shortfall of citizen journalists.
Dr. Ross is the co-founder of the National Association of Citizen Journalists and the co-author of “Handbook for Citizen Journalists.”
future of journalism may rest in the hands of well-trained, well-motivated citizen journalists. However, the first half of the blog is a rather dour report on the increasing decrease of ad revenue for newspapers and other legacy media outlets.
to himself as a “freelancing radio journalist.” In a humorous, and I believe authentic way, he describes the relationship between bloggers and professional journalists.
Presentation: “IPI Report on a News Future and the Future of the Journalism Profession” Presentation of a special report on the future of the news industry and the impact of emerging new media and technologies on the journalism profession itself. Moderator: Michael Lang, Editor-in-Chief, APA – Austria Press Agency, Vienna.
“During the first half of the eighteenth century, seventy-three newspapers were begun in the U.S. colonies. These early newspapers and the people who produced them established some enduring images, both positive and negative, that helped to define the craft of the journalist in the United States. Colonial printer-journalists, like copy editors and many supervisory editors of news organizations today, generally wrote very little. Instead, they relied on other papers, letters, travelers, ship crews, and official sources for their news. But they also relied on a second kind of journalist – the correspondent who then, as now, reported on what was going on in the hinterlands. The work of these usually unpaid correspondents was largely a combination of the functions of today’s reporter, editorial writer, and town booster. Their services were in great demand, because of the irregularity of intercolonial and transoceanic communication.” Pg 2.

Then call your editor and say, “Hello, I’m ______, a long-time resident of Lake City. I have a little journalism experience (or writing experience) and some samples of my work. I would like to offer my services to the Lake City Herald as a citizen journalist. Could we make an appointment to meet and visit about the possibilities? I’ll bring in some samples of my work. What time and day works best for you?”



