Episode 7 - The one where digitella goes mobile

Digitella’s laptop was broken. Old family friend and computer technician, Chip McMac said it would take a few weeks to fix. “How am I going to write my blog?” she wondered, as she entered the news room. She could probably use the lab computers, but Tek had other ideas.

“This is perfect,” he said when she told him about her laptop. On seeing Digitella’s confused expression, he decided to explain.

“The Africa Interactive Media Foundation and Dutch-based citizen journalism website Skoeps recently launched a mobile phone project – Voices of Africa. Basically, journalists in four African countries – Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique and South Africa are using cellphone technology to report news.” He handed her his Nokia 30100. “What better way to blog about the issue then by using a phone.”

Digitella looked down at her new mode of communication with its small screen. This was going to be interesting …

“Citizen journalism is not a new phenomenon. It began in the late 1980s when newspaper editors started recruiting citizens to give their own points of view on current events and issues. The rise of the Internet and its popular catch-phrase of “access to the people” have led to a huge rise in citizen participation. Blogs, and user-generated content sites like Youtube, and Flickr that allow people to upload videos and images onto the Internet are just a few examples of how ordinary citizens are contributing to mass media.

This is all well and good in countries like the UK and the United States, where bandwidth costs are low and 1 in 3 people have Internet access. In Africa, however, the majority of people do not have access to computers and the only way of getting onto the Internet is through Internet cafes. As of June this year, despite huge development projects and independent funding, Africa still only makes up 3% of the total Internet user population in the world. So what does that mean for citizen journalism?

African citizens do not have the tools to participate in the mass media, which results in one-sided and undemocratic journalistic practice. There is light at the end of the tunnel, however. While computer and Internet access leaves much to be desired on the African continent, cell phones are becoming increasingly popular and media analyst Peter Feuilherade argues that cell phones are penetrating where TV, newspapers and the Internet cannot.

Enter the Voices of Africa Project. The project began in May and reporters in four countries will use cell phones to upload text, video and photos to website Africanews. Hopefully, this will lead to Africans being able to take part in discussions about Africa, providing Africans with a voice. Like all things technological, it’s not all moonshine and roses. There are a few issues to this ambitious project:

Using a cellphone to upload information to the Internet is only possible if the cellphone and the area the cellphone user is in supports wireless communication protocol General Packet Radio System (GPRS). Not all African countries have GPRS.

The project is aimed specifically at reporters, and not ordinary African citizens – are the right voices being heard?

African citizens do not have the same skills as reporters and will need to be trained in how to properly use cellphones to upload information and take part in online discussions about important issues to fully exploit the medium.

In spite of all this, it is exciting that steps are being made to ensure that Africans are also considered part of the citizen journalism arena and that we too have a voice worthy of being heard.”

Digitella typed the last few letters, smiling to herself. There was just one problem – how was she going to upload her post?

Episode 5 - The one where Digitella talks credibility

Digitella’s Monday morning journalism lecture seemed to drag on for light years. When the bell finally rang, she made a run for the door, but was stopped by her lecturer, Prof Lineon.

“I hear you are blogging about citizen journalism,” she said, logging off her computer. “As a student getting a degree in journalism, I was interested to hear your thoughts on this article.”

Prof. Lineon pulled a sheet of printing paper out of her desk drawer. “Do you feel threatened by everyday people on the street who are now able to do what you do for less money?”

Digitella scanned the article and later that afternoon, frantically sat down to write:

“Over the past few weeks that I have begun to immerse myself in the world of citizen media and all it has to offer, I never for one moment questioned what the rise of citizen reporters would mean for my future career as a professional journalist.

In an article for Bizcommunity.com, Chris Moerdyk writes that news media owners can take advantage of this recent wave of citizen journalism and cut ever-increasing costs by slashing editorial staff numbers and using content produced by unqualified, citizens. After all, why should media owners pay staff R3.50 a word, when there are millions of people who are willing to share their content for free?

Well then, what about me? Is getting a degree in journalism a complete waste? Will the role of professional journalists one day be obsolete?

My guess is – not likely.

Yes, citizen journalists come cheaper; yes they may very well be better writers and photographers than those brandishing honours degrees. But, why then are professional journalists still more trustworthy than blogs and user-generated content? Why do citizen media sites like Digitaljournal have a small editorial staff of professional journalists who check articles before they are published?

The answer is - credibility.

I believe what citizen journalists lack is an understanding of the media they are working with and how to best report on an issue. Over the past few months, I have been taught that reporting should be fair, accurate, and balanced. It should be unbiased and present issues in such a way so that people can make up their own minds. It is these qualities that give professional journalists credibility.

But, what exactly is credibility? The dictionary defines it as “the quality of being believable or trustworthy". For a media producer it means, among other things, getting all sides of a story, and checking the facts.

I do feel that citizen journalists can pose a threat to professional journalists, but only if professionals fail to be credible reporters of news.

In a recent presentation, Dan Gillmor says that “[journalists] must maintain core principles, including fairness, accuracy, and thoroughness. These … are essential if professional journalism expects to survive.”

The rise of cheap citizen journalists does not make me nervous, but it does make me aware that I need to work harder at establishing credibility through reporting that is fair, accurate and balanced.”

Digitella posted her entry with the feeling that she had just opened a can of worms …

Next week, Digitella delves deeper into the crevices of the professional/ citizen journalist debate.