Disadvantages of Citizen Journalism

Citizen journalism is the collection, dissemination, and analysis of news and information by the general public, especially by means of the internet. Citizen journalism of news and information by the general public, especially by means of the internet. Citizen journalism was made more feasible by the development of various online internet platforms. New media technology, such as social networking and media-sharing websites, in addition to the increasing prevalence of cellular telephones, have made citizen journalism more accessible to worldwide.

·         The rise of internet has opened the door for citizen journalism, this form of participatory journalism is usually limited to online publications.

·         While the international media often welcomes content from citizen journalists, there are times when it seems to hinder professional reporting. The ease with which citizens can upload content online makes it infinitely impossible to verify sources and information, and has given rise to an onslaught of fake news. US President Donald Trump’s use of Twitter to broadcast information has been impulsive at best, with numerous instances of nefarious or dubious information gracing his social media account – only to later become fodder for mainstream news articles. Sifting through what is true or not has made traditional media – and their ability to independently verify information indelibly more important. Even amidst the social media storm – and often thanks to it – news outlets are using tried and true techniques to check information uploaded online before republishing it. Dr. Allan, Professor and Head of the School of Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies at Cardiff University, says that media houses can verify images by taking them apart or use methods to check whether a person was where they claimed to be.

·         The safety of the citizen who is sharing the information could be at stake, both – physically and digitally.

·         Since the citizens are not professional, there is a high possibility that they are unaware of the legalities, rules, norms, protocols and moral laws of journalism and thus may get themselves into trouble depending on their content.

·         Citizen journalism can create chaos amongst and between communities if the content is offensive.

·         One of the main limitations of citizen journalism is the various security concerns regarding data privacy and the vulnerability of digital communication, including how easily electronic communication can be intercepted and surveyed. The collection of meta-data, such as location of the mobile phone users, can be problematic as these data can be used to build a complex profile of the users without their knowledge.