Online Journalism News

The darker side of citizen journalism

The past seven days have seen unprecedented interest in the phenomenon of citizen journalism; media on media.

Among all the frenetic coverage of this 'next big thing' is a sensible note of caution from Mark Glaser at Online Journalism Review. He notes the nastier side of first-hand coverage - what he calls paparazzi citizen journalism. People that don't know when a photo opportunity becomes photo opportunism, when it becomes intrusive and insensitive.

Mark picks up on an observation that I'd also noticed earlier this week on the blog of one of the blast survivors.

Justin was caught on an underground train when the bomb exploded near Edgware Road station.

"Fate is a strange thing. On this particular day a series of events transpired such that I ended up on a Tube train that was destroyed by terrorists," he writes.

"The victims were being triaged at the station entrance by Tube staff and as I could see little more I could do I got out of the way and left.

"As I stepped out people with cameraphones vied to try and take pictures of the worst victims. In crisis some people are cruel."

This is one step on from the morbid compulsion to gawp at traffic accidents. But it is a very big step on, especially if you're the subject of one of those pictures and especially given the speed with which these images are shared online.

There are trolls everywhere, and it seems that the openness and accessibility of digital media is particularly open to exploitation by those creatures, whether it's posting porn to an experimental wikitorial, happy slapping or videoing the injured - and worse - after a bomb blast.

The 'most people are good' principle works overall, when a community manages itself. But where we all take responsibility for ourselves, the trollishness can creep in, and perhaps that is just human nature. The most that news sites can do is continue to offer an ethical framework and practical guidelines for the public and - of course - avoid material that feeds that unsavoury appetite for gore.

Have just reached the big three-oh-no. Perhaps it's starting to show...

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