The future of the story tellers
Do we still need journalism in the age of social media?
I don't know where the future of journalism lies in this fast life of the digital age, but one thing I know is gone are the days when I would wait for journalists to report fresh new stories that I knew nothing about. Gone are the days when I waited with my dad in front of the television or radio for prime time news that haven't already broken out on Twitter, Facebook or the News24 website.Social media have truly revolutionized the way we receive news, I mean with just a touch of my finger tip on my smart phone I am able to read about the latest news and trends, which is more convenient than waiting for the prime time news if you ask me. Social media have made it so easy for us to receive news and according to Internet live stats, on average, 6000 tweets are posted on Twitter per second, that makes it 350,000 tweets per minute!
Citizen journalist? I'm one of them
Obviously besides tweeting about our relationships, achievements and boring or rather exciting daily activities, we also tweet about any breaking news that we hear about or witness. This makes it hard for journalists to not only find new stories but also publish them as fresh news. Social media is where news break out because it is constantly running day and night making it way ahead of traditional news organizations.
Academia.edu highlights some of the stories such as the death of Osama Bin Laden, Muamma Gaddafi and Whitney Houston breaking on twitter just minutes after. In my opinion this shows the impact of citizen journalism, how it challenges and questions the future of journalism.
I agree with you. Although social media is part of our daily lives, we still need journalist because they are professional and know what they are doing. Unlike someone who is just sitting at home sharing information he's even not sure of.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely, we still need professionalism and credibility and that is where journalists play an important role
ReplyDeleteThis is a very interesting blog post. I absolutely agree with the fact that you might not know where the future of journalists lie but they are still relevant today. Social media is big and I reckon that journalists can use that to their advantage.
ReplyDeleteAwesome blog
Thanks Valentine. I absolutely think they can find a way to use it to their advantage, if I was a journalist I wouldn't loose hope
ReplyDeleteJournalists still have a role in our country which is limited. By that I mean, we get citizen journalists who inform us through social media on the latest news.
ReplyDeleteTheir role is limited and that is the challenge that needs new ways to be tackled
DeleteI say we do need journalists at the age of social media because they are more credible than any ordinary source of information.
ReplyDeleteThat is exactly why they will remain relevant and needed
Deletejournalists are more credible than social media. SO yes we need journalists more than anything for us to trust any newsworthy information that is brought to us, and also taking into account that not everyone has access to social media.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you pointed out that not everyone uses social media. There are still people who completely rely on other channels such as radio to receive news
ReplyDeleteI agree with conclusion that we still need journalists, no matter what threat they face from social media, they always assure us of what is true or not
ReplyDeleteYes Paul, most industries face threats as technology evolves, so in the case of journalists we still need them for real facts
ReplyDelete