MMC 910 Journalism and Society

1. MMC 910 Journalism and Society Session 13: Social Media, Public Journalism, Citizen Journalism, Who’s a Professional

2. Tonight’s Program • Guest Speaker: Zeenath Khan, Ethics in Media • Presentation II – Ethar Al Saadi • Discuss Week 12 readings: Social media, public journalism, citizen journalism, who’s a professional • Questions about final essay

3. Report due today by email • Take one theory that we have covered this semester and discuss its strengths and weaknesses • Link the theory to current journalism that you read or follow – give examples • Use only short quotes • Paper must be written essay style, maximum 2000 words • Include List of Works Consulted – alphabetical by author’s last name. list of everything you refer to in your paper

4. Turnitin.com www.turnitin.com Class ID: 5031097 Enrolment password: MMC910

5. Guest Speaker Zeenath Khan Ethics in Media Presentation II: Ethar Al Saadi

6. Social Media, Public Journalism, Citizen Journalism, Who’s a Professional Jo Bardoel, Beyond Journalism • In 1996 Bardoel was deciding if journalism has a future • Voices that said no pointed to shift from print to visual • Speed of technology, too much information are against critical journalism • Interactivity, horizontal communication bad for journalism • No space for mediation by journalists • Erosion of nation/replacement by global interests and individual actions means less status for journal-ism, ists

7. Beyond Journalism 2 • Advances in technology mean less journalism needed • But print hasn’t disappeared, only some kinds of print • Public gets more information and more ways to control information • “transformation from traditional, physical community to a modern, abstract public sphere” • Impact on democracy is questioned

8. Beyond Journalism 3 • Civil society facilitated by social media • But mass media and political parties remain • Communication drawn as pyramid – citizens, micro concerns on bottom; mid-level media/journalists; macro politics, mass media at the top • Journalism “can take the lead in directing and defining the public agenda” • Journalists aren’t indispensable; they can take “their intermediary task more seriously than they seem to do at present”

9. Beyond Journalism 4 New types of journalism • Orientating – background, commentary, explanation • Instrumental – functional specific information to customers • Journalists will shift from “content to context” • “Journalistic distinction” vs PR information • Need for “common orientation” goes along with greater personal freedom • Journalists have again to figure out their role

10. Laying the Newspaper Gently Down to Die Jay Rosen • Finds newspapers in “death spiral” in 2005 • Losing readers, increasing ad prices, firing journalists, not investing in new technology • Problem isn’t that newspapers are dying • Problem is whether good journalism will survive • He and others say new models needed • Nothing sacred about the old ones

11. Who Killed the Newspaper? The Economist, 2006 • Newspapers, advertising in print are dying • Top papers will survive and spend more on great journalism • Online will become more important • Citizen journalists and bloggers will “hold politicians to account” • Non profits will back journalism

12. Saving Journalism Philip Meyer, 2004 • Need to find “business model that rewards community service” • Key is to link quality to income • Credibility, accuracy, ease of use, and professionalism of staff are key • Certification of expert reporters • Keep “genuine journalism alive long enough” for media entrepreneurs to figure out business model

13. Topics for Final Essay Select one of these and develop the argument using references and some of the theories you’ve studied; use examples from current journalism: • Being objective in journalism is impossible • Social media has changed everything about journalism • The print press can’t survive beyond the 21st century • There is no future for investigative journalism • Press freedom is growing/or not growing worldwide • Tabloidization is taking over the media

14. Evaluating the Final Essay

15. Template for Final Essay

16. Schedule for rest of semester Monday, May 7 – discuss Week 12 readings; Report due by 6 pm; don’t forget Turnitin Wednesday, May 9, at 7 pm – final session MMC 911 Presentations; meet in KV14-G03 Monday, May 15 - first draft of Essay due by 6 pm; work with Karen on it; she will see you Week of May 29 Friday, June 15 – final essay FINAL DUE DATE – No excuses Summer MMC classes start Tuesday, June 12