Citizen Journalism

The collection, dissemination and analysis of news by non-

professionals among the public
What is it?
Citizen journalism is the gathering, writing, editing,
production and distribution of news and information
by people not trained as professional journalists.
Citizen journalists are non-professionals who
collect, disseminate and analyze news on blogs,
wikis and sharing websites using tablets, laptops,
cell phones, digital cameras and other mobile and
wireless technologies.
Citizen journalism is also known as:
o public journalism
o participatory journalism
o grassroots journalism
o hyperlocal journalism
o democratic journalism
o networked journalism
o open source journalism
o bottom-up journalism
o stand-alone journalism
o distributed journalism
o unfiltered journalism
o guerrilla journalism
o street journalism
o crowd-powered media
What's good about it?
People without professional journalism training can
use the latest technology tools and worldwide
distribution via the nternet to find new and different
news stories, and augment and fact-check
mainstream media.
!he latest media technologies, social networks,
media-sharing websites and the increasing
presence of smartphones everywhere open news
reporting to people who sometimes can discover
and report breaking news faster and less
e"pensively than mainstream news organizations.
What's bad about it?
Citizen journalism has been criticized by
professional journalists because citizen journalists
have not been oriented toward the standards and
practices of professional journalism. !hey say
reports from citizen journalists are subjective,
amateurish, inaccurate and haphazard. !hey see
citizen journalism#s $uality as, well, not professional
and its coverage spotty.
Professionals often view citizen journalists with
skepticism, especially when citizen journalists are
proponents of the topics they write about. !his
leads professionals to say citizen journalists don#t
uphold the traditional journalistic value of
objectivity. !hey say only professionally-trained
journalists can understand the ethics re$uired of
reporters.
What tools are needed by citizen journalists?
tablet or laptop computer
digital camera that shoots stills and video
digital audio recorder
software apps for editing te"t, audio, photos and
video, and for creating visual data graphics
blog, wiki, website or other content management
system for te"ts, audio, photos, video and graphics
social networks for staying connected
What skills are needed by citizen journalists?
critical thinking, proactive curiosity, noticing critical
details, piecing facts together, understanding of
behavior
writing with accuracy, clarity, relevance, brevity,
readability, consistency
editing and revising for accuracy, clarity, relevance,
brevity, readability, consistency
an eye and ear for still and motion images,
informative graphics, natural sounds, layout, design
visual storytelling, visualization of data, visual
design and presentation
competency with new digital media and nternet
tools, social media, crowdsourcing and
participation
A GLOSSARY OF MEDIA CORRUPTION
e"cerpted from %&ews for 'ale% !he Corruption (
Commercialization of the Philippine )edia%
Payoffs to journalists have become so much a part of the
journalistic culture that they have engendered a language
all their own. !hese are some of the terms used in the
journalistic community to refer to various forms of
corruption the media.
AC-DC *or attack-collect-defend-collect. + kind of
journalism where the HAO !AO" People who pass
themselves off as journalists in order to cash in on payoffs
and bribes reporter attacks a person in order to collect
money from that person#s rival or enemy. !he same
journalist then defends the person originally attacked, also
for a fee.
A#$ journalism ,efers to reporters who receive discreet
and regular pay-offs through their automated teller machine
-+!). accounts. &ews sources simply deposit cash into
these accounts instead of issuing checks or handing the
money over to the journalists in envelopes. /ften, the
accounts are in the names of relatives, rather than of the
reporters themselves. +!) journalism became popular in
the 0112s, taking over from the more simple
%envelopmental journalism% that took place in the 0132s
and #42s.
Ayos +s in %fi",% the act of bribing reporters either with
money or other gifts like late-night entertainment.
%icycle &ang ,efers to the contacts of politicians in
television news desks who ensure that video footage of
candidates barnstorming in the provinces is circulated to
the different !5 networks by a messenger riding a bike.
%lood $oney + pay-off to ensure that a story or critical
article is killed or else slanted in the briber#s favor before
publication. !his is different from %smiling money%.
%ukol *rom the !agalog word that means a bump, usually
on the head. + reporter gets a %bukol% or is considered
%nabukulan% if he or she fails to get a share of the largesse
being distributed by politicians and other news sources
whom they cover.
Didal ,efers to the practice of media handlers pocketing
for themselves a part of the money intended for distribution
to reporters. *or e"ample, if a party#s media bureau sets
aside a P6,222 allowance for each of the reporters covering
an event, the media staff would distribute only P0,222 to
P0,722 and keep the rest. !he reporters in this case
consider themselves %nadidal.%
'n(elo)mental journalism + take on %developmental
journalism,% which became popular in the 0132s.
8ournalism is deemed %envelopmental% if it involves an
envelope of cash paid to journalists to sway their reporting.
Hao siao + derogatory term used to refer to pseudo-
journalists, those not employed by a reputable news
organization but pass themselves off as journalists in order
to cash in on payoffs and bribes made by news sources,
particularly during elections.
!nteligensia Cash given as bribe or protection money to
the police, a part of which goes to journalists covering the
police department. 'ome reporters have begun using the
term to refer to the regular payments that they get from law
enforcers.
$ain '(ent ,efers to the act of distributing cash to
journalists. + press conference or news coverage is not
deemed over until the cash is dispensed -- this is
considered the %main event.%
Orbit 9ike planets revolving around the sun, reporters also
make the rounds of offices, particularly the police stations,
to get their weekly payola. !he term may also refer to any
effort to visit offices for the purpose of soliciting money from
news sources.
*lacement !he position or department within the media
bureau of a government agency or company that is in
charge of ensuring that press releases are sent to news
offices and published or aired when they should be. :hile
there are P, professionals who do the job, some journalists
are hired to ensure %placement# as well. 'ome journalists
also moonlight as writers for candidates, ensuring
placement by making appeals to their friends in
newspapers and broadcast agencies.
*oint $an + reporter or editor working in a news
organization but who is also paid by a candidate or political
party to ensure that press releases are published or aired
and also to warn the candidate of negative stories
emanating from rival camps.
he)herds 8ournalists who are either jobless or on leave
from their news organizations and act as guides to
reporters covering a a particular candidate or party.
'hepherds take care of the reporters# needs including
accomodations, food, plane fare and other transportation
e"penses, as well as %e"tras% like nights out.
miling $oney Cash that is given to reporters or editors
for no particular reason e"cept to create goodwill between
a source and the journalists. t can also be used to refer to
a payoff given after the publication of a positive story,
supposedly as a gesture of the source#s appreciation.
ulig + thousand pesos
#igbas Cebuano word for %cut%, used to refer to a hatchet
job
Warik-+arik + Cebuano term used to describe
unscrupulous people; to journalists in the provinces, these
are the counterpart of )anila#s hao siao.
(Compiled by Manny Mogato and Vinia M. atinguinoo!
'#H!C A,D *-%.!C *'A/!,&
<!=C'
#he branch o0 )hiloso)hy that deals +ith issues o0 right
and +rong in human a00airs1
<!=C+9 ><C'/&'
Weighing a )otential course o0 action against a set o0
ethical standards or guidelines1
?@><9&<' */, <!=C+9 'P<+A&?
$ake sure your goals are ethically sound
%e 0ully )re)ared 0or each s)eech
%e honest in +hat you say
A(oid name-calling and other 0orms o0 abusi(e
language
*ut ethical )rinci)les into )ractice
&+)< C+99&?
#he use o0 language to de0ame2 demean2 or degrade
indi(iduals
or grou)s1
P9+?+,')
*resenting another )erson3s language or ideas as one3s
o+n1
!BP<' /* P9+?+,')
&lobal )lagiarism
*atch+ork )lagiarism
!ncremental )lagiarism
?9/C+9 P9+?+,')
tealing a s)eech entirely 0rom a single source and
)assing it o00 as one3s o+n1
P+!C=:/,A P9+?+,')
tealing ideas or language 0rom t+o or three sources and
)assing them o00 as one3s o+n1
&C,<)<&!+9 P9+?+,')
4ailing to gi(e credit 0or )articular )arts o0 a s)eech that
are borro+ed 0rom other )eo)le1
P9+?+,') +&> !=< &!<,&<!
Cite sources +hen using !nternet materials
#ake care0ul research notes
?@><9&<' */, <!=C+9 9'!<&&?
%e courteous and attenti(e
A(oid )rejudging the s)eaker
$aintain the 0ree and o)en e5)ression o0 ideas

*-%.!C 6'.A#!O, A,D '#H!C

'thics and the la+ are attem)ts to restrict beha(ior and
)ractices in an e00ort to )rotect the )ublic +el0are1
Ethics are en0orced by )ersonal judgment or a
)ro0essional code o0 conduct1
The law is en0orced by the go(ernment1
The law is o0ten inter)reted in black and +hite1 Ethics 0all
into a gray area because +e ha(e di00erent standards2
)erce)tions2 (alues1
*ublic relations )ro0essionals make ethical
decisions that must satis0y"
#heir em)loyer
#he )ublic interest
#heir )ro0essional organization
#heir )ersonal (alues
*6 )ro0essionals are o0ten called"
)in doctors
4laks
What they do is o0ten re0erred to as a"
*loy
$aneu(er
A *6 )ro0essional3s job is to"
Ad(ocate
!n0luence
Communicate
*romote
$o(e others to action
'thics e5)erts agree that there are three systems
o0 ethics"
Deontology or Absolutist: e(ery decision is right
or +rong -- black or +hite1 Conse7uences don3t
matter1 #his system de)ends on the inner-based2
sel0 disci)line o0 each indi(idual1
Teleology or Existentialist: the ends justi0y the
means1
Golden Mean or Utilitarian: each situation is
judged on +hat +ould cause the most good and
the least harm -- +hat3s best 0or the majority2 the
greatest good or the greatest number1
A )ublic relation )ractitioner ser(es 0i(e masters"
81 #he client
91 #he em)loyer
:1 ;our colleagues
<1 ;oursel0
=1 ociety
#he most common dilemmas 0aced by *6 )ro0essionals
are"
81 &i0ts
91 $isleading !n0ormation
:1 *romotion o0 !n0erior )roducts
<1 &ain at the e5)ense o0 others
=1 *olitical Action Committees
>1 *romotion o0 illegal )roducts abroad