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From Reader to Writer:Citizen Journalism as News Produsage

Dr Axel BrunsQueensland University of Technology

a.bruns@qut.edu.au

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Citizen Journalism

‒ Emergence of key citizen journalism sites:• Slashdot• Indymedia• Kuro5hin• Plastic• OhmyNews (South Korea, now also International and

Japan)• Wikipedia and Wikinews (but problems with the latter)• Current.tv• individual and group news blogs

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Key Characteristics

‒ citizen journalism processes:• most story content generated by ‘average’ users, not

professional journalists and editors• limited editorial oversight:

∘ very basic checking of stories (e.g. Slashdot), or∘ immediate posting for commentary, rating, and voting by wider

community• continuous update of stories after publication – through

comments or story revision• collaborative content creation model, harnessing community

knowledge• strong focus on discussion, debate, deliberation• coverage becomes multiperspectival

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Open Source Journalism‒ strong similarities between citizen journalism and open source:

• opening out production process to all participants• belief that cream will rise to the top – through ‘power of eyeballs’• reconceptualisation and acceptance of products as always unfinished,

constantly updated• application of alternative licencing schemes to enable flexible update

and distribution of products

‒ but need for effective systems and methodologies:• Indymedia problem: lack of open editing tools to enable collaborative

quality control• Wikinews problem: failure to offer space for debate and deliberation to

facilitate the development and update of stories

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Towards Produsage

‒ Citizen journalism, open source, and others are examples of produsage:• user-led production of content• collaborative engagement between users from diverse

backgrounds and with differing intensity• production of constantly revised, evolving artefacts through

iterative, palimpsestic processes• application of alternative copyright licences to facilitate

development processes

shift from writer/reader dichotomy to a hybrid producer/user model – the produser

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The Produsage Value Chain

content development

space set up by community or

company

(e.g. Wikimedia Foundation)

commercial / non-profit harnessing of user-generated content

(e.g. The Sims)

commercial / non-profit services to support content development

(e.g. Red Hat, SourceForge)

commercial activities by users themselves

(e.g. support services, consultancies, content sales)

initial IP contributions from public domain or

commercial sources

collaborative, iterative, evolutionary, palimpsestic user-led content development

valuable, often commercial-grade content is created

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Economic Models for News Produsage

‒ Open source:• harvesting the hive – e.g.

Red Hat• harbouring the hive – e.g.

Sourceforge

• sustaining communities –contributions from commercial partners, corporate umbrella

• sustaining individuals – provision of value-added services and consultancy

‒ Citizen journalism:• harvesting the hive – e.g.

BBC News, CNN• harbouring the hive – e.g.

Wikimedia, Wikia

• sustaining communities – advertising?corporate umbrella? philanthropic support?

• sustaining individuals – punditry? consultancy?

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Ownership, Trust, and Liability‒ Open source:

• ownership:∘ relatively strict controls to avoid

unauthorised use of commercial IP

• trust:∘ ‘power of eyeballs’ argument

effective – widespread use of open source for mission-critical applications

∘ speedy updates to fix bugs and add features

• liability:∘ relatively untested – ‘use at own

risk’ approach∘ effective distribution system for

corrections

‒ Citizen journalism:• ownership:

∘ frequent incorporation of commercial news reports – legal grey area

• trust:∘ ‘power of eyeballs’ varies from site

to site – trust gradually building∘ balanced by cynicism about

commercial news content∘ often intense discussion of

disputed claims

• liability∘ relatively untested∘ very limited potential for effective

corrections and retractions∘ but similar problems in traditional

media?

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Futures for Citizen Journalism

‒ Where to from here?• variety of very well established news produsage models

∘ from Slashdot to OhmyNews∘ further opportunities in using wiki-based systems∘ increasing potential for audiovisual news – Current.tv etc.

• long-term economic sustainability remains a significant question∘ how do news produsage sites meet their running costs?∘ how do individuals become self-supporting news produsers?

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Futures for Citizen Journalism

‒ Where to from here?• increased exposure likely to increase risks

∘ stronger responses to habitual IP violations∘ backlash from commercial mainstream media operators

(even while they embrace some citizen journalism content)∘ trust and liability issues highlighted more prominently∘ growing political and lobby group interference

• shifting balance between traditional and citizen news media – see tomorrow’s panel