Has new technology made the media more democratic?

In the past, media has not been particularly democratic because people have only watched TV or read a newspaper so they only saw specific views. Today everyone uses technology so they get everybody’s views on events happening all around the world. Media should focus on using information technologies to both empower individual citizens and promote democratic ideals through the spread of information. Media democracy entails that media should be used to promote democracy as well as the conviction that media should be democratic itself; media ownership concentration is not democratic and cannot serve to promote democracy and therefore must be examined critically. The concept, and a social movement promoting it, have grown as a response to the increased corporate domination of mass media and the perceived shrinking of the marketplace of ideas.

Gillmor states that ‘Grassroots journalism is part of the wider phenomenon of citizen-generated media- of a global conversation that is growing in strength, complexity and power. When people can express themselves they will. When they can do so with powerful yet inexpensive tools, they take to the new-media realm quickly. When they can reach a potentially global audience, they literally can change the world’. He also mentioned that the ‘first draft’ was being written by the former audience which refers to the general public as they no longer have to watch TV or read a newspaper. He also stated that the media now works like… Journalists: Accuracy and fairness, important, shape larger conversations, gather facts and report them. Newsmakers: Rich and powerful discovering new vulnerabilities, new ways to get out their messages, Allies (politics). The former audience: Once the consumers, helping create a massive conversation, grassroots becoming professionals, more voices and more options. Web 2.0 is allowing people to create and share information amongst users so everyone is more connected and everyone can learn together. I think that Gillmor has a valid point about citizen journalists.

Keen states that ‘There will be over five million blogs by 2010, collectively corrupting and confusing popular opinion about everything from politics, to commerce to arts and culture. Blogs have become so dizzyingly infinite that they’ve undermined our sense of what is true and false...’ which this means that there are too many blogs and people won’t be heard. He also mentioned that kids don’t know the difference between an amateur blogger and an actual news reporter due to the fact that anyone can post and share information and people will believe anything and he also stated ‘We are just monkeys to the neo digital world.  Dancing to the world of the internet. What is more disgusting is the fact that millions of us willingly tune in to (YouTube) such nonsense each day is that some Web sites are making monkeys out of us without our even knowing it.’ He also stated that He warns that old media is facing extinction – “say goodbye to experts and cultural gatekeepers – our reporters, news anchors, editors, music companies, and Hollywood movie studios.” In its place is amateurism: “If we are all amateurs, there are no experts.” Which refers back to earlier in this paragraph. I agree a little more with Keen as he makes sense with the fact that news will be unreliable as it may come from amateur reporters.

In my opinion, both Gillmor and Keen have valid points, more people of the public are becoming ‘citizen journalists’ which could possibly lead to the fact that information which is shared is false. The risk here will be forever present as the information is of one person’s view, it could be entirely their own opinion but people would think none the less and share it and believe every word. I believe that we should still have professional reporters who aren’t biased and get all the facts.

I believe we are heading to a world where there are none or very few professional reporters and a lot of amateur reporters who will use their own personal views to change other people’s views and make them more biased. People are using Facebook and Twitter to get there daily information and walking away from the newspapers and the TV’s. We are entering an ear where everyone is connected and can share whatever information they would like and people will have more of a say about things but whether what they say will have an impact, only time will tell.