The Future of Citizen Media
Jul 19th, 2007 by Dan Blank
Dan Gillmor shares a progress report on citizen media.
“We need much more experimentation in journalism and community information projects. The business models are, at best, uncertain — and some notable failures are discouraging. Dealing with the issues of trust, credibility and ethics is essential; as are more tools and training, including a dramatically updated notion of media literacy.”
It’s been a challenge to incorporate media literacy into journalism education because so many of the foundations that support journalism see education as only a means to train future practitioners. The focus has been on improving pre-vocational education. It’s equally important to provide children and young people with the skills and competencies needed to be fully engaged in the practice of citizenship— and that means being media literate when it comes to reading newspapers and magazines, watching TV news, and using online information sources.
Renee: great points. Oddly enough, I feel as though students in elementary and high school are now instructing their teachers on how to use online media.