Stuart, I agree there are some similarities between where journalism began and where it’s heading and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. As Margaret Simons pointed out at the forum that those who criticise the bloggers for their often opinionated style should realise that partisan reporting is where newspapers have their roots. The advent of advertising necessitated the notion of objectivity.
Whether we are going to see a new cycle of journalism remains to be seen.

David, indeed cash is the vexed question, but I think you are better placed than many by at least understanding the medium of online writing and it’s not a case of reproducing print articles.

Matt, I try and not talk in bloggers vs journalism vernacular so the definitions of terms is less important to me. We are all content creators. Admittedly I do use the term citizen journalist though, because it seems to be the best understood in explaining the Norg to people. Would prefer not to have to use it though.

The first comment hits on some interesting points, I agree with a number of them however I think in Australia, at this point in time, there is a major confusion over what constitutes a blog, citizen journalism, and media.

Great article, I found it via your twitter.

Cheers, Matt

How it is carried forth is another issue, though it does involve the vexed question of cash.

In days long gone we had the pamphleteers who would scribble their thoughts on a piece of paper and then stick it on the wall of a building or a pole in the stree where people passing would see it.

From that it seems that a rather robust form of journalism developed that was later subverted by the need to toe a certain line and keep the owners happy.

So are we seeing a return to those days of pamphleteers do you think?

While I am a wholehearted supporter and participant in online journalism and have a pretty contemptuous attitude towards “traditional media”, as you term it, I do not have your unbridled optimism for a future of quality online media-of-the-people-by-the-people.

The idea is exciting indeed, but as Margaret Simons observes, the reality is that it is damned difficult to make a living as a citizen journo. I don’t see how this is going to change, though I would be thrilled to have some possibilities open up, and continue to live in hope.

It pisses me off that the masses flock to the established media blogs, and ignore those of individuals who are producing stuff of mostly superior quality (although, it has to be said, the general standard of writing on many individual blogs is pretty poor…but some of the dross you see on the mainstream media sites is down there, also – and these turkeys are getting paid handsomely).

The established media blogs are not blogs at all, to my mind, in that the interactivity that is supposed to be elemental to blogging is usually absent!

The journo throws out a piece and sits back on a silent pedestal as the masses scrap over the content.

Further, censorship is rife. There are journos on the West Australian blogs, for example, who simply who’t publish comments from me, no doubt because I have been critical of their pieces in the past. That just sucks. Trolls and nuisances are an irritant in any comment thread, but someone who makes legitimate comment that happens to oppose the premise of the blogger’s post with rigorous argument that may, from time to time, include ironic content should not be excised from the discussion. I won’t even look at mainstream media blogs now. That’s how I’ve been reduced to expressing my views.

Yet still the hordes flock to these bullshit established media blogs and give alternatives the arse. While this attitude persists – and I see no shift in recent years – I can’t see how a culture can be nourished which allows a brave new movement of citizen journalism to thrive. The movement has taken root, but unless something changes in the attitudes of the punters, I think growth will remain stunted.