A powerful example of citizen journalism at work occurred last January on the streets on Cairo, Egypt. Journalists were scarce; concerned there would not be enough to cover the news. To everyone’s surprise, the citizens did the work. View the full article here and an excerpt below.
An excerpt:
By its nature, social media is democratic. Social networks are structured on egalitarian and democratic values of social and political participation, he said. There are no barriers to entry. The costs of collaboration are zero. Your significance is based on your voice. Those with the most important things to say are rewarded by the audience. Contribution is commitment, which means you regard yourself as involved and committed when you go online. Others see they are not alone, by watching in real time how the movement they are joining is growing.
When such groups moved from virtual online communities to the streets, he said, they challenged entrenched power structures which were as surprised as the protestors themselves were at the power the Internet had unleashed. But no one really anticipated what this would lead to. No one anticipated Jan. 25, he said.