This week in class we discussed citizen journalism. This is a very controversial term which many people don’t agree with. It refers to the reporting of news events by members of the public using the Internet to spread the information. It is easily spread through personal websites, blogs, microblogs, social media and so on.
Heres an awesome video that better explains citizen journalism.
An example of citizen journalism would be the use of food blogs. An article states that 79% of respondents consulted U.S. food blogs at least daily, if not multiple times a day, crediting their increased usage to a food bloggers candid writing style, diverse voice and range of topics, as well as their approachable personalities. Websites like yelp, trip advisor, and even google all review restaurants. Citizen journalism is used throughout these food critic websites because of how peopler posting their opinions on the restaurants, rather than it being actual credible facts. So why do we trust these websites?
This week in class, we discussed digital tools for journalists. These tools are coming from Google, social media, social networks and more. When searching for places to eat, everyone turns to Google. Google then can lead you to different sites likeYelp, TripAdvisor, even Google maps. Google grammar is something we can use to search better in order to better our search results. For example, word exclusion can be used when trying to find something specific. For example, if you are searching coffee shop but want to find coffee, you would exclude the word shop. Looking at literal search, you would just type in the exact thing you are trying to find, for example if you are trying to find a specific restaurant, you would type in something like “Brunch & Cake”. In my experience I normally use literal searching when using Google.
When it comes to using social media, there are many technical concepts that can help when searching. For example, a tag is a label attached to someone or something for the purpose of identification or to give other information. When using tags, it is ESSENTIAL to use them properly, or else it will not work. Tags can be used on many social media sites, making it easier to find things you are looking for. For example, when posting an Instagram, in the caption you can add different tags that have to do with your picture. If I posted a picture of the food I was eating I could use tags like where I was eating, what type of food it was, the kind of taste it has, etc. Another thing that can help when searching is search engine optimization(SEO), and search engine marketing (SEM).
Lastly, digital tools are used within social networks. When using twitter, you are able to use something called TweetDeck. TweetDeck is a social media dashboard application for management of Twitter accounts.
This way, you can manage all of your favorite twitter accounts. For example, you can add all your favorite restaurants to your TweetDeck to see new specials and announcements all in one place. Apart from these tools, there are many other useful tools that can be used when searching the web.
Amanda Eats 