Citizen journalism and Public image building…

To create an image in the public, you need a medium that helps generate the public sentiments for the purpose, and the mass media plays a major role in that. Mass media is a very wide term. This almost includes, every branch of journalism.  Like, print media in shape of newspapers, magazines, periodicals, pamphlets and electronic media i.e. radio, TV, cinema etc. Further more, the Social media, has its own significance. Since, this gadget has the unique quality of producing special effects.

                                         Public journalism

 Here comes the description of recently coined term “Public journalism.” This ‘public journalism’ has got two main segments viz, civic journalism and citizen journalism. “Civic journalism” is governed and operated by professional media organization. Such organizations, having some particular political agenda. But “Citizen journalism,” can be categorized as an “unorganized sector.” Since, it is not run by the professionals. The people at large, who helps run this segment of media voluntarily and involuntarily under a serge of sentiments that touches the core of their heart. This kind of sentiments, may belong to some social or public cause or issue at a small level or at a very wide level.

                                           Mode of operation

 Significantly, the ‘modus operandi’ of main stream media, is controlled and guided by the element of journalism, that is the soul of it. Long back, “journalism” in every segment of media, was laden with high moral and ethical values. These norms were supposed to be observed and followed strictly. To say, the “virtue of impartiality” in journalism, in every category had deep roots, that now a days rarely seems to exist.

“The gist of journalism lies, in its responsibility towards public life.” That seems to be neglected by the present day’s journalism. The reason is, the journalism of vested interest is in vogue now days and flourishing very well. Now a days,  journalism either is bound to belong to liberal, secular or leftist ideology or to the rightist wing.

                                           Harms of tilting journalism

 This inclination of journalism towards a specific ideology, has created a “vacuum of ethical principles,” within public at large. With the introduction of “Social Media,” equipped with android phone and internet services. People, by themselves become a “vigilant participants” to make, create, tilt or annihilate the public sentiments. Here, they have emerged as such, in shape of “Citizen journalism.” As said earlier, citizen journalism is run by unorganized and unprofessional sector. And its impact and killing range on various occasions, becomes so vast and huge.

In that way, it can ably create chaos and uproots the sitting government of some country. The recent example of “Arab Spring,” is the glaring example of “citizen journalism.” That unorganized,  movement was an outcome of citizen journalism, it dethroned many rulers in middle east Asia. This segment, is so vast and huge that some prominent countries, strictly deny and ban  this facility. Those countries have strictly controlling, the liberty of such kind of expression of thought to its citizens. They are doing that, by enacting specific cyber laws and guiding policies.” The policy of Republic of China, is worth notice in as a paradigm to this.

The present main stream media, we witness today in the present form, has come to its present shape, through a gradual evolution of processing . The media has ever been used to generate a sentiments in public. And,  that has been too given the name “public opinion or public sentiments.”

                                  Expression of views in old era

 In old era, kingdoms used the methods of inscribing the good deeds of the king on stones as epigraph. Just, to make it as the permanent evidence, for coming generations. At the streaming level, they had to pronounce their deeds on the beat of drums. Later on, it got followed by the present modes of publication and telecommunications. In the not so recent era, the role of cinema had had the vital significance, in creating the public image or opinion of the ruling government .

In the context of India, it is worth mentioning the role of movies in India.  It was mandatory in India for every cinema hall, to display a documentary film issued under the head of “Indian news review.” Such documentary films, ever displayed the good side of the government works done for public. In fact, it was nothing but the propaganda of the sitting Congress government, to create an opinion in its favor. But with the passing of time, with the advent of internet and introduction of citizen journalism,  made it possible to get  collapse the giant of so many parties and eventually conventional journalism too fell prey to it . Penned by – Vinay Pharasi…..