Friday, September 14, 2007

African-American citizen journalists: "We are taking this into our own hands"



I'd love to hear what Mel Watt thinks about these guys, or what these guys think about Mel Watt. I can't wait to find out who gets the "Lawn Jockey awards."

Found this through a Youtube "citizen journalist" A.Man.I, who was linked in JOMC 713 class at UNC, props to student Amanda Carol Toler.
A.Man.I's website is called My Urban Report and has links to sites like Acting White and Afro-Netizen.

The bottom line: Can a citizen be a journalist? I wouldn't bet against this guy, and it's great that this kind of work can happen when the "name" journalism schools and student papers have inadequate minority numbers among students.



This guy certainly has more street cred than the following Fox TV station. While I applaud the efforts to reach out to the community, I can't help but think that the audience will feel that corporate media just wants content for free. We can steal the technique, but make sure it's mission-driven with the idea that we need help to cover all communities well.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Though I asked the question, "can a citizen be a journalist?" I am a professional ten years strong. Thanks for the link. The revolution is unfolding right before our very eyes.

PEACE!

Amani Channel

Andria said...

Saw your resume listings on your website, so could tell you'd been working and learning for a long time....

A quote from a JOMC713 classmate:
"I'm not saying that a person cannot learn music by ear, but they are limited by what they choose to hear."

We all need to listen better, no matter how much we've already learned. I'm glad you're out there helping people listen.