Digital Journalism - Assignment Example

Digital Journalism Introduction Curtis defines journalism as a practice of reviewing and reporting events, trends and issues to great audiences through broadcast, print and online media such as books, newspapers, magazines, television and radio stations, blogs, as well as mobile and social media (2011). Journalism involves many different roles like researching a story, shooting photos, editing stories, checking facts and planning issues. It informs people on what they want know about the world, by going where people cannot and will not, keeping daily activities of the government and other influential people, pulling together and organizing informative facts and useful knowledge and explaining the stories of heroes and disasters to keep people on the know(Kennedy and Moen, 2007). Many years ago before the development of radios, televisions, newspapers or cellphones, people used the traditional methods of communication. These methods were nevertheless inefficient and many people didn’t receive the information. Years on, technology was advanced and newspapers and the use of telegrams were established. After that, technology continued to advance until the present day, where technology has grown and advanced further making it possible for many people get information anywhere and everywhere (Pavlik, 2008). Technology can therefore be referred to as a driver that has changed journalism for the past two decades and continues to transform it. Development of Digital Journalism over the Past 20 Years The development of journalism attempts to deal with dynamic growth of developing and developed nations. Digital technology has designed journalism in many different ways. Many countries have developed new forms of media technologies like radio and televisions, which has been possible because of development of cables television, as well as high definition and digital television (Pavlik, 2008). Another significant development was the rise of internet and the World Wide Web that has created access to any information, radically raising technology for the past decades. This new form of digital journalism has brought the global market close together and it has given people the platform to get access to information. The developments of mobile phones and handsets have been among the most significant developments in journalism. This is because they have widened the access of information and news to people all over the world. The most significant development of journalism is the quick access to internet; this has been possible due to its availability and the low cost. The internet has transformed how storytelling and media content is accessed to the audiences. For example, reporters have been equipped with cell phones to get information and communicate with people and they can use these phones to blog. With The development of GPS (Global Positioning System), the quality of reporting has improved and the reporters can get access to unfamiliar areas. Digital journalism has also impacted the newsrooms by creating virtual news rooms. News can now be developed at a high speed through wireless internet and use of mobile media. The virtual newsrooms have significantly saved costs and improved of news coverage. An example is the use of the internet to Skype an interviewee, instead of having to meet in person for the interview to take place (Pavlik, 2008). Several years ago, people received newspapers physically, but in recent years, people can download newspapers and read them instantly. People are relying on the internet as the most preferred source of news. Does Digital Media enable Journalists to do their Job Better? The introduction of the new technology has brought about negative and positive sides of digital media. Throughout the history of technology and journalism, these two have often been intertwined. With the new technology that journalists have embraced and kept at arm’s length, many opportunities have extended the reach and impacted the quality of media. Many newsrooms have invested in advanced technology to help them deliver information to many people across a large area. The downside of digital journalism can be seen from staff cut. As a result of it, companies have lost workplace production and tasks have been merged due to the high technology. For example, a news anchor can also play the role of a journalist or camera man. Nevertheless, this new technology has at times challenged media and proved to threaten the viability of traditional way media or media practices. Others times, digital journalism has proven to raise serious and ethical concerns; journalists have approached and viewed this development cautiously, weighing the costs and benefits (Pavlik, 2008). Many people believe that even with the high level of technology, journalists are behind the curve in the use of this technology, and they are not efficient in gathering information and analyzing it. This is because of “lack of knowledge and training” on the new technology (Quinn, 2002, p. 12). The advanced technology in the media has proven to create conflict between the media and public. This is because of hackers, perverts, cyber addicts and pornographers, all which have eroded the trust between the media and public. At the same time, journalism has been caught short by reacting rather than initiating and backing up, but technology has overwhelmed the media by stealing customers, transforming values and its relationship with the public. Wikileaks According to Lorenz, “WikiLeaks is a hacker project”, where although events are reported, the sources remain anonymous (2011, p. 5). WikiLeaks can well be described as a worldwide non-profitable organization that publishes classified media, secrets and private submissions from whistleblowers, news leaks and anonymous sources. WikiLeaks mission was primarily to expose oppressive regimes in Asia, a former Soviet bloc, the sub-Saharan Africa, and the Middle East, and their mission was to help the people from these regions, who were interested in stopping and getting information about their corrupt Governments (Lorenz, 2002). Wikileaks was viewed as an attack on US surveillance, as well as a cyber-attack. Julian Assange is known well as the founder of this project, together with his associates, Glen Greenwald, a lawyer by profession and Birgitta Jonsdottir, a journalist (Lorenz, 2002). They attempted to empower the people to know what decisions are been made in the Government and a radical approach of transparency that could be used to develop democracy. Wikileaks published lots and lots of documents that were never intended for the public to view, but this site has been important for leakers and interested people. The founders protected the journalist and informers from being jailed for sending them sensitive emails and classified documents. Wikileaks has greatly affected the way journalism is carried out. Long before the start of the Wikileaks, journalism was a wide-open and global market which received a large number of audiences and there was massive information for anyone to access. Assange claimed that he came up with scientific journalism; this meant that the readers are to be given raw material and also given the right to judge for themselves in regard to the information they received (Star, 2011). Wikileaks is original not because of it materials, but because of its content and form. Due its large audience, it proved to be the best platform for exposing documents that were sensitive to many countries. Ethical and Professional Issues raised by Websites like WikiLeaks Political differences: WikiLeaks have raised political differences. An example is the data that was leaked from the Al Jazeera transparency unit, about the Middle East geo-politics. The information had a great impact on the current politics (Beckett, 2012). National security threats: According to Craft and Davis, “in April 2010, WikiLeaks published more than 75,000 classified US documents about the war in Afghanistan” and in the same year, it released documents about the Iraq war (2013, p. 179). The US Government felt that this was a national security threat and it would cause war. Wikileaks has offered a different type of investigative journalism that has affected diplomacy. However, there was need to have a strong and free media. This was the only way to ensure that the government was honest and accountable to its people. Threat to journalism: Wikileaks has posed a great threat to the practice of journalism, especially to the way investigative journalists have handled the source and the way the media has set a foundation. Some information threatens media freedom due to its portrayal of a bad picture of journalism (Franklin, 2011). Like others bloggers, journalists hide the identity of their sources by using encryption technology. According to Brevini, Hintz and McCurdy, “despite legislation that exists in several countries to protect it, whistleblowing is fraught with the threat of legal repercussions, for both the whistleblower and the journalist concerned” (2013, p. 104). Threat to foreign policy: Websites such as WikiLeaks also threaten foreign policy. An example is the relation between the US and Britain during the 2010 elections. During the time, “Cameron’s foreign policy team promised the United States a thoroughly ‘pro-American regime’, if elected” (Parmar, Miller and Ledwidge, 2009, p. 250). The US corresponded and assured that Britain was safe and was helping the Americans achieve foreign policy objectives. This policy affected US and Israel and US corresponded by assuring a qualitative military edge. From this discussion, it is clear that WikiLeaks has brought a challenge to investigative journalism. This is because it has set itself apart from the dominant ideology or practice. The owners use different forms and means across the web, such as whistle blowers to get information and hide the identity of the people, with a focus on making sure that the government exercises democracy. In conclusion, digital journalism has changed journalism by widening access to information and news to people all over the world. In terms of helping journalists do their job better, digital media has made significant contributions. However, more needs to be done in terms of training journalists, since most of them are behind the curve in the use of this technology, and they are not efficient in gathering information and analyzing it. WikiLeaks have also had a great impact on investigative journalism by setting itself apart from the dominant ideology or practice. However, it has raised ethical and professional concerns such as political differences among regions and nations, threats to national security, as well as journalism and foreign policy. Reference List Beckett, C., 2012. WikiLeaks: News in the Networked Era. Cambridge: Polity Press. Brevini, B., Hintz, A. and McCurdy, P., 2013. Beyond WikiLeaks: Implications for the Future of Communications, Journalism and Society. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. Craft, S. and Davis, C. N., 2013. Principles of American Journalism: An Introduction. New York: Routledge. Curtis, A., 2011. What is Journalism? [online] Available at: [Accessed 7 May2014]. Franklin, B., 2011. The Future of Journalism. New York: Routledge Kennedy, G. and Moen, D. R. ed., 2007. What Good is Journalism? How Reporters and Editors are Saving America's Way of Life. Columbia: University of Missouri Press. Lorenz, R., 2011. The Cablegate Shock - Does Wikileaks Upset the “Special Relationship” Narrative of Transatlantic Relations? Germany: GRIN Verlag. Parmar, I., Miller, L. B. and Ledwidge, M., 2009. Obama and the World: New Directions in US Foreign Policy. New York: Routledge. Pavlik, J. V., 2008. Media in the Digital Age. West Sussex: Columbia University Press.  Quinn, S., 2002. Knowledge Management in the Digital Newsroom. New York: Taylor & Francis Group. Star, A., 2011. Open Secrets: Wikileaks, War and American Diplomacy. New York: The New York Times. Read More