QotW9: Citizen Journalism--> STOMP

“Personal journalism is not a new invention. Anyone with a computer or cell phone can post in online forums” (Gillmor, 2004).

Citizen journalism is the act of citizens playing an active role in the process of collecting, reporting, analyzing and disseminating news and information. Citizen journalism should not be confused with civic journalism, which is practiced by professional journalists. Citizen journalism is a specific form of citizen media as well as user generated content (“Citizen Journalism”, 2007).

Citizen journalism is also known as "participatory journalism". The intent of this participation is to provide independent, reliable, accurate, wide-ranging and relevant information that a democracy requires (“Citizen Journalism”, 2007). Citizen journalism that was "by the people" began to flourish, enabled in part by emerging internet and networking technologies, such as weblogs, chat rooms, message boards, wikis and mobile computing (“Citizen Journalism”, 2007). The idea behind citizen journalism is that people without professional journalism training can use the tools of modern technology and the global distribution of the Internet to create, augment or fact-check media on their own or in collaboration with others (“Citizen Journalism”, 2007).

According to Gillmor (2004), journalism has become only more slightly transparent in recent years but the public is demanding more transparency in their own field, and is doing some reporting on their own when media, like newspaper, fails to respond in satisfying ways.

In Singapore, citizens now have a channel for them to be a “journalist/reporter”. The channel is called STOMP (Straits Times Online Mobile Print). It integrates content and activities in the three platforms of print, online and mobile. These three platforms will enable STOMP to interact and engage with Singaporeans in exciting new ways (“STOMP”, 2006).

STOMP will deliver content which is interactive and which will help develop new communities of Singaporeans bonded together by shared interests. Access to the website is completely free and as for SMS and MMS, only normal telecom charges apply to users (“STOMP”, 2006).

The Straits Times Editor Han Fook Kwang explained, “In the new media environment, newspapers have to be more than just passive providers of news. They have to engage their readers in areas which appeal to them. We have to provide readers with new avenues to express themselves, to enable them to interact with us, and among themselves. STOMP will enable us to do this. We want STOMP to become a forum of lively discussions - whether the topics are weighty national issues or where to get the best bak chor mee.” Through this interaction, The Straits Times aims to strengthen its relationship with readers and reach out to non-readers (“STOMP”, 2006).

Therefore, with the above stated features of STOMP, I personally feel that STOMP is an ideal form of citizen journalism for Singapore. However, as the saying goes, “nothing is perfect”, hence certain features of STOMP may be changed or added so as to improve it.

(1) Organization
I feel that the website seemed a little messy with too many things shown at once. My first impression was that "how do I know what news have been published?" Being a reader, I suggest the news should be archived and grouped into their related categories for easier viewing. Groupings may include political, entertainment, educational, gossips etc. Also, a list of news that have been published may be included so that people who wish to share their news will know if it has been reported. (Till now, I still have yet really figure out how to view all the news in there =p)

(2) Remarks

Since I am now a blogger, I feel that a comment section does help to flourish ideas and keep the web interactive. Hence, if a comment section is added beside the news uploaded may be a good idea for people to share their views (just like what the newspaper have now, known as the reader’s response etc).

In conclusion, STOMP promotes citizen journalism. I quote Gillmor (2004), “we’ve seen how modern communications give anyone who cares for the tools to learn more –far more- about people and organizations that in the past tried to ration news. What’s more, once someone finds out something, she can spread the word globally. But newsmakers need to embrace this new reality, not fight it.” Thus, the creation of STOMP by The Straits Time is a great idea and a good option for Singaporeans to report what they see and feel, despite that few sections should be improved for a better “STOMP”.

Reference:

Gillmor, D. (2004, July). We the Media: Chapter 1, 3 & 9. Retrieved March 30, 2007 from http://download.nowis.com/index.cfm?phile=WeTheMedia.html&tipe=text/html

STOMP. (2006). About us. Retrieved March 30, 2007 from http://www.stomp.com.sg/about/about.html

Wikipedia: The free encyclopedia. (2007, 28 March). Citizen Journalism. Retrieved 30 March, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citizen_journalism