Citizen Journalism vs. Making Up Your Own Mind

By Pandora Poikilos

Journalist, Maziar Bahari was jailed for his 'politically incorrect' behaviour and later released with a lot of help from other parties. In a recent interview with Al-Jazeera's Listening Post, he remarked that 'citizen journalism like modern art is crap. Very little of it is good but mostly it's crap."

Honestly, I wholeheartedly share that opinion. Most people take it on themselves to express. That's fine. But when that expression is an expression solely led by emotions, now that's slander in the door and journalism out the window.

Journalism carries it with a sense of objectivity. A sense of purpose. Just as Van Gogh, Michaelangelo, Da Vinci or Picasso who painted with a passion but always with a purpose. Else the world would never have been privileged to share the likes of Mona Lisa and other treasures.

The role of journalism is to inform, not to offer someone else'd decision on a platter. No, wait. Let us rephrase that. It's SUPPOSED to be objective. It's supposedly not ruled by emotion. But over the years, that is a midset that has dramatically changed.

Emotions sell better.

There's more money to be made through facts. Watching news these days is almost like watching an episode of Gossip Girls.

Very few citizen journalist offer emotion free news filled with objectivity. They insist on their opinions and then will not sit easy until their words have demanded followers, have grasped the most dramatic action.

People on the other hand embrace this new way of reporting. Its much easier and so much less work than going through the processes of making your own decisions. If someone else says so, then so be it. Why think on your own?

Ironically, that's probably what Adolf Hitler was counting on as he gathered up the Jews.