Being a journalist in today’s culture
Since printed has gone out of style, and media platforms are in. It is essential for journalists to consider branching out and learn how to navigate through these different platforms for any and all audience engagement. One of those platforms being Twitter.
In the last recent years, Twitter has become one of the most populated media platforms not just for the everyday consumers, but it can also be a big help for journalists, as well. Twitter is like a window into what’s happening from nationwide to globally, just inside your mobile device. It has become accessible for journalists, because they can do more than just tweet. Reporters can actually engage with their audience, and this, in turn, increases their followers.
“Unlike with a traditional TV broadcast or newspaper article, however, the public can take an active role in a story by replying directly to journalists on Twitter,” Jennifer Hollett, said. “People are more likely to reply to journalists who are willing to engage with them by replying, retweeting, answering questions, or soliciting news tips.” Being able to engage with followers, reporters can also build their credibility and trust with their audience.
Twitter can be a source for additional leads and information for reporters to take advantage of. They can reach out to the Twitter community to seek for help with tips, theories, or ideas on a certain story assignment that they’re working on. You might not know how powerful one tweet can be until you put it out there. This platform can be use by reporters for serious news reporting, but it can also be fun for them. For examples, reporters can take their audience behind the scenes or just being part of the Twitter community by participating in popular memes and trends. You can’t be an effective journalist if you don’t break down the barrier between you and your audience by engaging with them, whether it’d be through Twitter or Facebook, because we need to remember that we’re human beings, too.
To really define what journalism is with the ever-growing world of human race is a tough one. Ever since the invention of printed newspapers to the inventions of the web, the definition of journalism constantly expand as new platforms are being introduced. Dictionary.com defines journalism as, “The occupation of reporting, writing, editing, photographing, or broadcasting news or of conducting any news organization as a business.” As we know, this can be done on multiple platforms. As humans, we adapt, and journalism did to. “Focus on storytelling and personality, because those things are irreplaceable, and concentrate on appealing to readers who are passionate about a specific topic,” journalist/programmer Stijin Debrouwere, said. As long as one provides accurate, compelling and in-depth contents, then who to say something is not journalism whether it is published on twitter, a blog or a forum post.
To answer the question of whether journalists should support a corrupt system or not goes back to the concept of being an impartial storyteller. Journalists’ number oath is to remain unbiased through any and all situations when they decided to go into this field. Even if a news station doesn’t agree with the way a company or corporation runs their business, they would still have to report the story like how it is. We don’t know that Todd Gurley is 100 percent guilty or not, and that’s the journalist’s job to find out. To uncover a secret, SB Nation shouldn’t have dismissed that tipster completely, but they should’ve investigated into the situation to find out whether Gurley was, indeed, the man in the video. All in all, the truth will come out no matter what, and SB Nation had no right to help dismiss it, especially if they opposed of the NCAA’s rules. We took an oath as journalist, so we should stand by that oath no matter what.
References
Hollett, J. (n.d.). How journalists can best engage with their audience. Retrieved April 12, 2019, from https://media.twitter.com/content/media-twitter/en_us/articles/best-practice/2018/how-journalists-can-best-engage-with-their-audience.html
Ingram, M. (2014, October 10). Journalism’s biggest competitors are things that don’t even look like journalism. Retrieved April 12, 2019, from https://gigaom.com/2014/10/10/journalism-biggest-competitors-are-things-that-dont-even-look-like-journalism/
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