Editor claims Twitter ‘humanises’ journalists
Twitter is humanising journalists and making them more accountable, The Punch’s managing editor Paul Colgan has claimed.
At a discussion on Twitter’s impact on media and journalism, Colgan claimed that journalism has “never been healthier” with Twitter a powerful reporting tool. “It enables you to gather and distribute information very quickly and make it common property of the nation and the world,” he said.
He added, that by allowing journalists to express themselves personally and professionally on Twitter, can “humanise” the writer and make them more accountable. He said: “As professionals, our job is to try and be objective. It makes journalists accountable. You’re not just doing your job in public you’re doing a whole lot of other things in public. I think it’s a positive thing for journalism.”
But he stressed that tips sourced from Twitter still need to be checked as it is a new form of source. “The dynamic has changed to how people report on the web whether it be by Tweet or longer blog post or by aggregating a whole lot of opinion. When it comes to reporting on the web, verifying information still remains paramount,” Colgan said.
ZDNet news editor Renai LeMay told the Insight Exchange-organised event that Twitter was bridging a gap between journalists and their readers. “Every day I see journalists using Twitter to directly connect with readers, something they were previously unable to do. Twitter is the greatest tool for facilitating relationships between people with common interests who don’t know each other, which is perfect for journalists.”
“Twitter represents a way for journalists to get back to grass roots and connect with readers in a fundamental way.”
The event had the hashtag #TIMJ, and a more detailed summary is available on Ross Dawson’s website.
Objective journalism at News Ltd.???
Now that would be a novel concept!
User ID not verified.
Twitter also increases journalist competition, as it further enables amateur journos. The Iran election protest coverage is Exhibit A.
User ID not verified.
Yes it does humanise them but does this make them appear less objective? It certainly takes away a degree of gravitas and when you read blog posts or tweets and then reads articles they seem forced and overly formal. I think Anabelle Crabb should just become a comic as I certainly enjoy her video pieces and twitter reporting. Then again maybe this is the face of new journalism.
User ID not verified.
Finally someone explains the reason Twitter receives inflated amounts of publicity!
“It enables you to gather and distribute information very quickly and make it common property of the nation and the world” Paul Colgan, Journalist/Editor guy
User ID not verified.
Not a massive fan of twitter – especially as a news source.
The advantage of instant up to the date information is good, but as Colgan said sourves still need to be vetted as factual. I think its only a matter of time before we get an over eager writer wanting to be the first to drop a story who realeses something, that is incorrect, and does some serious damage to a brand…
User ID not verified.
“I think its only a matter of time before we get an over eager writer wanting to be the first to drop a story who realeses something, that is incorrect, and does some serious damage to a brand…”
Like someone saying Steve Jobs had had a heart attack and CNN running it?
http://www.thestandard.com/new.....art-attack
User ID not verified.
One also has to be cautious that the “Twitter news” is not always representaive. I heard a marvellous report on ABC radio by an expatriate Iranian regarding the Iranian election, and the subsequent unrest. The key thing was that in Tehran it is about 50-50 between Ahmadinejad and Mousavi. In the rural areas and smaller cities Ahmadinejad is largely favoured. (I’m not going to say that the margin of the result was accurate, but according to this source on the ground the winner was correct). The report stressed that this was an Iranian election, and not a Tehran election, but ALL of the Twitter and YouTube coverage was Tehran based as the citizens outside of Tehran have neither the money nor the access to that technology – but they do get a vote.
User ID not verified.