“Tokyo has been chosen by the International Olympic Committee to host the 2020 Summer Games for the first time in 54 years.” In the early morning today, I heard of this big news from my friend’s post on Facebook, not from television, newspaper or radio. And also I used my smart phone to check it outside home. As soon as seeing the news, I continued to post the information on my Facebook, spread it to all my friends and got many comments or likes as if I have known the news.
But, what is the meaning of such things we unintentionally do every day? How can it actually have an effect on other media? In our modern society, smart devices such as smart phone presto become widespread, resulting in a drastic increase in the number of social media users such as Facebook or Twitter. In the information transmitted from social media, each individual’s opinions, ideas and interests can be latent. Further, due to the information transmitted within people’s connection or communication, some big trends, rumors or unfavorable criticisms might potentially be formed.
As a result, people could produce a new and more creative website or platform which allows them to exchange information on their own. This could happen, completely because social media has no cost to users. However, there is an ironic story that social media might passively delete the existing organisations and individuals. For example, the news that my friend posted on her Facebook. The meaning that I was able to know the information by one click of the application of Facebook should imply that I do not have to take the trouble either to browse a newspaper or to turn television on. In other words, they consequently might reduce the jobs at newspaper publishing companies and television stations.
Although it is certainly a good thing that each individual can have freedom of speech and information transmission, how many of organizations and individuals can be hurt by such media convergence?
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I find it interesting that you think being able to access news via someone’s Facebook post may eliminate jobs in the newsroom. I do not think this is the case. I think that citizen journalism and professional journalism are not competing with each other, as much as they are assisting. While citizens can help break a story, and give minority views on it. Professionals provide a more researched, thorough and hopefully unbiased recount of the event. This article by Ted Diadium elabortates on my points:http://www.cleveland.com/readers/index.ssf/2013/09/citizen_journalists_hammered_h.html
Like you, I find that most news is broken to me via friends on social networks, and after I hear about the story I search for online news sites to give me a more detailed idea of the events unfolding.