The Pros and Cons of Social Media Journalism
Social media has become an important tool for journalism and there are many pros and cons to it. With journalists being able to give their followers information right at their figure tips, many strive to get correct information out the fastest. In a way journalists are becoming influencers by being able to share their lives with people who respect their reporting. This has become a good thing because journalists are being more vulnerable to their audience which can build credibility.
Let’s talk about the cons first. One of the 1st cons is journalists wanting to get out information first, which leads to incorrect information being out there. One of the most memorable moments is when many news outlets reported incorrect information on Kobe Bryant’s death. When TMZ reported first on the crash many news outlets were trying to play catch up which led to mass reporting of misinformation. This led to a lot of confusion and the general audience not trusting on the information being reported.
With this also happening with the latest passing of DMX, many people are frustrated with the fact that misinformation spreads fast which leads to many people believing false news before any correct source comes out. Social media journalism doesn’t have specific guidelines yet because anyone can become a journalist online. Another con about social media journalism is journalists sharing more vulnerable sides of real life. This can be a valid concern for many journalists because it can hurt their credibility. Also with more journalist being online, it can lead to harassment from the public if they’re not liked.
There has been more attacks on journalists in the recent years because of the public distrusting the “fake news”. This has led to many female journalists being harassed online. In the article titled “ Online harassment of female journalists is real, and it’s increasingly hard to endure” by The Washington Post, female journalists explain the racist and misogynistic comments they recieve online. Journalist Julia Carrie Wong explains how she received death and rape threats. She explained in the article that the threats overwhelm her and it puts her in fight or flight state. Of course no journalist should be afraid to go online, it just makes the job more difficult.
Enough with the cons, let’s gets to the pros of social media journalism.
You can now receive all news with a touch of a finger! Most people access the news through twitter and facebook. Which leads to journalists building connections with their audience. Like I said earlier, journalists are basically becoming influencers because their posting content is geared toward a certain audience. I believe that young journalists will have more of a fan base because of the content they post. With most Gen Z growing up on social media, they will have followers for their personality and followers for their journalistic abilities. I think in the future more journalists are going to show their personality more along with having a professional appearance online. This is going to show a variety of journalists being open in the public. Journalists aren’t just going to have one look now.
There are many employment opportunities with social media journalism. This opened more doors for young journalists going into the field who don’t want to be reporters or work the cameras. For example there are more jobs for journalists who want to be on the marketing sides of things. They can run social media and website pages for companies. This leads to content being online, it reaches a worldwide audience and you can connect with journalists all over the world.
Journalists will be able to build their credibility online by being more vulnerable online. When they make a mistake, they can own up to it by posting it online for their audience to see. People love to see vulnerability with their favorite creators therefore, people will see a more human side to journalists.
In conclusion, social media journalism has it’s pros and cons but it should be celebrated because it’s a new form of journalist and it makes it accessible to everyone. There is still a lot to learn about social media journalism so mistakes are bound to happen. However, in the end it’s never been a better time to be a journalist.
