Fusing big and citizen media
- 24 Jul 07, 04:36 PM
It was a terrific clash - but not the intended clash of aspirant presidents tussling to give frank answers to the people鈥檚 questions in the people鈥檚 circus. It was, instead, a clash between two media cultures; old-style 'big journalism' and new-style 'citizen media'. On this showing, 'big journalism' is safe.
There's been a long scrap between the American networks and US social networking sites over the role of each in democracy there - and not just in this campaign. Four years ago, webmeister Joe Trippi persuaded the Democrat contender Howard Dean to focus his campaign online; the Dean campaign blogged, networked and raised funds online.
Trippi was so excited, he an account called 'The Revolution will not be Televised; Democracy, the Internet and the Overthrow of Everything'. It wasn't. Dean never even made the presidential slate and Bush won for the Republicans.
This time round, social networking has moved on and YouTube has entered the stage, along with zealots advocating the role of 鈥榗itizen media鈥 in helping America choose the occupant of the most powerful office on earth.
Uber-zealot Jeff Jarvis 鈥 who blogs here at - was one of those behind a website called 鈥樷 鈥 its aim, to bring video sharing into the democratic process. Fine 鈥 except that behind it is the unwritten value system that ascribes the highest worth to so-called 鈥樷 - named after Virginia Senator George Allen鈥檚 apparently racist comment in an unguarded moment. The relationship between media and democracy has got to be more than catching out the unguarded or unprincipled.
To fuse 鈥榖ig鈥 and 鈥榗itizen鈥 media, CNN came up with a simple proposition. It invited voters to submit their questions for the presidential candidates via .
The network then selected questions, flew some of the questioners to be at the debate in person and in a two-hour show, anchor Anderson Cooper linked their questions to the candidates 鈥 last night it was the Democrat candidates, on 17 September it will be the Republican candidates. There was also the battle of the videos 鈥 on the 鈥榓nything you can do鈥 principle鈥, live blogging on after . CNN even offered viewers the chance to be their .
Citizen media鈥檚 advocates, like Jeff Jarvis, had :
鈥淭he YouTube debates could fundamentally change the dynamics of politics in America, giving a voice to the people, letting us be heard by the powerful and the public, enabling us to coalesce around our interests and needs, and even teaching reporters who are supposed to ask questions in our stead how they should really do it.鈥
Too high. In the event, nothing new was revealed and a snowman was the star. No candidate was especially tested 鈥 indeed, they all seemed to find their key task (don鈥檛 get out, don鈥檛 give hostages to fortune) substantially easier than with a format such as 鈥楳eet the Press鈥 鈥 or even the traditional anchor interview. As far as I could tell, the dynamics remained unchanged.
Contrast Jeff Jarvis鈥檚 after the event with his hopes before it 鈥 he and others blamed the format, blamed the anchor 鈥 even blamed the system for producing too many candidates.
He misses the point. 鈥楤ig media鈥檚鈥 monopoly of communication in the democratic process is over. Good. But hopes for 鈥榗itizen media鈥 need to be realistic; as does any assessment of the enduring merits of 鈥榖ig media鈥 鈥 like its ability to pose and press the really tough questions; like its persistence in coming back to the unanswered questions; like its ability to field ego against ego, personality against personality 鈥 not the most attractive aspect of 鈥榖ig media鈥, but its most necessary given the politics that we have.
Maybe there is a way of fusing 鈥榖ig鈥 and 鈥榗itizen鈥, 鈥榦ld鈥 and 鈥榥ew鈥, but this wasn鈥檛 it.
Kevin Marsh is editor of the 大象传媒 College of Journalism
Now we鈥檙e at it again but with different place names popping up on screen - Tewkesbury, Gloucester, Abingdon. 
Getting the first pictures is always a race and as usual viewers sent in hundreds of images and moving picture captured on their mobile phones while our own camera crews struggled to get to the various locations. 
But in our enthusiasm to cover the story and tell our audiences what has happened to these communities, we should never forget the great deal of human suffering - and sometimes tragedy - which accompanies them. 
