When it comes to writing, there are some things that require clarification in order to attack the mission with purpose and make it effective. In particular, it's important to recognize the differences among the many genres. The communication may be excellent but misses the target because it conveyed too much, not enough, or the argument wasn't sufficiently substantiated.
In particular, there is a difference between an article and a blog post. Those two mediums are definitely very different from a report, letter, white paper, memo, or email. Their basis and intent are not on the same level.
A Blog Post
What's your definition of an article compared to a blog post? That distinction has been on my mind since June 21 of this year. Perhaps the blog post is an evolved, digital version of an article whereas an article will always be published in a magazine or newspaper. Time to return to investigate by considering those early days when blogging first came on the scene. It was more like a journal entry. It captured the various thoughts the writer had about a particular subject. It seems to have evolved over time to being somewhere between a journal entry and an editorial. Still, it exists as a thought piece. The research that substantiates the conclusions helps to support them. If the research also becomes bibliographic information to accompany the post, some will assume the bibliography is not proof of the conclusions but free research put at their complete disposal.
Back to the distinction between a blog post compared to an article. For that matter, what about those special-interest news programs? Are those merely stories, articles or reports? Sometimes they seem to be entertainment for the sake of helping the viewing public distracted from the tedium of daily life rather than news per se.
Some are quick to call a person a hobbyist because they blog. True enough, there are those who blog about news and endeavor to report the news. They even call themselves journalists and reporters although they have no training in journalism, reporting, and copy editing. Many times they have good communication and writing skills. Some are even paid to blog, compared with write articles. These activities get us into making certain we're using the right term when referring to the writer.
The term for a non-journalist reporter blogger (that is, one who has no formal training or background in reporting or journalism) is a "citizen journalist." There are several opinions expressed about who and what qualifies as citizen journalist as well as the benefits that accrue to that status. Over the course of time, those who have more capitalistic leanings will spot the needs and avail themselves of filling the void. Thus, putting the term "citizen journalism school" into a search engine will result in many options.
An Article
As with any other type of writing, the article (no matter what the medium) needs to be engaging. It needs to tell a good story and make the reader feel it is relevant to their being better informed, better able to make good choices, and live a better existence because of the reliability of the information they used. The same principle holds true with all good writing, whether fiction or nonfiction, business or scholastic, oration or recreation.
Then we move into who is qualified to write the magazine or newspaper article. It's typically a reporter who writes up the information and submits it to their publication. This is the more narrow role of someone who is a journalist. There are certain responsibilities that attend to each capacity that in many instances do not attach to the citizen journalist who blogs about something that happened.
It's important that the journalist and reporter provide as factual an account in their informative disposition as is possible. Their biases need to be put aside or at least admitted so that there's as little slanted reporting and undue influence. Otherwise, it isn't journalism as much as it is editorial and opinion.
The Good Journalist
Providing a good, unbiased, informative article requires the ability to speak up and the courage to push back if the logic isn't sound or the concept is too novel for carte blanche authority. These attributes are also true of the good lawyer, as well as the fact-finding professions that are grounded on getting the best information possible to serve their clients. The accuracy is critical. Working on assumptions, and with little to no exposure nor appreciation of the driving elements of the situation simply is not an effective way to deliver quality. You need to speak up when something isn't clear. It's essential to ask good questions - even during the writing process.
Which leads me to some additional thoughts. Is it mandatory that a good journalist, whether citizen journalist or reporter, be a member of a journalistic organization? Should they be compensated for their time and effort in providing their services? What constitutes eligibility to be a member of any of these formal organizations or even a writers union?
Just a closing aside. Remember to use the style guide appropriate to your vehicle.
Resources:
Citizen Journalism
- Pros and Cons of Citizen Journalism, Crystal Lombardo, Vision Launch (June 2, 2016)
- The pros and pros of 'citizen journalism', Jason Stverak, Online Journalism Review, USC Annenberg (March 12, 2010)
- Citizen Journalism Pros and Cons, apecsecadmin, Asia-Pacific Economics Blog
(Apr 18, 2015)
- Understanding Citizen Journalism: The Power and Perils of Independent Reporting, Tony Rogers, ThoughtCo.com (Updated February 05, 2018 )
- Blogging vs. Journalism: The Ongoing Debate, Jacob Friedman, The Next Web (Aug 18, 2010)
- What Is the Difference Between a Journalist & a Reporter?, Scott Knickelbine, Chron.com (Updated July 01, 2018)
- What is journalism?, American Press Institute
- What is the purpose of journalism?, American Press Institute
- Understanding Bias, American Press Institute
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