The birth of engaged journalism comes from a desire to redefine the role of journalism in society. While journalists once saw themselves as beacons of truth – reporting the facts from an objective viewpoint – today, the role of journalism has come to be more about addressing the problems of the world, a shift from objectivity to interactivity and transparency. So, what does it mean to practice engaged journalism? Engaged journalism is characterized by work that synthesizes various perspectives. This work takes a dialogue that is present in the community and refines these ideas for further consumption. The main distinguishing feature of engaged journalism is its methodology for engaging with community members (citizens). In engaged journalism, the citizen is seen as a participant in the reporting. Citizens serve as producers of content and these producers drive the issues that are discussed in a wider context. In this way, citizens become participants in creating the narrative.
Literature emphasizes that engaged journalism is about furthering conversation. People are always discussing their daily lives, and it is our job as journalists to take these conversations and determine what issues may be underlying these dialogues. Campbell says that journalists are not only tasked with fact finding and storytelling, but also with “conversation-keeping”. That is, issues should come directly from the people who are affected, and journalists should see their role as facilitators of conversation. Min argues that objectivity may actually distance our work from the community and that we, as journalists, should focus on how our work can help to solve problems. Hacker furthers this point by emphasizing the importance of Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR). Through CBPR, she says journalists will be better able to involve community members as stake-holders in determining the course of research and decision-making. By creating space for buy-in, we are better able to impact communities.
In all, the journalist has become a liaison for communities seeking to solve problems and understand themselves. By serving as fact-checkers and facilitators engaged journalists can help to establish stronger sense of democracy. This work will challenge communities to improve and can foster successful projects in a society in need of refuge from information overload.
Engaged journalism fundamentally lies in making citizens active participants and contributors to the field of journalism. In this way, scholars and journalists alike argue that citizens should be active participants in the production of journalistic works. This principle first necessitates addressing the recent rise of social media. Platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram have completely changed the field of journalism because now all citizens with access to these platforms can be ‘journalists’ in their own right (e.g., through streaming live video footage). While the rise of social media unquestionably democratized journalism by giving a platform to the previously voiceless, these outlets also threaten our democracy with heightened opportunities for the dissemination of misinformation—a frightening trend we’ve only seen grow in the last several years (Kovach and Resenstiel). Yet another issue associated with these sites is that all too often, the opinions voiced are only those at either extreme, which could lead to public discourse becoming nothing more than “noise” (Kovach and Resenstiel: 210). This “noise” could further alienate citizens from engaging in these dialogues and conversations.
Despite all the aforementioned issues with the rise of social media, there is little question that such platforms have provided citizens chances to contribute to the public discourse to a degree previously unheard of. However, even though citizens can now be ‘journalists’ themselves in some capacity, ‘professional’ journalists still need to be intentional in including citizens in their work under the tenets of engaged journalism, which Seong-Jae Min explores in his piece “Conversation through journalism: Searching for organizing principles of public and citizen journalism.” In this article, Seong-Jae Min argues for making journalism a ‘conversation’ again and proposes a ‘bottom up’ philosophy, meaning that citizens (the ‘bottom’) rather than people in power (the ‘top’) need to be the starting place for journalistic pieces. This philosophy directly parallels the Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) model outlined by Hacker, which emphasizes collaboration between researchers and participants and results in real-world policy recommendations.
Just like social media has forced us to question what journalism looks like in the modern era, Hacker’s CBPR presents another challenge to a core conception of journalism: its foundation in “objective” truth. Seong-Jae Min explains how “objectivity and distance” are no longer useful in journalism and how “interactivity and transparency” (567) now carry more weight, especially with the rise of ‘citizen journalism’ which is frequently more “emotional” (572). Campbell echoes Seong-Jae Min’s point in stating: “We need to include the emotional and intuitive components of conversation, as well as the rational elements” (xxv). This quote emphasizes the shift away from the (false) notion of “objectivity” and instead, the embrace of the emotive which was previously discouraged. In this way, engaged journalism and CBPR encourage the discipline of journalism to be more ‘human’ in every capacity—by humans, for humans, and human in its very essence.
America we have a problem. I guarantee at this moment my grandmothers are both sitting in their respective homes on their respective couches- one watching Fox News the other watching MSNBC and neither engaging with the subject beyond their ancient box television sets. The problem of polarization, as mentioned in the Kovatch and Resenstiel chapter, is that neither side participates in effective discourse. The era of “answer culture” and the blame game must go in favor of a more inclusive activism centered type of journalism- engaged journalism.
Engaged journalism creates a partnership between the good citizen and the responsible journalist. According to Campell, an engaged journalist needs to involve citizens in widespread issues and present a platform for problem-solving. The journalist succeeds by the level of participation from citizens their piece produces. In this sense engaged journalism relies on the active participation of the reader and not just the writer. Furthermore, engaged journalism functions as the difference between passive noise and active participation. Much like the salons mentioned in the Kovatch and Resenstiel reading, engaged journalism is ongoing. When properly done an engaged journalist sparks more conversation than the factual evidence that they cover. However, while debate minded, ultimately engaged journalists are interested in problem-solving. For this to work, the engaged journalist acts as a filter or mediator rather than a reporter. Finally, the engaged journalist amplifies populist problems. In this sense, they become the voice for the people, bridging the gap between the “weak” and “strong” spheres.
With engaged journalism hopefully, we can pop the “filter bubble” my grandmothers adhere to and maybe even encourage them to participate in some activism of their own- after all this is a democracy.
Engaged journalism shifts the paradigm of traditional “professional” journalism in a way that bridges the gap between the observer and the observed. Engaged journalism is heavily rooted in community-based participatory research (CBPR) rather than research rooted in fact, science, or truth. Karen Hacker explains CBPR in relation to engaged journalism by redefining the role of the observer and the observed. The observed have the power to help shape the way they are being observed by the observer in an equitable manner. The observer in engaged journalism reports through collaboration with their subjects in an empowering way that sparks action, including social change.
Alternatively, professional journalism has been a mode of translation of knowledge or news in an apathetic, indifferent way with less opportunities for public participation. Kovach and Resentiel in “Journalism as a Public Forum” imply that the objectivity of traditional journalism causes withdrawal from the public due to the absence of interaction, transparency, and collaboration. Engaged journalism however, enables the public to actively participate in discourses, making the discourse itself more relevant to the public. The involvement of the public consequently invigorates the tradition of “conversation-keeping” in journalism rather than strict fact-finding and/or storytelling (Cole C. Campbell). Ultimately the aim of engaged journalism is to provoke “truth” from within rather than from an outside perspective as a catalyst for action, social change, and public participation.
The purpose of journalism is to give citizens the information they need to be free and self-governing (Kovach). Engaged journalism aims to straddle the gaping distance between the ordinary citizen and the high and mighty journalist. Straying away from the obligation of truth and towards the business of problem-solving lies at the heart of engaged journalism (Campbell). Allowing citizen journalism to play a role in our understanding of the world around us means leaving a space for opinions to be expressed (Min). Although opinion may take the journalism aspect out of news, it allows readers to acknowledge what the other side is thinking and perhaps even understand that the perceived other side is not as extreme as previously thought. Assigning both citizen and public journalists a purpose allows the raw and unapologetically opinionated voice of the people to be heard while also giving public journalists their credibility back (Min). Engaged journalism aims not only to bridge the gap between journalist and citizen but also between citizen and citizen. In such a polarized political climate, it is imperative to make all citizens aware that most people lie in the middle of a political spectrum (Min). Modern day journalism involves, “moving beyond both-sides-of-the-story narrowness to a wide ranging exploration that helps citizens understand not only their own stake in an issue but also the stakes of others” (Campbell). Engaged journalism is simple in nature. It necessitates going back to the original purpose of journalism by letting the voices of citizens shape the story being told. A variety of real voices in a single piece sparks conversations and internal debate. Internal and external discussion are, at the end of the day, what what lead citizens to define their idea of freedom and from there, self-govern.
Engaged journalism is a synthesis of models provided by previous scholars. The concepts of civic, citizen, public, and engaged journalism are interlinked through a common desire to bring together communities and improve relationships between reader and journalist. Not only that, but readers should be actively engaged in the journalistic process. The “engaged” part of engaged journalism is referring to the community being engaged with journalism and journalists being more involved with the community. Campbell criticizes the aloof or cold nature with which journalists treat their work: they are merely truth collectors, and cannot shape public opinion. In a rapidly digitizing world, how does this factor in? Younger generations, particularly Millennials, Gen X, and Gen Z, are more likely to get their news from informal methods like Twitter, Tumblr, or BuzzFeed, sometimes even live. More live than CNN or NBC nowadays. Citizens nowadays want journalists to listen to them, serve more as problem solvers. There is no way to take down these growing platforms, nor return completely to a purist model of journalism without sacrificing the interest of the public. What are “professional” journalists to do? The collective answer of analyses is: embrace it. This grassroots action actually benefits journalism in the way that it provides something raw, something entirely human. It brings writers and new anchors alike back to earth to listen to their fellows. Acting like knowledge is something held up high, like in the attitudes Campbell expressed, isn’t beneficial to the future of journalism. Knowledge is, as Hacker implies, is created and distributed. Community based research is an excellent display of that, as the shorter distance that news has to travel, the less likely it is to be distorted. Conversation, especially casual or unprompted talk, can be deceivingly helpful, Min assures. Ideas are created easily and without strain or anxiety in conversations where people are comfortable. “Conversation” in journalism can be defined with overly strict rules that often adhere to a White and elitist model. But in an increasingly diverse world, it’s simply not realistic. And so when journalists are engaged, they are no longer on another level; they are just ordinary members of the community. Thus, both parties are learning at the same time what is happening, and that quintessential “why” and “how”. And yet this is a delicate line to pursue, the difference between engaged journalism and exploitation. Engaged journalism cannot be lazy, nor can it be with the primary intent of making money. Min warns how this will fall flat, as the first efforts of engaged journalism did because they were too “artificial”. They were too “by the book”, per se. Genuine interest is what fuels engaged journalism, because that’s what it’s all about. Journalists caring about their communities and feeling an obligation is different from them observing what is happening in their communities and running with it. One of these will succeed. The other will not.
Engaged journalism is the act to transform journalism into a public platform that is available to all to participate and contribute to (Min, “Journalism as a Public Forum,” Campbell). In the past, journalism was used as a source of truth and the sole goal was to present facts to the public. Traditional journalism is a one-way street where journalists present facts to the public (Campbell). Engaged journalism changes this narrative and journalism becomes a two-way street between the communities and news sources.
With engaged journalism, citizens join the news conversation. Because the conversation is at the individual level, it has the potential to be more emotional and opinionated than traditional news. Conversations include blogs, social media, and public forums. Min argues that chats between two people can be considered joining the conversation, even though these seem insignificant. It is the role of journalists to pick up these public and private conversations and report on them, creating a more holistic vision of community opinions. Hacker contributes to the literature on engaged journalism by discussing ways to do community research effectively. She describes community research as being designed jointly with the communities and research that benefits the both the journalists and the communities.
Overall the literature stresses that when doing community work, whether journalism or research, it is vital that there is community participation in the process and that it benefits both parties. Additionally, the literature stresses that engaged journalism is the method responsible journalists should have to provide accurate opinions of communities. It is social justice oriented and can allow marginalized people to have a voice.
The literature stresses many benefits of engaged journalism, but I am also interested in learning drawbacks of giving everyone a voice. How can engaged journalism can disprove false information in communities? How can one get access to information outside their belief systems if they are bombarded with news (social media, community events, etc) that confirms their belief systems?
Engaged journalism involves the members of communities who are directly impacted by the issue being examined. Karen Hacker refers to it as community-based participatory research, emphasizing the importance of involving these citizens directly in research and in furthering attempts to make change. In the context of guns in schools, it is important to directly involve survivors, parents, teachers, school administrators and community leaders who could impact policy changes directly. Through this direct engagement with communities, change has a tendency to be enacted quicker. Also by directly involving citizens, there is no risk of causing community members to feel exploited or generalized (Hacker). Traditional methods of journalism have become outdated—unappealing to advocates of social and political change. Why not break down the traditional barrier between journalist, subject and audience and create a method of equal involvement between all three? Engaged journalism keeps the concept of journalism alive, while also provoking real social and political change. Directly involving citizens also works to rebuild trust in news that has been dwindling for a while (Min). The shared desire to not only bring attention to an issue, but also to solve that issue is what makes engaged journalism so effective. It causes journalists and citizens who are directly involved to connect in a very human way. They come together to solve a problem and thus, an inherent level of trust is immediately built. The community becomes just as integral to the story as the writer of the story is. This mutual respect is acknowledged and helps to push a story further (Campbell). Engaged journalism applies a sense of humanness and honesty to the traditional confines of journalism. It accepts that not everything can be completely objective, that emotions will be present—often strong on both sides of an argument.
Journalism is at the heart of our democracy. It informs, it persuades, and it enlightens the community on the issues it is facing. However, not all forms of journalism are equal. For example, Campbell illustrates the unrepresentative nature of journalism that focused solely on expert opinions in which these experts rarely came to a consensus. This in effect distanced citizen’s news sources from them, “Journalism that justifies itself in the publics name but in which the public plays no role, except as an audience,” (Campbell). This is widely different than the goal of engaged journalism, which acts as a sort of news director for citizens as well as allowing them to become active participants rather than audience members. Engaged journalism achieves this goal by framing news as not just a list of facts but as a hub of sorts for problem solving. This perspective on journalism engages citizens and empowers them to be active in their community, proving news to become a more inclusive source. This element of community engagement is stressed in Hacker’s intro to CBPR. A panel of experts, as illustrated by Campbell, is simply not effective in engaging citizens. Instead, the element of having a community partnership, is invaluable. A community partnership provides street knowledge, a more nuanced understanding of a community, and creates a connection between journalist and their area of study. CBPR’s approach engages the community in every aspect of the research.
As stated by Kovach and Resentiel, Journalism is not only an important aspect of society, but also a very influential one. Shearer’s story of how quickly he was falsely blamed for the threatening of Kathleen Willey shows the extent of journalism’s influence. Instead of allowing citizens to take a back seat, engaged journalism serves as an inclusive source of news that allows citizens to participate in their community.
Engaged journalism is a delicate balance of professional, emotional, and citizen journalism, held together by both the active participation of the reader and humility of the journalist. It requires honest dialogue between, and collaboration with, communities and reporters. Effective engaged journalists influence citizens by their readers them to create their own opinions while also ensuring communities face their own problems. Engaged journalism requires the public to be active participants as they play a role in prioritizing events and news stories that mean the most to them. Readers play an active role in digesting various news sources, and those news sources care about what the readers have to say. Campbell’s article cites various studies proving that citizens want journalists to be problem-solvers, desiring their newspapers to help them identify solutions in conjunction with the problems. Conversation and dialogue must be at the forefront of any attempt at successful attempt at engaged journalism.
While ideally what gets airtime on the news or a space in the paper is the information the public has the most interest in, journalists have the power to construct their own reality within the importance of news. Journalists inadvertently construct the news by selecting the content they report on; a construction that allows those who report the news to vet what is important for citizens to know. They, “can’t tell people what to think but could tell people what to think about” (Campbell). This discussion over how choosing what information gets reported on impacts public discourse can be somewhat remedied with Hacker’s strategy of CBPR. Similarly to Campbell’s call for an engaged audience, Hacker emphasizes community-based participatory research based on the foundations of feminist theory that keeps citizens at the center of social change. This CBPR, keeps the relationship between the researcher and the community as paramount, and changes the perspective of who is the expert from that of the researcher to a collaborative view on expertise that values the community’s knowledge as well. This strategy uses knowledge for action within communities and allows the community rather than the researcher to identify the problem.
Engaged journalism does not and cannot have one singular definition. When effective, it is a myriad of various models, strategies, and practices that invite communities into the world of journalism and attempt to keep public discourse at the heart of American democracy. Undoubtedly imperfect and ever changing, engaged journalism at heart is a dialogue between information and perception. It does not simply translate complicated and scholarly facts from higher-education to the masses, nor does it validate every tweet as one of equal importance. It is a forum for debate, outreach, and hopefully eventual action. Engaged journalism cannot function without an engagement that fundamentally opposes apathy, indifference, and argument culture; requiring citizens burst their filter bubble and learn how to listen.
It is evident that journalism has changed immensely over the past several decades due to the technological progression of media, the change in economy, and shift of social climate. However, one thing that really hasn’t changed is what the reader/viewer wants to gain from any piece of journalism. Engaged journalism is a form of journalism in which the citizen can actively participate. Rather than just reciting facts, magazine articles, tv shows, newspapers, etc., have to help the reader work toward one common goal: problem solving.
Thus, this tasks a journalist with several integral duties. As Campbell describes in their piece of Journalism as a Democratic Art, journalists have a key responsibility to pick and choose what information is relayed to the public. Thus, among many other responsibilities they hold, such as “wooing the reader”, framing different issues, and portraying conflicting perspectives, journalists hold the great responsibility of deciding what information the public receives. The information that the journalist does choose has to enable the citizen to ‘problem solve’, rather than just walk away with facts.
The Community Based Participatory Research (CBPR), takes a unique approach to achieve this goal. In the scenario of a research based article, the CBPR utilizes a technique in which they actually include the citizen - rather the actual subject of research - as part of the research. This enables the citizen to be a part of the research rather than feel like an laboratory. Additionally, it enables these communities that are being researched to make active change.
Finally, it is important to note the implications of journalism and how fast news spreads. Journalists should all hold the moral and ethical responsibility of spreading real news, rather than sheer lies. It is so simple to just talk, but the price of producing real news is far heftier.
Engaged Journalism is a model that reexamines the norms that have long been the revered ideals of journalism. Engaged journalism is journalism adapting to the age of information, social activism and democracy. Moving away from a focus on objectivity (understanding its impossiblility and inadquecy) (Min), engaged journalism emphasizes problem solving while recognizing its limitation as only one contributer to the knowledge of the public (Campbell). An engaged journalist is more than a trustee of the public expected to deliver accurate and timely information. Acting as facilitators of public life and using a conversational model, engaged journalists help communities direct attention to the issues that matter most.
Engaged Journalism reevaluates the role of providers and recipients of news. Citizens are participants in the journalistic process, not just observers or consumers. Institutions and agencies are more than sources of information: they are resources for problem solving. Engaged Journalism provides citizens with a forum for compromise (Kovach and Restenial that allows all community members to freely and safely engage with issues and goings-ons. For Journalism to be engaged with public life, there is an equitible partnershipand an acceptance of mutual responsibility between the researchers and those being researched. (Hacker)
Engaged Journalism is a chance for professional journalism to gain more respect and acclaim in modern times, and it is a powerful tool for the bettterment of society and the promotion of democracy.
Engaged journalism is the direct involvement of the journalist in a given community. It seeks to problem-solve, research, verify, and engage with the community in order to improve a community. Karen Hacker outlines Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) as research with the purpose of making stronger connections between academics and communities. This is directly in line with engaged journalism. For academics to most effectively research and come upon solutions to improve communities, it must be actively involved with everyday functions of the community. Hacker outlines CBPR as a response to the often static state of traditional journalism (Hacker). Based in truth and objectivity without bias, traditional journalism is fading as we evolve through the digital age. Social media and the Internet are full of unabashed liars and fake news enthusiasts, and it takes serious journalism to sift through such dense non-truth. This arises the need for engaged journalism, to provide a forum for public criticism and compromise (Kovach). Journalism also calls for leadership. As stated by Campbell, leadership means influencing the community to face its problems (Campbell). Academics, citizens, and professionals must work together in order to find solutions. A common theme between Kovach, Hacker, and Campbell is the need for problem-solving within communities. If the true end-goal of journalism is to better a community, then academics and journalists must understand the communities they seek to improve. “CBPR is an approach that engages the community under study in every aspect of the research process” (Hacker). Seong-Jae Min echoes the need for interaction between journalists and communities. He dictates that “‘conversation’ can be the organizing principle of journalism.” Including communities in their own development is crucial to real improvement. “The public journalism and citizen journalism movements, understood in such a context, are noble efforts to bring back the conversation to the core of the journalism enterprise.” (Min). As argued by each of the authors, journalism must evolve into a system that more actively tackles problems within the community if it is to continue its influence and power within the nation.
Engaged journalism strives to create what was formally an audience into participants, and bridge the gap between scholar and citizen. In the past, journalists were thought to be the spotlight operators – illuminating the public to matters of “importance” in our daily lives. But with the way of social media went the way of unbiased journalism, at least in part of the consumer. Different social media platforms and different pools of followers exposes us as weighing certain issues and values over others – I certainly don’t follow any accounts that actively promote ideals that oppose my own. Social media has created an asynchronous news cycle, wherein the information we receive first won’t deviate far from what we want to see (Kovach). It is clear that over the last decade or so, the news has become what we want to see on our own screens rather than a synthesis of what is going on. “Fake news” exists because if we don’t want to hear something, we basically don’t have to. Engaged journalism works to get citizens involved in what is going on around them and problem solve in an age where people only want to hear reaffirmations of their own belief systems. To do this, a journalist can no longer just report scholarly findings or numbers but must relate them to communities by asking questions. Engaged journalist should be reorienting themselves to solutions rather than just the statistics and societal problems (Campbell). What seems problematic in Campbell’s article though is the idea of orienting journalism towards the recipients rather than the source. This is great in theory as it would imply that engaged journalists work for the betterment of the communities they serve, rather than the sources of problems, however, it is imperative that the demographics of a community do not alter the relaying of certain facts. Social media does that for us, and the engaged journalist must never act as a filter but rather must provide a platform for debate.
The movement towards engaged journalism recognizes the flaws in traditional journalism and attempts to create a form of journalism that is more conscious of its obligation to the public. As Kovach and Resential highlighted, traditional journalism can often be neglectful of the way the public interacts with the work it produces. Specifically, it can indulge in a sensationalism that distracts from the truth of their articles. Further, traditional journalism sees its role as the detached provider of information and does not consider the way that its readers will interact with that information, thus distancing itself from the issues it reports on and removing itself from the solution finding process. Engaged journalism imagines an entirely different societal role for journalism. As Campbell emphasizes, traditional journalism puts journalists in “the truth business”, whereas engaged journalism understands that its role should be in “the problem solving business”. It recognizes the ways in which reporting affects the collective consciousness of a community and urges individual reporters not only to be aware of this influence, but also to considers themselves to be a part of the impacted community. Hackner discussed the successful ways in which this community minded approach can help solve complex localized problems. As Hackner explains, “These “participatory approaches” share a core philosophy of inclusivity and of engaging the beneficiaries of research in the research process itself.” (page 4). This reflects one of the core concepts of the citizen branch of engaged journalism: the work must be based off of serious reflection on how it will impact its community. This is achieved most effectively by consulting the constituency itself. As Min emphasized, conversation and transparency must be the cornerstones of any successful form of engaged journalism.
Engaged journalism is, in essence, a conversation. This conversation is multifaceted and layered, and involves as many parties as possible. Each voice is valued and heard for what it provides, without a predisposed decision on which voices are correct and incorrect, and which stories are true or false. Engaged journalism is, as Min argues, the act of valuing these conversations and bringing them back into the journalistic process. I believe that creating the space for these conversations is the heart of engaged journalism. As such, it is the act of providing a platform for these conversations that is the first step of engaged journalism (Kovach and Resentiel). Once this platform is in existence, the next step of the journalistic process is to encourage, without biasing, conversation across all lines. That entails taking a community approach, similar to that of Hacker’s Community-Based Participatory Research format, in which communities need to be viewed as equal partners with knowledge and identity. An effort must be made by journalists to make communities, groups, business, officials, etc -- as many voices as possible, from all different sides of a question -- all feel as though their input is valuable and will be incorporated into the future story. Engaged journalists listen, perhaps probe deeper, and attempt to gather as much information as possible. They work with all parties to understand what the core of the conversation is. Instead of making it an “us versus them” topic, a polarized issue, or a topic with a clear trajectory and solution, these journalists have the responsibility of tracking the conversations and organizing them into a cohesive format. Through this model, described by Campbell as a “philosophy of attentiveness,” engaged journalism then disseminate this knowledge, giving power to the citizens, not the journalists, in designing the story. Journalists’ power comes from organizing these stories, choosing which stories are the most crucial for public discussion, and incorporating not only the potential problem or question at hand, but also ways for community to stay engaged and address the question. In short, engaged journalism is sharing the stories of entire communities in an effort to maximize those voices and create positive venues to problem-solving (Campbell) and discussion.
Engaged journalism is the news adapted for modern times. More practical, more democratic, and more transparent, this school of thought aims to completely include the people in "negotiating shared meaning" (Campbell). Throwing aside all pretensions to 'true neutrality', completely detached analytical debate, and truth as an unchanging, one-dimensional thing, this new media focuses less on profit and more on giving people the oppurtunity to engage in politics, and fact check, and come to reasonable compromises without being disenchanted by endless opacity, corruption, elitism, and narrow definitions of what is of value to report. Engaged journalism at its best doesn't dictate, it simply facilitates, allowing people to gain a sense of investment and control over their lives and wider society in a positive way, aided by social media, rather than by existing in their own, comforting niche bubble, also aided by social media. Engaged journalism is almost a redundant phrase, as journalism should always have been engaged with the people it reports for and about, doing the legwork and the synthesis but not the conclusion making, rather than becoming an elitist, profit and power driven tool for the already wealthy and powerful to wield. Engaged journalism is the personal joined with the public for the betterment of both.
What has stood out to me in these articles is the apparent fragility of effective journalism. News today takes several forms and communicates with so many specific audiences that it may seem nearly impossible to find the engaged, informative, conversation-engendering journalism that these authors espouse. Today’s journalism has, in many cases, shifted away from the “Argument Culture” which places conversation and debate at its center and towards an “Answer Culture” (Kovach and Resentiel) which simply provides answers that align with the consumer’s views. Considering this, engaged journalism built upon the community based participatory research presented by Hacker and the “bottom-up” flow model elaborated by Min, stands out as a crucial element of democracy. I find Kovach and Resentiel’s emphasis on journalism as a tool which both reflects and challenges communities to be a very succinct answer to the question “What is Engaged Journalism?”. Expanding upon this, I would incorporate some of Campbell’s proposed purposes of journalism into my answer to this question. Especially interesting were his examples of journalism as a tool for problem solving and journalism as a philosophy of attentiveness. I find these two points extremely relevant today. Engaged journalism must not only effectively gather information and stories through listening to communities, but must “order” the discussion and present solutions so that citizens can address the issues they face. The ordering of information is especially key as we are so easily drowning in information while “starving for wisdom”. Campbell, in his “list of things we need to do”, notes that we must “bring newsrooms into universities and universities into newsrooms, to increase collaboration and learning on both sides.” This makes me hopeful and excited for this class!
W1D2 - What is Engaged Journalism? - Isabella McShea
Capitalism throughout the world has put an emphasis on our self worth through productivity. The field of journalism has not been untouched by this reality, and thus, much of the media we consume is not necessarily unbiased or representative of the needs and wants of average people consuming content in the 21st century. To me, engaged journalism provides an opportunity to disrupt the cycles of elitism and secrecy that have long ruled how people receive their news. This does not seem to be just a “different” form of journalism but rather a radical act of journalism. By providing a space for people to be the experts, we have an opportunity to honor and respect the experiences and ideas of all community members in a newfound way.
Within the context of our political climate, from fake news to a gridlock of political polarization, there is a sociological examination of journalism that must occur. In Min’s piece concerning democracy and public journalism, there is much discussion of our politics and the media must be critically analyzed and possibly reformed. Min notes that “only public conversation, not information, can illuminate much of what is happening when we encounter the news… a journalism dedicated to conversation defines news relationally, as a social process of negotiated meanings, rather than objectively, as a transmitted product” (Min, 569). Moving away from the assumption that journalism can be less about concrete facts and more about a dialogue without any particular purpose seems profound. Including as many voices, opinions, and thoughts as possible while additionally creating community seems essential in our political climate perhaps now more than ever.
Foreword discusses that by “reorienting our journalism away from the sources of news and toward the recipients of news”, we could help empower individuals to take charge of the issues most important to them. Providing news that is not only accurate but also provides actionable and tangible steps for a brighter future is certainly a radical thought. By taking the time to deconstruct the hegemonic forces that have created what media is today we have the chance to reimagine what the media can be tomorrow. I believe that through engaged journalism there can be a palpable benefit to communities around the world in the years to come.
The birth of engaged journalism comes from a desire to redefine the role of journalism in society. While journalists once saw themselves as beacons of truth – reporting the facts from an objective viewpoint – today, the role of journalism has come to be more about addressing the problems of the world, a shift from objectivity to interactivity and transparency. So, what does it mean to practice engaged journalism? Engaged journalism is characterized by work that synthesizes various perspectives. This work takes a dialogue that is present in the community and refines these ideas for further consumption. The main distinguishing feature of engaged journalism is its methodology for engaging with community members (citizens). In engaged journalism, the citizen is seen as a participant in the reporting. Citizens serve as producers of content and these producers drive the issues that are discussed in a wider context. In this way, citizens become participants in creating the narrative.
ReplyDeleteLiterature emphasizes that engaged journalism is about furthering conversation. People are always discussing their daily lives, and it is our job as journalists to take these conversations and determine what issues may be underlying these dialogues. Campbell says that journalists are not only tasked with fact finding and storytelling, but also with “conversation-keeping”. That is, issues should come directly from the people who are affected, and journalists should see their role as facilitators of conversation. Min argues that objectivity may actually distance our work from the community and that we, as journalists, should focus on how our work can help to solve problems. Hacker furthers this point by emphasizing the importance of Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR). Through CBPR, she says journalists will be better able to involve community members as stake-holders in determining the course of research and decision-making. By creating space for buy-in, we are better able to impact communities.
In all, the journalist has become a liaison for communities seeking to solve problems and understand themselves. By serving as fact-checkers and facilitators engaged journalists can help to establish stronger sense of democracy. This work will challenge communities to improve and can foster successful projects in a society in need of refuge from information overload.
This looks good, Bridget! Thank you for providing a good first model for the course.
DeleteThat was Jordan, but I had my settings wrong so it didn't display my name. :)
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ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteEngaged journalism fundamentally lies in making citizens active participants and contributors to the field of journalism. In this way, scholars and journalists alike argue that citizens should be active participants in the production of journalistic works. This principle first necessitates addressing the recent rise of social media. Platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram have completely changed the field of journalism because now all citizens with access to these platforms can be ‘journalists’ in their own right (e.g., through streaming live video footage). While the rise of social media unquestionably democratized journalism by giving a platform to the previously voiceless, these outlets also threaten our democracy with heightened opportunities for the dissemination of misinformation—a frightening trend we’ve only seen grow in the last several years (Kovach and Resenstiel). Yet another issue associated with these sites is that all too often, the opinions voiced are only those at either extreme, which could lead to public discourse becoming nothing more than “noise” (Kovach and Resenstiel: 210). This “noise” could further alienate citizens from engaging in these dialogues and conversations.
Despite all the aforementioned issues with the rise of social media, there is little question that such platforms have provided citizens chances to contribute to the public discourse to a degree previously unheard of. However, even though citizens can now be ‘journalists’ themselves in some capacity, ‘professional’ journalists still need to be intentional in including citizens in their work under the tenets of engaged journalism, which Seong-Jae Min explores in his piece “Conversation through journalism: Searching for organizing principles of public and citizen journalism.” In this article, Seong-Jae Min argues for making journalism a ‘conversation’ again and proposes a ‘bottom up’ philosophy, meaning that citizens (the ‘bottom’) rather than people in power (the ‘top’) need to be the starting place for journalistic pieces. This philosophy directly parallels the Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) model outlined by Hacker, which emphasizes collaboration between researchers and participants and results in real-world policy recommendations.
Just like social media has forced us to question what journalism looks like in the modern era, Hacker’s CBPR presents another challenge to a core conception of journalism: its foundation in “objective” truth. Seong-Jae Min explains how “objectivity and distance” are no longer useful in journalism and how “interactivity and transparency” (567) now carry more weight, especially with the rise of ‘citizen journalism’ which is frequently more “emotional” (572). Campbell echoes Seong-Jae Min’s point in stating: “We need to include the emotional and intuitive components of conversation, as well as the rational elements” (xxv). This quote emphasizes the shift away from the (false) notion of “objectivity” and instead, the embrace of the emotive which was previously discouraged. In this way, engaged journalism and CBPR encourage the discipline of journalism to be more ‘human’ in every capacity—by humans, for humans, and human in its very essence.
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ReplyDeleteAmerica we have a problem. I guarantee at this moment my grandmothers are both sitting in their respective homes on their respective couches- one watching Fox News the other watching MSNBC and neither engaging with the subject beyond their ancient box television sets. The problem of polarization, as mentioned in the Kovatch and Resenstiel chapter, is that neither side participates in effective discourse. The era of “answer culture” and the blame game must go in favor of a more inclusive activism centered type of journalism- engaged journalism.
ReplyDeleteEngaged journalism creates a partnership between the good citizen and the responsible journalist. According to Campell, an engaged journalist needs to involve citizens in widespread issues and present a platform for problem-solving. The journalist succeeds by the level of participation from citizens their piece produces. In this sense engaged journalism relies on the active participation of the reader and not just the writer. Furthermore, engaged journalism functions as the difference between passive noise and active participation. Much like the salons mentioned in the Kovatch and Resenstiel reading, engaged journalism is ongoing. When properly done an engaged journalist sparks more conversation than the factual evidence that they cover. However, while debate minded, ultimately engaged journalists are interested in problem-solving. For this to work, the engaged journalist acts as a filter or mediator rather than a reporter. Finally, the engaged journalist amplifies populist problems. In this sense, they become the voice for the people, bridging the gap between the “weak” and “strong” spheres.
With engaged journalism hopefully, we can pop the “filter bubble” my grandmothers adhere to and maybe even encourage them to participate in some activism of their own- after all this is a democracy.
Engaged journalism shifts the paradigm of traditional “professional” journalism in a way that bridges the gap between the observer and the observed. Engaged journalism is heavily rooted in community-based participatory research (CBPR) rather than research rooted in fact, science, or truth. Karen Hacker explains CBPR in relation to engaged journalism by redefining the role of the observer and the observed. The observed have the power to help shape the way they are being observed by the observer in an equitable manner. The observer in engaged journalism reports through collaboration with their subjects in an empowering way that sparks action, including social change.
ReplyDeleteAlternatively, professional journalism has been a mode of translation of knowledge or news in an apathetic, indifferent way with less opportunities for public participation. Kovach and Resentiel in “Journalism as a Public Forum” imply that the objectivity of traditional journalism causes withdrawal from the public due to the absence of interaction, transparency, and collaboration. Engaged journalism however, enables the public to actively participate in discourses, making the discourse itself more relevant to the public. The involvement of the public consequently invigorates the tradition of “conversation-keeping” in journalism rather than strict fact-finding and/or storytelling (Cole C. Campbell). Ultimately the aim of engaged journalism is to provoke “truth” from within rather than from an outside perspective as a catalyst for action, social change, and public participation.
The purpose of journalism is to give citizens the information they need to be free and self-governing (Kovach). Engaged journalism aims to straddle the gaping distance between the ordinary citizen and the high and mighty journalist. Straying away from the obligation of truth and towards the business of problem-solving lies at the heart of engaged journalism (Campbell).
ReplyDeleteAllowing citizen journalism to play a role in our understanding of the world around us means leaving a space for opinions to be expressed (Min). Although opinion may take the journalism aspect out of news, it allows readers to acknowledge what the other side is thinking and perhaps even understand that the perceived other side is not as extreme as previously thought. Assigning both citizen and public journalists a purpose allows the raw and unapologetically opinionated voice of the people to be heard while also giving public journalists their credibility back (Min).
Engaged journalism aims not only to bridge the gap between journalist and citizen but also between citizen and citizen. In such a polarized political climate, it is imperative to make all citizens aware that most people lie in the middle of a political spectrum (Min). Modern day journalism involves, “moving beyond both-sides-of-the-story narrowness to a wide ranging exploration that helps citizens understand not only their own stake in an issue but also the stakes of others” (Campbell).
Engaged journalism is simple in nature. It necessitates going back to the original purpose of journalism by letting the voices of citizens shape the story being told. A variety of real voices in a single piece sparks conversations and internal debate. Internal and external discussion are, at the end of the day, what what lead citizens to define their idea of freedom and from there, self-govern.
Engaged journalism is a synthesis of models provided by previous scholars. The concepts of civic, citizen, public, and engaged journalism are interlinked through a common desire to bring together communities and improve relationships between reader and journalist. Not only that, but readers should be actively engaged in the journalistic process. The “engaged” part of engaged journalism is referring to the community being engaged with journalism and journalists being more involved with the community. Campbell criticizes the aloof or cold nature with which journalists treat their work: they are merely truth collectors, and cannot shape public opinion. In a rapidly digitizing world, how does this factor in? Younger generations, particularly Millennials, Gen X, and Gen Z, are more likely to get their news from informal methods like Twitter, Tumblr, or BuzzFeed, sometimes even live. More live than CNN or NBC nowadays. Citizens nowadays want journalists to listen to them, serve more as problem solvers. There is no way to take down these growing platforms, nor return completely to a purist model of journalism without sacrificing the interest of the public. What are “professional” journalists to do?
ReplyDeleteThe collective answer of analyses is: embrace it.
This grassroots action actually benefits journalism in the way that it provides something raw, something entirely human. It brings writers and new anchors alike back to earth to listen to their fellows. Acting like knowledge is something held up high, like in the attitudes Campbell expressed, isn’t beneficial to the future of journalism. Knowledge is, as Hacker implies, is created and distributed. Community based research is an excellent display of that, as the shorter distance that news has to travel, the less likely it is to be distorted. Conversation, especially casual or unprompted talk, can be deceivingly helpful, Min assures. Ideas are created easily and without strain or anxiety in conversations where people are comfortable. “Conversation” in journalism can be defined with overly strict rules that often adhere to a White and elitist model. But in an increasingly diverse world, it’s simply not realistic. And so when journalists are engaged, they are no longer on another level; they are just ordinary members of the community. Thus, both parties are learning at the same time what is happening, and that quintessential “why” and “how”. And yet this is a delicate line to pursue, the difference between engaged journalism and exploitation. Engaged journalism cannot be lazy, nor can it be with the primary intent of making money. Min warns how this will fall flat, as the first efforts of engaged journalism did because they were too “artificial”. They were too “by the book”, per se. Genuine interest is what fuels engaged journalism, because that’s what it’s all about. Journalists caring about their communities and feeling an obligation is different from them observing what is happening in their communities and running with it. One of these will succeed. The other will not.
Engaged journalism is the act to transform journalism into a public platform that is available to all to participate and contribute to (Min, “Journalism as a Public Forum,” Campbell). In the past, journalism was used as a source of truth and the sole goal was to present facts to the public. Traditional journalism is a one-way street where journalists present facts to the public (Campbell). Engaged journalism changes this narrative and journalism becomes a two-way street between the communities and news sources.
ReplyDeleteWith engaged journalism, citizens join the news conversation. Because the conversation is at the individual level, it has the potential to be more emotional and opinionated than traditional news. Conversations include blogs, social media, and public forums. Min argues that chats between two people can be considered joining the conversation, even though these seem insignificant. It is the role of journalists to pick up these public and private conversations and report on them, creating a more holistic vision of community opinions. Hacker contributes to the literature on engaged journalism by discussing ways to do community research effectively. She describes community research as being designed jointly with the communities and research that benefits the both the journalists and the communities.
Overall the literature stresses that when doing community work, whether journalism or research, it is vital that there is community participation in the process and that it benefits both parties. Additionally, the literature stresses that engaged journalism is the method responsible journalists should have to provide accurate opinions of communities. It is social justice oriented and can allow marginalized people to have a voice.
The literature stresses many benefits of engaged journalism, but I am also interested in learning drawbacks of giving everyone a voice. How can engaged journalism can disprove false information in communities? How can one get access to information outside their belief systems if they are bombarded with news (social media, community events, etc) that confirms their belief systems?
^Amy Bolton
DeleteEngaged journalism involves the members of communities who are directly impacted by the issue being examined. Karen Hacker refers to it as community-based participatory research, emphasizing the importance of involving these citizens directly in research and in furthering attempts to make change. In the context of guns in schools, it is important to directly involve survivors, parents, teachers, school administrators and community leaders who could impact policy changes directly. Through this direct engagement with communities, change has a tendency to be enacted quicker. Also by directly involving citizens, there is no risk of causing community members to feel exploited or generalized (Hacker). Traditional methods of journalism have become outdated—unappealing to advocates of social and political change. Why not break down the traditional barrier between journalist, subject and audience and create a method of equal involvement between all three? Engaged journalism keeps the concept of journalism alive, while also provoking real social and political change. Directly involving citizens also works to rebuild trust in news that has been dwindling for a while (Min).
ReplyDeleteThe shared desire to not only bring attention to an issue, but also to solve that issue is what makes engaged journalism so effective. It causes journalists and citizens who are directly involved to connect in a very human way. They come together to solve a problem and thus, an inherent level of trust is immediately built. The community becomes just as integral to the story as the writer of the story is. This mutual respect is acknowledged and helps to push a story further (Campbell). Engaged journalism applies a sense of humanness and honesty to the traditional confines of journalism. It accepts that not everything can be completely objective, that emotions will be present—often strong on both sides of an argument.
-Logan Smith
DeleteJournalism is at the heart of our democracy. It informs, it persuades, and it enlightens the community on the issues it is facing. However, not all forms of journalism are equal. For example, Campbell illustrates the unrepresentative nature of journalism that focused solely on expert opinions in which these experts rarely came to a consensus. This in effect distanced citizen’s news sources from them, “Journalism that justifies itself in the publics name but in which the public plays no role, except as an audience,” (Campbell). This is widely different than the goal of engaged journalism, which acts as a sort of news director for citizens as well as allowing them to become active participants rather than audience members. Engaged journalism achieves this goal by framing news as not just a list of facts but as a hub of sorts for problem solving. This perspective on journalism engages citizens and empowers them to be active in their community, proving news to become a more inclusive source. This element of community engagement is stressed in Hacker’s intro to CBPR. A panel of experts, as illustrated by Campbell, is simply not effective in engaging citizens. Instead, the element of having a community partnership, is invaluable. A community partnership provides street knowledge, a more nuanced understanding of a community, and creates a connection between journalist and their area of study. CBPR’s approach engages the community in every aspect of the research.
ReplyDeleteAs stated by Kovach and Resentiel, Journalism is not only an important aspect of society, but also a very influential one. Shearer’s story of how quickly he was falsely blamed for the threatening of Kathleen Willey shows the extent of journalism’s influence. Instead of allowing citizens to take a back seat, engaged journalism serves as an inclusive source of news that allows citizens to participate in their community.
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ReplyDeleteEngaged journalism is a delicate balance of professional, emotional, and citizen journalism, held together by both the active participation of the reader and humility of the journalist. It requires honest dialogue between, and collaboration with, communities and reporters. Effective engaged journalists influence citizens by their readers them to create their own opinions while also ensuring communities face their own problems. Engaged journalism requires the public to be active participants as they play a role in prioritizing events and news stories that mean the most to them. Readers play an active role in digesting various news sources, and those news sources care about what the readers have to say. Campbell’s article cites various studies proving that citizens want journalists to be problem-solvers, desiring their newspapers to help them identify solutions in conjunction with the problems. Conversation and dialogue must be at the forefront of any attempt at successful attempt at engaged journalism.
ReplyDeleteWhile ideally what gets airtime on the news or a space in the paper is the information the public has the most interest in, journalists have the power to construct their own reality within the importance of news. Journalists inadvertently construct the news by selecting the content they report on; a construction that allows those who report the news to vet what is important for citizens to know. They, “can’t tell people what to think but could tell people what to think about” (Campbell). This discussion over how choosing what information gets reported on impacts public discourse can be somewhat remedied with Hacker’s strategy of CBPR. Similarly to Campbell’s call for an engaged audience, Hacker emphasizes community-based participatory research based on the foundations of feminist theory that keeps citizens at the center of social change. This CBPR, keeps the relationship between the researcher and the community as paramount, and changes the perspective of who is the expert from that of the researcher to a collaborative view on expertise that values the community’s knowledge as well. This strategy uses knowledge for action within communities and allows the community rather than the researcher to identify the problem.
Engaged journalism does not and cannot have one singular definition. When effective, it is a myriad of various models, strategies, and practices that invite communities into the world of journalism and attempt to keep public discourse at the heart of American democracy. Undoubtedly imperfect and ever changing, engaged journalism at heart is a dialogue between information and perception. It does not simply translate complicated and scholarly facts from higher-education to the masses, nor does it validate every tweet as one of equal importance. It is a forum for debate, outreach, and hopefully eventual action. Engaged journalism cannot function without an engagement that fundamentally opposes apathy, indifference, and argument culture; requiring citizens burst their filter bubble and learn how to listen.
It is evident that journalism has changed immensely over the past several decades due to the technological progression of media, the change in economy, and shift of social climate. However, one thing that really hasn’t changed is what the reader/viewer wants to gain from any piece of journalism. Engaged journalism is a form of journalism in which the citizen can actively participate. Rather than just reciting facts, magazine articles, tv shows, newspapers, etc., have to help the reader work toward one common goal: problem solving.
ReplyDeleteThus, this tasks a journalist with several integral duties. As Campbell describes in their piece of Journalism as a Democratic Art, journalists have a key responsibility to pick and choose what information is relayed to the public. Thus, among many other responsibilities they hold, such as “wooing the reader”, framing different issues, and portraying conflicting perspectives, journalists hold the great responsibility of deciding what information the public receives. The information that the journalist does choose has to enable the citizen to ‘problem solve’, rather than just walk away with facts.
The Community Based Participatory Research (CBPR), takes a unique approach to achieve this goal. In the scenario of a research based article, the CBPR utilizes a technique in which they actually include the citizen - rather the actual subject of research - as part of the research. This enables the citizen to be a part of the research rather than feel like an laboratory. Additionally, it enables these communities that are being researched to make active change.
Finally, it is important to note the implications of journalism and how fast news spreads. Journalists should all hold the moral and ethical responsibility of spreading real news, rather than sheer lies. It is so simple to just talk, but the price of producing real news is far heftier.
Ella de Bruijn
DeleteEngaged Journalism is a model that reexamines the norms that have long been the revered ideals of journalism. Engaged journalism is journalism adapting to the age of information, social activism and democracy. Moving away from a focus on objectivity (understanding its impossiblility and inadquecy) (Min), engaged journalism emphasizes problem solving while recognizing its limitation as only one contributer to the knowledge of the public (Campbell). An engaged journalist is more than a trustee of the public expected to deliver accurate and timely information. Acting as facilitators of public life and using a conversational model, engaged journalists help communities direct attention to the issues that matter most.
ReplyDeleteEngaged Journalism reevaluates the role of providers and recipients of news. Citizens are participants in the journalistic process, not just observers or consumers. Institutions and agencies are more than sources of information: they are resources for problem solving. Engaged Journalism provides citizens with a forum for compromise (Kovach and Restenial that allows all community members to freely and safely engage with issues and goings-ons. For Journalism to be engaged with public life, there is an equitible partnershipand an acceptance of mutual responsibility between the researchers and those being researched. (Hacker)
Engaged Journalism is a chance for professional journalism to gain more respect and acclaim in modern times, and it is a powerful tool for the bettterment of society and the promotion of democracy.
Engaged journalism is the direct involvement of the journalist in a given community. It seeks to problem-solve, research, verify, and engage with the community in order to improve a community.
ReplyDeleteKaren Hacker outlines Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) as research with the purpose of making stronger connections between academics and communities. This is directly in line with engaged journalism. For academics to most effectively research and come upon solutions to improve communities, it must be actively involved with everyday functions of the community. Hacker outlines CBPR as a response to the often static state of traditional journalism (Hacker).
Based in truth and objectivity without bias, traditional journalism is fading as we evolve through the digital age. Social media and the Internet are full of unabashed liars and fake news enthusiasts, and it takes serious journalism to sift through such dense non-truth. This arises the need for engaged journalism, to provide a forum for public criticism and compromise (Kovach). Journalism also calls for leadership. As stated by Campbell, leadership means influencing the community to face its problems (Campbell). Academics, citizens, and professionals must work together in order to find solutions. A common theme between Kovach, Hacker, and Campbell is the need for problem-solving within communities. If the true end-goal of journalism is to better a community, then academics and journalists must understand the communities they seek to improve. “CBPR is an approach that engages the community under study in every aspect of the research process” (Hacker). Seong-Jae Min echoes the need for interaction between journalists and communities. He dictates that “‘conversation’ can be the organizing principle of journalism.” Including communities in their own development is crucial to real improvement. “The public journalism and citizen journalism movements, understood in such a context, are noble efforts to bring back the conversation to the core of the journalism enterprise.” (Min).
As argued by each of the authors, journalism must evolve into a system that more actively tackles problems within the community if it is to continue its influence and power within the nation.
-Michael Gorman
DeleteEngaged journalism strives to create what was formally an audience into participants, and bridge the gap between scholar and citizen. In the past, journalists were thought to be the spotlight operators – illuminating the public to matters of “importance” in our daily lives. But with the way of social media went the way of unbiased journalism, at least in part of the consumer. Different social media platforms and different pools of followers exposes us as weighing certain issues and values over others – I certainly don’t follow any accounts that actively promote ideals that oppose my own. Social media has created an asynchronous news cycle, wherein the information we receive first won’t deviate far from what we want to see (Kovach). It is clear that over the last decade or so, the news has become what we want to see on our own screens rather than a synthesis of what is going on. “Fake news” exists because if we don’t want to hear something, we basically don’t have to.
ReplyDeleteEngaged journalism works to get citizens involved in what is going on around them and problem solve in an age where people only want to hear reaffirmations of their own belief systems. To do this, a journalist can no longer just report scholarly findings or numbers but must relate them to communities by asking questions. Engaged journalist should be reorienting themselves to solutions rather than just the statistics and societal problems (Campbell). What seems problematic in Campbell’s article though is the idea of orienting journalism towards the recipients rather than the source. This is great in theory as it would imply that engaged journalists work for the betterment of the communities they serve, rather than the sources of problems, however, it is imperative that the demographics of a community do not alter the relaying of certain facts. Social media does that for us, and the engaged journalist must never act as a filter but rather must provide a platform for debate.
The movement towards engaged journalism recognizes the flaws in traditional journalism and attempts to create a form of journalism that is more conscious of its obligation to the public. As Kovach and Resential highlighted, traditional journalism can often be neglectful of the way the public interacts with the work it produces. Specifically, it can indulge in a sensationalism that distracts from the truth of their articles. Further, traditional journalism sees its role as the detached provider of information and does not consider the way that its readers will interact with that information, thus distancing itself from the issues it reports on and removing itself from the solution finding process.
ReplyDeleteEngaged journalism imagines an entirely different societal role for journalism. As Campbell emphasizes, traditional journalism puts journalists in “the truth business”, whereas engaged journalism understands that its role should be in “the problem solving business”. It recognizes the ways in which reporting affects the collective consciousness of a community and urges individual reporters not only to be aware of this influence, but also to considers themselves to be a part of the impacted community. Hackner discussed the successful ways in which this community minded approach can help solve complex localized problems. As Hackner explains, “These “participatory approaches” share a core philosophy of inclusivity and of engaging the beneficiaries of research in the research process itself.” (page 4). This reflects one of the core concepts of the citizen branch of engaged journalism: the work must be based off of serious reflection on how it will impact its community. This is achieved most effectively by consulting the constituency itself. As Min emphasized, conversation and transparency must be the cornerstones of any successful form of engaged journalism.
- Hannah Friedman
Engaged journalism is, in essence, a conversation. This conversation is multifaceted and layered, and involves as many parties as possible. Each voice is valued and heard for what it provides, without a predisposed decision on which voices are correct and incorrect, and which stories are true or false. Engaged journalism is, as Min argues, the act of valuing these conversations and bringing them back into the journalistic process. I believe that creating the space for these conversations is the heart of engaged journalism. As such, it is the act of providing a platform for these conversations that is the first step of engaged journalism (Kovach and Resentiel). Once this platform is in existence, the next step of the journalistic process is to encourage, without biasing, conversation across all lines. That entails taking a community approach, similar to that of Hacker’s Community-Based Participatory Research format, in which communities need to be viewed as equal partners with knowledge and identity. An effort must be made by journalists to make communities, groups, business, officials, etc -- as many voices as possible, from all different sides of a question -- all feel as though their input is valuable and will be incorporated into the future story. Engaged journalists listen, perhaps probe deeper, and attempt to gather as much information as possible. They work with all parties to understand what the core of the conversation is. Instead of making it an “us versus them” topic, a polarized issue, or a topic with a clear trajectory and solution, these journalists have the responsibility of tracking the conversations and organizing them into a cohesive format. Through this model, described by Campbell as a “philosophy of attentiveness,” engaged journalism then disseminate this knowledge, giving power to the citizens, not the journalists, in designing the story. Journalists’ power comes from organizing these stories, choosing which stories are the most crucial for public discussion, and incorporating not only the potential problem or question at hand, but also ways for community to stay engaged and address the question. In short, engaged journalism is sharing the stories of entire communities in an effort to maximize those voices and create positive venues to problem-solving (Campbell) and discussion.
ReplyDeleteEngaged journalism is the news adapted for modern times. More practical, more democratic, and more transparent, this school of thought aims to completely include the people in "negotiating shared meaning" (Campbell). Throwing aside all pretensions to 'true neutrality', completely detached analytical debate, and truth as an unchanging, one-dimensional thing, this new media focuses less on profit and more on giving people the oppurtunity to engage in politics, and fact check, and come to reasonable compromises without being disenchanted by endless opacity, corruption, elitism, and narrow definitions of what is of value to report. Engaged journalism at its best doesn't dictate, it simply facilitates, allowing people to gain a sense of investment and control over their lives and wider society in a positive way, aided by social media, rather than by existing in their own, comforting niche bubble, also aided by social media. Engaged journalism is almost a redundant phrase, as journalism should always have been engaged with the people it reports for and about, doing the legwork and the synthesis but not the conclusion making, rather than becoming an elitist, profit and power driven tool for the already wealthy and powerful to wield. Engaged journalism is the personal joined with the public for the betterment of both.
ReplyDeleteWhat has stood out to me in these articles is the apparent fragility of effective journalism. News today takes several forms and communicates with so many specific audiences that it may seem nearly impossible to find the engaged, informative, conversation-engendering journalism that these authors espouse. Today’s journalism has, in many cases, shifted away from the “Argument Culture” which places conversation and debate at its center and towards an “Answer Culture” (Kovach and Resentiel) which simply provides answers that align with the consumer’s views. Considering this, engaged journalism built upon the community based participatory research presented by Hacker and the “bottom-up” flow model elaborated by Min, stands out as a crucial element of democracy. I find Kovach and Resentiel’s emphasis on journalism as a tool which both reflects and challenges communities to be a very succinct answer to the question “What is Engaged Journalism?”.
ReplyDeleteExpanding upon this, I would incorporate some of Campbell’s proposed purposes of journalism into my answer to this question. Especially interesting were his examples of journalism as a tool for problem solving and journalism as a philosophy of attentiveness. I find these two points extremely relevant today. Engaged journalism must not only effectively gather information and stories through listening to communities, but must “order” the discussion and present solutions so that citizens can address the issues they face. The ordering of information is especially key as we are so easily drowning in information while “starving for wisdom”. Campbell, in his “list of things we need to do”, notes that we must “bring newsrooms into universities and universities into newsrooms, to increase collaboration and learning on both sides.” This makes me hopeful and excited for this class!
W1D2 - What is Engaged Journalism? - Isabella McShea
ReplyDeleteCapitalism throughout the world has put an emphasis on our self worth through productivity. The field of journalism has not been untouched by this reality, and thus, much of the media we consume is not necessarily unbiased or representative of the needs and wants of average people consuming content in the 21st century. To me, engaged journalism provides an opportunity to disrupt the cycles of elitism and secrecy that have long ruled how people receive their news. This does not seem to be just a “different” form of journalism but rather a radical act of journalism. By providing a space for people to be the experts, we have an opportunity to honor and respect the experiences and ideas of all community members in a newfound way.
Within the context of our political climate, from fake news to a gridlock of political polarization, there is a sociological examination of journalism that must occur. In Min’s piece concerning democracy and public journalism, there is much discussion of our politics and the media must be critically analyzed and possibly reformed. Min notes that “only public conversation, not information, can illuminate much of what is happening when we encounter the news… a journalism dedicated to conversation defines news relationally, as a social process of negotiated meanings, rather than objectively, as a transmitted product” (Min, 569). Moving away from the assumption that journalism can be less about concrete facts and more about a dialogue without any particular purpose seems profound. Including as many voices, opinions, and thoughts as possible while additionally creating community seems essential in our political climate perhaps now more than ever.
Foreword discusses that by “reorienting our journalism away from the sources of news and toward the recipients of news”, we could help empower individuals to take charge of the issues most important to them. Providing news that is not only accurate but also provides actionable and tangible steps for a brighter future is certainly a radical thought. By taking the time to deconstruct the hegemonic forces that have created what media is today we have the chance to reimagine what the media can be tomorrow. I believe that through engaged journalism there can be a palpable benefit to communities around the world in the years to come.