The catch/marketing phrase "Eyewitness News" has been used for decades. According to Wikipedia, the earliest use in American television was in April 1959 by KYW-TV in Cleveland.
The whole point was their crews were on the scene of news, seeing it person giving "Eyewitness" accounts which we then watched at home. It was the stations however, who decided what we actually got to witness ourselves, and when we did.
Flash forward to September, 2013 in Colorado and flash flooding. The most compelling images arguably coming from actual eyewitnesses, folks like you and me on the ground with our smart phone cameras, instantly sharing pictures and video to the media or on Social Media.
Time and time again I've seen local outlets thank citizen journalists for their content and encouraging then to send more. The earliest pictures were stunning to see. Sure, some of the shots were shaky but who cares. A wall of water coming down a canyon on city street is powerful stuff. Folks living there got the pictures while traditional news crews were either on the way to the scene, or simply couldn't get there because of the aforementioned walls of water.
This is a compelling argument of the power of Social Media. Sure, there have been rare instances, at least up until now where folks have posted things on Facebook or Twitter that failed the standards of journalism as to accuracy and fact-checking. But in breaking news situations, even the most seasoned of journalists make mistakes. (Sadly at a growing rate but that's for another blog post)
But today's it's all about the image. A picture is worth a thousand words, video is worth a hundred thousand words. To their credit, Denver area news operations have enlisted us to help tell the story. Because sometimes we are part of the story.
That said, we ourselves become our own news outlets. We can publish accounts, videos and pictures on any number of Social Media outlets. With that, at least morally and ethically comes the responsibility to get the story right.
Nothing spreads faster than misinformation. As with international relations and "Eyewitness News," trust, but verify!
Brian Olson
Owner/Consultant
Conversation Starters Public Relations
"We start the conversation about you"
The whole point was their crews were on the scene of news, seeing it person giving "Eyewitness" accounts which we then watched at home. It was the stations however, who decided what we actually got to witness ourselves, and when we did.
Flash forward to September, 2013 in Colorado and flash flooding. The most compelling images arguably coming from actual eyewitnesses, folks like you and me on the ground with our smart phone cameras, instantly sharing pictures and video to the media or on Social Media.
Words not necessary
Time and time again I've seen local outlets thank citizen journalists for their content and encouraging then to send more. The earliest pictures were stunning to see. Sure, some of the shots were shaky but who cares. A wall of water coming down a canyon on city street is powerful stuff. Folks living there got the pictures while traditional news crews were either on the way to the scene, or simply couldn't get there because of the aforementioned walls of water.
Impactful
This is a compelling argument of the power of Social Media. Sure, there have been rare instances, at least up until now where folks have posted things on Facebook or Twitter that failed the standards of journalism as to accuracy and fact-checking. But in breaking news situations, even the most seasoned of journalists make mistakes. (Sadly at a growing rate but that's for another blog post)
But today's it's all about the image. A picture is worth a thousand words, video is worth a hundred thousand words. To their credit, Denver area news operations have enlisted us to help tell the story. Because sometimes we are part of the story.
That said, we ourselves become our own news outlets. We can publish accounts, videos and pictures on any number of Social Media outlets. With that, at least morally and ethically comes the responsibility to get the story right.
Nothing spreads faster than misinformation. As with international relations and "Eyewitness News," trust, but verify!
Brian Olson
Owner/Consultant
Conversation Starters Public Relations
"We start the conversation about you"
