Citizen Journalism ‘Not A Good Thing’

Most local journalists do not think user-generated news stories are a good thing for the profession.

That’s according to a new survey from the Pew Research Center, which surveyed a total of 585 reporters, editors and news executives to gauge their attitudes to “internet-driven innovations”.

Only 36% of the respondents from local news providers agreed that “users posting news content on news sites” is a “good thing for journalism”.

However, user-generated content in the form of comments seem a popular form of citizen interaction, with 70% of local journalists agreeing that they are a positive development.

Just over half (51%) also believes that independent citizen media websites are a good thing for journalism.

The least popular Web development among local newspaper staff is the growth of news ranking sites, which is viewed positively by only 24%.

Carried out in the final quarter of 2007, the US survey also features journalists’ attitudes towards financial matters, challenges to values and staffing issues.

It can be viewed here.