Response to week 3 reading - user-generated content

So anyone who has a mobile phone can now become a journalist?

That seems like a kick in the guts to all those students who spend years earning their Journalism degree!

I understand that with a mobile phone, 'news' or an event can be immediately accessed, but do citizen journalists actually have a clue about what the public want to see? It seems they do.

It is apparent to me that the majority of any user-generated content that is sent to news desks is during or after a major event or incident.

Or when Mother Nature reminds us she is still in charge with unusual weather events.

Some websites, including theage.com support user comments on all articles. Once a website opens up to user comments they're on the way toward citizen-journalism.

It seems that photos or video provide the most of user-generated content.

Sites such as Flickr that had the world's first photographs or the Australian Embasy bombing in Jakarta in 2004. And again in the London bombings in 2005.

It has become apparent that if one just happens to be in the vicinity of a catastrophe, then you might be an accidental journalist who can email or SMS the footage to a newsdesk.