RonRoss's blog

Do you want to be a sports reporter?

It is possible that you can be a citizen sports reporter in your town.

KHQA-TV, an ABC affiliate in the Keokuk, Iowa, Qunicy, Illinois, and  Hannibal, Missouri area, actively recruits citizen journalists as sports reporters. Here's the ad from their website:  

Are you interested in being a sports reporter?  

If you are a high school senior in the Tri-States, then here's your chance to be on the side lines with KHQA Sports Reporters and help report the best local sports on "Overtime with Chris Duerr".

Media bias and what to do about it

Newsweek magazine has brought the subject of media bias to the forefront with this week’s cover photo and headline.  It features a photo of Republican congresswoman and presidential candidate Michelle Bachmann with a crazed look behind the intentionally nasty headline, “Queen of Rage.” Even the most naïve reader could not believe the article would be anything close to an evenhanded look at who Ms. Bachmann is and what she stands for.

Citizen journalist alert: Beware the Kryptonite

Clark Kent, the mild-mannered crime reporter for the Daily Planet who often appeared as Superman, spent his career avoiding kryptonite, the radio-active element from Superman’s home planet, Krypton. Even the slightest exposure to kryptonite would drain Superman of his strength and leave him as vulnerable as any normal human being.

Citizen journalism: how NOT to do it

MSNBC news anchor Contessa Brewer is a trained broadcast journalist who has provided both professional and citizen journalists with a lesson on how NOT to conduct an on-air interview.

It all happened in a recent live conversation about the debt ceiling debate she had with US Rep. Mo Brooks (R-AL). Instead of persisting with serious journalistic questions she mistakenly entered into an argument with Rep. Brooks that ended up embarrassing her in front of whatever tiny audience her cable network had. The most humiliating part of the interview went like this:

CNN invites citizen journalists to party

CNN’s portal for citizen journalists - iReport - turns five-years-old in August. To celebrate they are having parties in cities around the world. To connect citizen journalists for the celebration they are using the MeetUp platform. 

How to avoid danger as a citizen journalist

Putting yourself in danger is only one of several warnings citizen journalists should heed, writes Ron Ross co-author of the Handbook for Citizen Journalists.

So you think the press is free

July 4th is Independence Day in the USA, a national holiday. Freedom of the press is an important part of the Constitution of the United States enshrined in the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights.

You might think because of the First Amendment that the press will always be free. Think again.

No Sarah Palin bombshells

Big Media (BM) set themselves up for a huge disappointment recently with their panting anticipation of the sure ruin of Sarah Palin. They were certain that in the thousands of her newly released e-mails that somewhere, somehow Palin’s imagined incompetence and witlessness would be exposed.

Short history of citizen journalism

The history of citizen journalism is actually the history of journalism itself. Do a little research and you find that citizen journalism pre-dates professional journalism by about 200 years.

UK citizen journalists get big bucks

Citizen journalism is still being funded and promoted around the world in a variety of ways. Here are three recent examples!

IN THE UK: Nearly Half-Million Dollars Awarded!

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