The Role of Citizen Journalism: Empowerment and Credibility Challenges

Citizen journalism has revolutionized news reporting by empowering regular folks to gather, report, and distribute news using smartphones and social media platforms. The democratization of news production has expanded the range of information dissemination and enhanced public engagement in media. Nonetheless, it also presents considerable issues concerning the authenticity, dependability, and ethical standards of such content. This paper analyses the dual function of citizen journalism as both an instrument of empowerment and a contributor to credibility concerns. The study employs a mixed-methods approach, integrating qualitative content analysis and survey data, to elucidate the influence of citizen journalism on conventional news paradigms and to propose strategies for mitigating related risks.