Podcasting's Role in Citizen Journalism

Citizen journalists have a voice through written media, but with podcasting, the audience can actually hear their voices. A podcast is an audio broadcast available for free download on the internet. With this technology, citizen journalists are able to create their work into an audio experience to reach listeners and engage their interests.

For some people, it's easier to speak than it is to write. Podcasts enable the vocally talented citizen journalist to pass on their information and articles through the spoken word. There are many people who would rather listen to information than to read. Again, this is where podcasts play a perfect role for the citizen journalist to communicate with the audience.

Podcasting is the future of the blogosphere for citizen journalists, allowing them a further step into the world of media. Big time media corporations are taking a lot of slack from viewers about specialized formatting. These viewers are striking back by getting their news from other places, and that just so happens to be from the internet.

With podcasts available for free and many different genres available to download, people everywhere are looking to this avenue for entertainment, news, and information sources. With free software available to create a podcast, almost anyone can create one with ease.

What makes podcasting more interesting than big media news and talk shows? Citizen journalists who report through podcasts can give points of view and ideas that big news corporations don't cover. If someone in Japan wants to sync a podcast from someone living in the Appalachian Mountains, they can. That Japanese person can find out from the person's podcast what life is like here. That's not the kind of news you'll hear on television.

Podcasting for citizen journalists does have its downside. Many podcasts don't have a professional quality and sound chopped together. Some people like the raw edgy sound of this kind of production. But, in order to move forward with podcasting in citizen journalism, you must always strive to do your best.