Citizen Journalism and Public Access TV

CCTV recently received a grant from the Institute of Interactive Journalism for a project to “embed” citizen journalists in communities across Cambridge. Here’s the deal:

“Five segments, one from each of the city’s zip codes, will be produced each month, highlighting news and events from across the city. Segments from each neighborhood will be edited into one 30-minute program that will be cablecast on CCTV’s Channel 9, streamed live on CCTV’s web site, and made available for on-demand viewing and download. Segments will also be incorporated into CCTV’s web-based Cambridge Media Map.”

I’ve created a page on the wiki to explore the relationship between citizen journalism projects like this one happening at CCTV and citizen journalists writing for Placeblogs. I’m looking forward to diving into this topic more fully for my thesis. An entire chapter could easily be devoted to the subject. Here are some of the questions I’ve put together so far:

• What are the differences between citizen journalism initiatives in PEG access TV, like CCTV’s Neighbor to Neighbor project, and Placeblogs?

• What are the issues/advantages/challenges confronting citizen journalists working at PEG access centers v. citizen journalists writing for placeblogs?

• How can ongoing citizen journalism projects at PEG access centers gain greater visibility and acceptance from the broader online citizen journalism community?

If you are a placeblogger, a citizen journalist at a PEG access center, or someone who is interested in these topics and would like to contribute to this collaborative graduate thesis project, please visit the wiki to add your thoughts or share your comments here on this blog.