Blogging and journalistic standards

 

Has line between personal and professional logged-off?

 

The internet is blurring the lines between professional ethics and personal freedom when it comes to journalists having personal blogs. 

Last time I wrote about blogging I briefly mentioned the rivalry between bloggers and journalists that has taken the media world into a frenzy of fear and scepticism. Journalists and bloggers like Antony Loewenstein (c.f. introduction to The Blogging Revolution) are among those who think that the two forms are different enough that any competition felt is a psychological thing, and frankly I’m inclined to agree.

But what about standards for journalists who keep personal blogs? The Guardian reports here about a recent spat between business journalist Adam Tinworth and representatives of the UK’s National Union of Journalists (NUJ). The gist of the article is that the NUJ is calling for journalists like Tinworth to follow “basic journalistic standards” when he’s blogging, but also raised questions of whether journalistic standards should apply to a personal blog.

My thoughts are that professional standards are for the professional work of a person and, so long as a personal blog is not infringing on laws, it can and should be what the individual wants it to be. The internet is an open forum for people to discuss what they will and the individual’s professional life should not have to dictate how they express themselves.

In many cases the professional will influence the personal online – teachers may comment on news stories about education, doctors may weigh in with their thoughts on health issues, but that doesn’t mean they would say the same things in a staff meeting or at work. Opinion is opinion and it shouldn’t be subject to the same scrutiny and professional expression.

That doesn’t mean a whole bunch of journalists with personal blogs will throw ethics to the wind and write whatever the hell they want – it simply means it’s at the individual’s discretion to choose when to apply their professional ethics.

If you take a Kantian approach to personal freedom then so long as you do no harm to yourself or others you are free to do what you will. A more modern, entertaining take on freedom of expression online can be seen in quarterlife, which at times raised questions of conflict over the protagonist broadcasting her opinions of people to an online community. How “harm” is interpreted will, of course, affect what different people do, but ultimately the law is there to help prevent harm deemed significant and anything else is painted in shades of grey.

The disctinction between personal and professional blogs has been somewhat diminished by mainstream media adding blogs as part of their sites. As this article from mlive.com indicates businesses can gain a lot from embracing aspects of the online world like Twitter, Facebook and blogging.

I can see the pros to this use of social media, but there are also cons. The idea that the media need to be directly competing with independent and/or personal blogs, for example, I find a little petty. But my main concern is that by utilising things like blogs, professional and personal standards will come into question a lot more.

I think the real question this issue poses is that in such an open medium, where anyone can search for your personal information, how do you separate your work life from your personal life?

Watching the web

 

"Anyone has the opportunity to make great content and get it seen" - Jeff Koenig on the potential of web series

 

The internet is changing the way people produce creative work. In the past year I’ve heard journalists, film and television producers, writers and comic book artists all say that the internet is an effective way to get your name known and explore the endless possibilities of a medium fast becoming part of everyday life.

Last year I wrote about web series in an article for the Sydney Morning Herald. It  focused mainly on established professionals exploring how traditional forms of entertainment could be adapted to work online, but also mentioned the possibilities for emerging artists.

But pigeon-holing the format to one purpose limits the unique style of web production. Web series creator Jeff Koenig says web series have the potential to go a long way and develop into more than a trial space for new shows.

“I think the original web video industry will grow in stages,” he says.

“For the next few years I believe it will act as a cheap development outlet for networks and studios; the best web shows will get picked up and evolve into another medium.”

Koenig, who is launching a website  about the format - Broadcast Assassin - started out looking at web series as a way of learning about film production,

“I’ve always been fascinated by the filmmaking process. However, it’s a very geographic industry in the states,” he said.

“Wanting to tell stories through a camera and not being in L.A. is a bit like standing outside a great restaurant you can’t afford to eat at; the door may as well be locked, but you can smell all the good food inside. I was drooling to film something.”

After years of thinking about online entertainment possibilities, and extensive research into how web shows could work, Koenig co-created, co-produced and directed The True Rules, a web show exploring the male psyche through a mix of unscripted discussion and vox pop questions.

He says Broadcast Assassin is focused on rallying the online community and give people the skills and knowledge to create successful web series.

“We’re at a point now where “capital B” Big Business is starting to notice the web as an outlet for original entertainment, but the rules haven’t yet been written.

“To me, the best part about a filmmaker having access to the web is that literally anyone has the opportunity to make great content and get it seen. I want to give independent producers the tools to make great shows and a place for them to start a dialogue with each other, so that their voice doesn’t get lost as the industry grows,” he says.

The launch of Broadcast Assassin on March 1 comes at a time when web series are popping up all over the news sites, television networks SciFi and NBC are utilising webisodes as additional material to shows like Battlestar Galactica and Heroes (respectively) and more and more web-based productions are being launched on an almost daily basis.

But it doesn’t stop there. Last week technology blog Digital.Mix commented on the release of a Nielsen report showing an increase in American viewing of video on TV, online and on mobile devices.

According to the report internet viewing is highest among 18-24 year olds, who watch an average of 5 hours and 3 minutes every month. This is closely followed by 25-34 year olds, with an average of 4 hours and 14 minutes of viewing online.

Unfortunately there’s no information on the percentage increase for online viewing over the last year, but if anything that suggests web series may finally be getting enough attention to be included in these types of reports.

With these viewing increases on what Digital.Mix aptly calls “the Three Screens”, it will be interesting to see what types of people begin creating video content for the online world and where the medium is heading.