There's Journalists, There's Citizen Journalists... and then There's Sarah Palin

Obviously, this week's readings focus on the ethics involved with citizen journalism and independent reporting.

However, I'd like to begin with first discussing the tweet that I just happened to see in my Twitter feed earlier tonight: Sarah Palin was declaring a "Chris Christie 2016" campaign set in stone on her latest appearance on FOX News.

See although she may be a political figure and a celebrity in her own right (and therefore not a "citizen journalist"), I see not much difference between Palin's sudden legitimacy as a political news source (not to mention her astronomical rise to celebrity status the last six years) and the rise in the field of citizen journalism by writers like 61-year old, Huffington Post contributor Mayhill Fowler. Neither has a journalism degree (ok, technically Palin does...) and neither spent their previous life as a muckraking reporter, investigating new stories; moreover, neither was ever a source on both reporting and politics until a few years ago. Suddenly, they are an authority for, in both cases, simply being a part of one event, Palin her candidacy in 2008 for Vice President, and Fowler for her reporting at the DNC.

Certainly, Sarah Palin has spent more than just the last six years in the realm of politics. But the quick transition for politicians in the 21st century to celebrity reporters takes just as much time as it does for a citizen journalist to strike it big: just one try. That is the immediacy of our society and the entertainment value we hold to such high prestige right there.... and it's directly in conflict, in many ways, with the ethics of foundational, solid reporting.