Social media is changing the very way news is reported, and how we get it.
Never before have we been able to participate in the news as it unfolds. Before even local news stations can get a crew on location, someone already on the scene is documenting it on their cell phone camera, or "tweeting" about it on Twitter, or drawing huge attention to it on Facebook, literally as it's happening. In this age of "social media", if you're just finding out about something that was "tweeted" an hour ago, chances are good it's already old news.
I had a good friend, Robert "Uncle Bob" Stewart, who was an American war correspondent during World War II. After the war ended, Bob became a media mogul in the Philippines starting in the 1950s with a radio station, and moving to television in the 1960s. He hosted one of the most popular children's television shows in history, Uncle Bob's Lucky 7 Club, and held on to his empire into the mid-1980s until the political unrest in that country made it impossible for him to continue.
"Uncle" Bob passed away in 2006 at the age of 89, but I'll never forget how intrigued - and in tune - he was with modern technology. He was the consummate storyteller, and could command an audience whenever he chose to regale a gathered group. However, as endearing as Bob was in person, you would not believe how "leading edge" this particular octogenarian was when it came to modern technology.
You could not out-text him on his cell phone or PDA; instant messenger was the way he communicated from his wireless laptop, and he would tell anyone who would listen to him that one day every last person on the planet would stop becoming news content consumers and would become news content producers. Bob and I had many long discussions about his vision of the impact the internet was having on news gathering and reporting, and I never found myself questioning his savvy.
He was a career news gatherer, journalist, broadcaster, and television and radio innovator his entire life, and it was clear to anyone who was paying attention that Bob had his finger on the pulse of social media and how the internet was forever changing that world. For an old dude - rest in peace, Bob - he was as hip as anyone I've ever known. He was also right in many, many ways.
Today, more and more people rely on high-speed internet and wireless devices for their news. Content provided by the social media through blogs and other social networking methods including Twitter, Facebook, and Digg, can be available seconds after an event happens, or in many cases as it's happening.
The recent documentary, Burma VJ showed the power of social media when it brought us amazing, and sometimes harrowing, footage that underground journalists shot during the 2007 uprising against the brutal military regime in Rangoon, Burma. It was filmed entirely on hand-held cameras, and the footage was smuggled out of the country where it was promptly uploaded to the Internet for the world to witness.
The next time you're surfing the web by way of your high-speed cable internet service and discover a truly interesting story, there's a good chance it originated from a regular person who decided they could produce legitimate, interesting news content as easily as the next guy. If you don't have Cox Cable, call today. Great cable deals and Cox Internet offers are waiting for you!
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