Lions and tigers and bears!Oh My!

Video found here
According to Bruns (2008), open source translates to the principles of produsage and can be applied to citizen journalism, for they are all based on wide scale participation, enabled by websites and other forms of community organisation tools.

So what is open source? One definition is that “Open source is a development method for software that harnesses the power of distributed peer review and transparency of process. The promise of open source is better quality, higher reliability, more flexibility, lower cost, and an end to predatory vendor lock-in” (Open source initiative, 2007).

In comparison, Bruns (2008) provides the example of closed source as industrial and traditional models such as Windows Office whereby the core intellectual property is protected and highly confidential with only a select group of developers allowed to work on the project. This is because if anyone gained access, they could slightly reprogram and rebrand the software and provide access to the masses. Goodbye Microsoft business model.

Microsoft business model:
Small group of developers -> goods produced->distributed to consumers->consumers purchase goods->$$

Open source on the other hand, is as Bruns (2008) explains, programs such as Linux, firefox and open office, which are alternatives and compete with “traditional” programs of a closed source nature. Basically, with open source software for example, anyone can further develop a program, meaning there is never a “finished product” but instead, continual enhancements and quality improvements.
Available freely (not for commercial sale) ->anyone can download, edit and further develop

So, open source is common property,for “anyone can see it, anyone can use it, anyone can edit as well” (Bruns, 2008 podcast). How does this tie in with citizen journalism? Because anyone can read citizen journalism articles, anyone can be a citizen journalist, and the editing process can, depending on the site used, require editing by a “coordinator” or be entirely driven by community evaluation.

Traditional news media operates in a closed way, a select group of editors, journalists and company owners determine what is “news” and what information will be accessible to readers. So like with closed software production, only a few are privy to what is going on “behind the scenes” of traditional news production.

Citizen journalism operates in a more open system, anyone with access to the internet can publish stories or deending on the website, comment on the work of others. Editors such as those from OhmyNews (a hub for citizen journalism) may edit the stories to ensure the quality of writing is high enough or alternatively, stories are instead evaluated through the feedbank of readers for example.

Like open source, produsage efforts such as citizen journalism involve open participation, communal evaluation of contributions, fluid heterarchy, allow “leaders” to emerge depending on topics and knowledge levels, and “rankings” based on merit and quality of contributions (Bruns, 2008b).

Open source operates in a heterarchical and meritocratic system. Contributors and contributions are ranked by the value and merit of their contributions. Should they continually contribute quality submissions, they may then become an esteemed member of the community (Bruns, 2008 podcast). Furthermore, Bauwers asserts that the motivation for participation in open source projects is generally not motivate by money, but for the increase in use value and one’s personal learning, development and reputation (as cited in Bruns, 2008). Oh My News arguably operates in a similar manner, though articles are ranked by editors authors may receive a small payment (as in 20 odd dollars). This amount is insubstantial and most contributors do not write stories chiefly for monetary gain, for if one was interested in making money, they would probably do so through a different avenue. OhmyNews citizen journalists can also earn money through a “tipping jar” system. Readers of articles can also indicate the value of the article by donating money to the authors through the website. One writer however, Kim Young-oak, a Harvard-trained classics scholar, received more than $30,000 from one article that was rejected for publication by mainstream media (Lee, 2007). This large amount donated by readers indicates the high level of interest and quality of the article.

Elliot (as cited in Bruns, 2008) points out that when specific members of a community assume a gatekeeper role, this can restrict free flowing contributions. This is evident with traditional news that goes through the gate-keeping process, and as a result certain views are privileged and certain topics covered depending on the choice of journalists and editors. While editors at Oh My News for example could be seen to be “leaders”, “coordinators”, or “gatekeepers”, they do not restrict stories due to the “importance” of the topic in their own eyes, but are more concerned with content quality control. Coordinators of open source and produsage processes, according to Bruns (2008) exert influence to guide processes in beneficial in the overall development of projects. This can be said for the editors at OhmyNews who oversee and edit articles to maintain quality rather than to privilege certain views. OhmyNews, stories that are not formally adopted by the site’s editors are not classified as “articles” and are placed in a separate section from the “approved” articles, so that readers are aware that while the stories are accessible, there may be inaccuracies in the pieces. The CEO (Oh Yeon-ho)of OhmyNews has compiled 10 preconditions for User Generated Content, and presented these at a UNESCO conference last year. These elements which focused of credibility, responsibility, influence and sustainability provide a good foundation as to the basic essentials required to provide value and credibility. While these ideas which are not new, they are still valuable concepts for use in the present and future.

I guess one could say that open source and citizen journalism represent a decentralization of power and control of traditional business models.. Now that online, people can create content, continually enhance, change and comment on content why should they just be satisfied to read stories written by one or two journalists, edited by one or a small group of people and sent straight to the printers? With closed source software, only developers really get to “see” what’s going on. Arguably it is the same with traditional print media, sure editors read over work and “fix” parts, but how can they be really sure about the accuracy of the stories they edit if they were not at the scene, or interview themselves and are editing work depending on their perspective. Newspaper readers and news consumers can only assume what they are reading/listening to/watching is correct and true, they don’t really know what goes on “behind the scenes”. Traditionalists may point out that the continual enhancement and updating of news stories, ability for communities to evaluate work and the “open” nature of citizen journalism fails to provide quality and consistency.As Bruns (2008) points out,however, there is as much irresponsible blogging as poor journalism and the standard people would like blogs to be are standards that most industrial journalists can’t even reach.


Bruns, A. (2008). Open source software [Podast:KCB201 virtual cultures]. Brisbane: Queensland University of Technology

Bruns, A. (2008.) Open source software development: Probabilistic eyeballs. In A. Bruns, . Blogs, Wikipedia,second life, and beyond: From production to produsage. (pp. 37-68) New York: Peter Lang.

Lee,D. (2007, June 18). Citizens are the media in S. Korea. Los Angeles Time. Retrieved April 28, 2008, from http://globaltechforum.eiu.com/index.asp?layout=rich_story&doc_id=10938&title=Citizens+are+the+media+in+S.+Korea&categoryid=30&channelid=4

Open Source Initiative. (2007)Home. Retrieved April 28, 2008, from http://www.opensource.org/