Wait…here’s what another blogger wrote…
It was Christmas Eve of 1776.
General George Washington’s troops had been badly beaten in New York and had been chased across New Jersey. Now they were in rags in the frozen fields of Valley Forge. Tomorrow they were going to cross the Delaware and attack the Hessian troops in Trenton. If they failed here, it would be the defeat of the army and the end of the Revolution. And the prospects did not look good. The army was badly beaten, the weather was against them and they were disheartened.
On the eve of their last chance attack, Washington got his hands on the opening pages of a newly printed book by Thomas Paine called American Crisis. The pages were literally hot off the press. He had the work read aloud to his troops. Wrote Paine:
These are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.
Washington crossed the Delaware that night and captured nearly a thousand Hessian troops without a single American loss.
It was at this moment that the Revolutionary War changed.
American Crisis was Paine’s second work. His first ever, Common Sense had fired up the imaginations of the colonists and motivated them to think about Independence. Paine’s book sold over 100,000 copies in a nation (or soon to be one) that had a population of only 3 million. This would be the equivalent of 10 million copies sold in the US today – Harry Potter numbers.
Paine was far from a professional journalist. In fact, he had no training whatsoever. His formal education ended at the age of 13. He was a failed clergyman, a failed tobaconist, a failed teacher and a failed exercise officer. His life a complete disaster, Paine set sail for America. A year later he published Common Sense.
What allowed Paine to set his ideas to paper and distribute them widely was his access to a printing press. Upon arriving in America, he had the very good fortune to have briefly met Benjamin Franklin in London. Franklin, it seems, inspired him to try his hand a writing.
Thomas Paine was the classic Citizen Journalist.
Instead of an internet he used the cutting edge technology of the day – the printing press.
But it was the power of his words and his ideas that were so persuasive.
Today, we have a new technology that is making it possible for anyone with an idea to publish – in video, online.
This greatly frightens and upsets the old power structure, who hitherto had access, indeed a monopoly on the organs of journalistic creation and distribution. The idea that anyone can now shoot, edit and produce anything they like is frightening.
“What happens to the quality of the journalism” they ask.
What they really mean to ask is, ‘what happens to our monopoly on manufacturing what people see and think.
As Thomas Paine might have answered, ‘these are the times that try men’s souls’.
6 Comments
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Kevin March 20, 2010
It seems to me that CJ’s, if they take the approach of starting a mom & pop business (and maybe this isn’t the best analogy), just as a shopkeeper, crafts person or etc. An idea (story/news piece) is created, you stock or build inventory (stories in the can), hang out your shingle (internet distribution or news outlets) and see who you can get as customers. And just like a mom & pop business, if your prices are outrageous, have poor quality/content, the competition is going to beat you.
The biggest barrier for CJ’s is fear. Unlike Paine or Rowling, most people fear to start or try. That’s why most people work for someone else. Of the ones that do try, it goes back to Michaels piece on “A plea for quality”. The cream will rise to the top. I can think of several people who have either been trained or influenced by Michael; Ryan Van Duzer, Allison Otto, Juliana Broste, Michael Murphy, Rachelle Lucas and there are many more.
CJ’s have to step off into the unknown and try. Mainstream tradtional media already recognizes that the end is near. Michaels thoughts on Hyper-Local content will have significant impact on local news gathering and will present multiple sides of a story (democracy of reporting), the best piece with the most truthful information will win; the people will decide, not some schmuck editor in a newsroom.
So like Paine and Rowling or the mom & pop, CJ’s will create ideas/content, put it out there and see who buys. The mom & pop Deli down on the corner doesn’t sell to the world, but they do a great business.
Michael Rosenblum March 19, 2010
The paid v. unpaid content issue is interesting. Neither Paine nor JK Rowling (nor many others) were ‘paid’ journalists. They wrote first, unaware that they would be paid anything for their work. Not that they were opposed to it, but they were not employed journalists. Let’s say they worked on spec., like all good citizen journalists should. If the product warrants it, the money will find you.
christina March 19, 2010
the price of Thomas Paines existing and changing the world is enduring (or at least wading thru) other less inspiring and down right terrible bits.
but Paine is one up on most citizen journalists, his works were sold — and not given away freely. of course, if i am wrong — please educate me. [of course his content was really good]…
Barbara Selvin March 19, 2010
Legacy news organizations can capture the best citizen journalism through curating. Curation is the new editing: http://wp.me/pJpEo-1w
Vanessa March 19, 2010
WELL SAID! Finally the little people have access and can talk! Citizen Journalism, Video Journalism is our chance to show OUR view of the world with the “monopolization” that has been overpowering for so long. Of course, I never thought of it as far back as Payne and Washington, but hey I love history. Thanks for sharing.