Recently there was a study by PRWeek and PR NewsWire that found that most bloggers considered themselves journalists.  I’m not surprised.  As a lover of history, I’m actually kind of tickled by this.  The reason is, if you go back to early America, right around the time before the American Revolution, there were literally thousands of “citizen journalists“–folks that could, thanks to the printing press, create and distribute their own “newspaper.”  Ben Franklin was one.  Thomas Paine, another. There are countless examples.  These newspapers were not what we know today as newspapers–rather sorta like pamphlets or newsletters. These newspapers were wildly popular in an America that at the time had no other nationalized media or news sources.  The news was entirely subjective too–there was no concern about “journalistic integrity” and “objectivism.” 

Blogger ancestry.

Spring ahead to the golden age of news–from the time of the Civil War (when war photography really made its mark) to the age of the “muckrakers“, World War II, and then to Watergate and Vietnam. Journalism became a profession; and “citizen journalists” disappeared from the scene.  “Journalism” became a scholarly pursuit with the advent of “J-schools” and journalism degrees.  

And the then began the consolidation in the 80s, and finally, the beginning of the great newspaper extinction.  And the  journalist breed–the guy with the suspenders, rolled up sleeves, reporter notebook and hat with the piece of paper in it that said “press,” also disappeared…Right?  

They haven’t, of course. (though the medium of newsprint, I am fairly certain and happy to say, is going extinct–Mother Nature is happy.)

And we have blogs and citizen journalism to thank for this. Much like small mammals in the midst of the great dinosaurs,  blogs multiplied in the shadow of newspapers early in the 21st Century.  And as the fortunes of newspapers began to decline, the blogs and citizen journalists  have filled the void. 

And I’m glad to see the U.S. has returned to its roots as a land of citizen journalists. 

Many former journalists became bloggers too (and Tweeters, Facebookers, etc.).  But the best part about the growth of social media and blogs is the return of the “citizen journalist”–the Thomas Paines of the world.  People that have opinions and are not afraid to write about it.  I’m thrilled that bloggers consider themselves journalists. In my mind, they are one in the same.  (And, by the way, I think, The U.S. Courts, should extend freedom of the press to these citizen journalists. Citizen journalists, or bloggers, are the very best insurance against omnipotent government.) 

Bloggers, everwhere.

As a public relations agency and for company clients, the growth of bloggers has brought both challenge and opportunity. The media landscape is now more fractured, and it’s harder to persuade a “mass” that your product/company/service is “the shizznit.”  But as an American, and a lover of American history, I’m glad to hear that most bloggers consider themselves journalists (according to the PRWeek/PR Newswire study).  I’m glad because it makes me feel (Robert Duvall Apocolypse Now pause, please)…free.