This morning TVNewser and co-host Matt Van Hoven were joined on the Morning Media Menu by CNN Newsroom anchor Don Lemon. The topic of today’s discussion: user-generated content in the ever-changing media landscape.
“I don’t think it’s new media vs old media,” he said. “We’re all evolving.” Part of that evolution for CNN has involved integrating user-generated reporting in the form of tweets and iReports into its newsgathering. “It’s not an even an advanced tip-line. It’s a tip-line for now. It’s the right now tip-line.” But he explained that there is a clear vetting process for that kind of content at CNN.
Lemon believes everyone can be “their own network,” but there are big upsides and downsides to amateur reporting: “Anybody can have a blog right? It’s still not going to be the same professional quality…that you get from training.” And Lemon points out that a lot of blog contributors don’t have the resources at hand to fact-check information. “Can everyone be a network of record? Probably not.”
User generated content is the subject of mediabistro’s UGCX, the conference being held at the New Yorker Hotel here in Manhattan this week. Go to mediabistro.com/ugcx for more info. You can listen to all the past podcasts archived at mediabistro.com or download episodes for free on iTunes.
Click here to receive mediabistro.com’s Daily Newsfeed via email.