Activity Presentation

In this exercise, participants explore the topic of citizen media. They are guided to understand—always under the supervision of the facilitators—the differences and similarities between traditional media and citizen media. To do this, they will compare different types of media in groups.

Each group will read and analyze a media source provided by the facilitators (a newspaper, a link to a TV news edition, a website, a blog, etc.). If the first group is assigned a traditional media (e.g., a newspaper), the second group will analyze a citizen media (e.g., a blog).

Participants are allowed to perform quick online research using computers or smartphones.

The goal is for the two groups to collaborate to co-create a definition of citizen media.

Afterward, facilitators can dive deeper into the topic of citizen media and its impact on the information world.

Activity Procedure

  1. Room setup: divide participants into groups with computers.
  2. Participants analyze the assigned media source (newspaper, TV news, website, blog, etc.).
  3. Participants answer several questions.

Example: “Describe the media: are the articles signed? By whom? What information is provided? How is it presented? Which topics are prioritized? Are there advertisements? Which ones? How are the articles approached (analyze headlines, texts, images, etc.)?”

  1. Collective presentation of findings and co-creation of a common definition of citizen media from participants’ proposals. The facilitator uses the responses to explain the concept of “citizen media.”

NB – Definition: Media refers to platforms (radio, TV, internet, etc.) used to convey information to a wide audience. The adjective “citizen” applies because the authors of these articles and investigations are not professional journalists but ordinary citizens aiming to spark debates on specific issues or societal problems.

Online Adaptation of the Activity

  1. The facilitator sends a ZOOM (or other platform) link to the participants.
  2. Once gathered, participants are placed into “virtual groups” and assigned media sources to analyze via provided internet links.
  3. Participants discuss using breakout rooms available on platforms like ZOOM.
  4. The facilitator sends a link to an online questionnaire (e.g., https://www.dragnsurvey.com/en). Participants answer the questions in groups.
  5. Findings are presented via the video conference platform. The facilitator can use an online “post-it board” (e.g., https://note.ly/) to recreate a shared board effect and lead the discussion.