All the news that's fit to upload

UK's The Guardian: Picture all the news that's fit to upload. It is difficult to avoid the hype about citizen journalism, the process whereby bloggers and people with cameraphones can report news from the grassroots that old media cannot reach. Excerpt:

The first rule of citizen journalism. It is not something you can seek out; it is thrust upon you. ...

The point is that we are only at the start of what may turn out to be a grassroots revolution. It is rare for the average person to witness a major incident, but there will be hundreds of others there with cameraphones at the ready. As phones become more powerful and easier to use - Samsung's latest models include one with a 10-megapixel camera and another with eight megapixels and room for 2,000 music tracks - so will photo-journalism improve. Many websites including the BBC and the Guardian already accept news clips from viewers.

In the US, currenttv.com is a TV channel partly created by those who watch it. They submit videos and vote on what should be included on the channel. Last week Softbank, the Japanese company that bought an early stake in Yahoo, paid $11m for 12.95% of Korea's pioneering OhmyNews citizens' journal. It will use the money as a stepping stone for international expansion. Video is the hottest thing on the web at the moment. Goodness knows where it will be in 10 years' time.

Related, at BBC News: Dan Gillmor responds to e-mails from readers about the first of his columns on how technology has revolutionized public participation in the media.