Journalist's Journal
By Lily Yulianti Farid Posted Apr 1 2007
There are plenty of stories on the street that are not regarded by professional journalists or mainstream media as “newsy” due to their highly business-oriented standards, limited media space and tight deadlines. As a result, there are many issues important to citizens that remain underreported or even dismissed by professional journalists. This is where citizen journalists can make a difference.
Proponents of participatory journalism have a philosophy that addresses the overlooked issues: “If you are not satisfied with what you read in the mainstream media, you might also produce your own news based on interests as citizens. Let’s create our own media.”
After spending several months writing for OhMyNews International, a Seoul-based citizen journalism Web site, I introduced the idea of a citizen journalism project to some friends in my hometown. I was born and raised in the eastern Indonesian city of Makassar, the capital of South Sulawesi Province. From Bali Island, the internationally known tourist destination, it takes about 45 minutes by plane to get to my hometown. Through a mailing list service the idea spread quickly, though the concept itself was somewhat new for most participants. As a professional journalist I have learned how to perform my duties, and as a citizen reporter I experienced the importance of passion and initiative to share a story.
The main question my friends and I faced when launching the first-ever Indonesian citizen journalism Web site, Panyingkul!, in April 2006 was how to follow the citizen journalism concept while making adjustments for local content in Makassar. Panyingkul!, which means intersection in a local language, fully relies on stories produced by citizen reporters and has become a symbol of alternative media.
In the beginning there were many unexpected hurdles when we tried to put the idea of Panyingkul! into practice. How will we secure enough stories on a daily basis? In contrast, when we suggested the model of a monthly online magazine (to anticipate the lack of reports), we faced criticism saying that one of the principles of online media is to emphasize immediacy, which means this would-be online magazine should be updated at least on a daily basis.
Limited resources, unlimited potential
Following a series of discussions on citizen journalism with some writers and university students in Makassar, we decided to launch the project in April 2006. We regularly opened an online discussion using Yahoo! Messenger voice conferencing and e-mail, while a Web site designer and developer created the design and content. In the beginning there were seven citizen reporters involved in Makassar.
We decided to start writing and reporting on one of the city’s landmarks, Karebosi, a legendary city square in Makassar. Our aim was to provide a series of feature-style news articles about the square and people of the square. We wanted to provide thorough information about the legends, myths and people’s lives of Karebosi.
The collaboration was quite unique because two editors and the Web designer live in Japan, another media advisor lives in Jakarta and the citizen reporters are in Makassar. Our two editors, who also update the Web site, perform the standard procedures in professional journalism in assessing each story, fact checking, media research and sometimes requiring some additional information and revision from reporters.
This pilot project was designed using a three-month scholarship program where each participant received an allowance to cover communication and research expenses. In 2004, my husband and I set up The Private Editors, a non-profit media organization to provide assistance and training for writers in Indonesia, focusing on community media. We were able to provide funds for these activities along with donations from some writers and professionals who were committed to support the idea.
Limited resources varied from low Internet access to lack of motivation for citizen reporters to keep writing. Indonesia, especially in the Eastern part of the country, has Internet penetration for only less than 5 percent out of the total population, according to Indonesian Association of ISP. Most people go to Internet cafes, and only a limited number have Internet access at home or in the office. This in itself was a big challenge for us to start this new kind of journalism.
For the reporters, the duties were heavier than initially expected, but their morale was so high to produce high-quality journalism pieces about the city, they maintained their passion to share the stories.
As time has passed, Panyingkul! has started to gain credibility as the alternative online news outlet in the city. On some occasions we interview the mayor of Makassar or authorities to get confirmations on certain issues. However, what makes this media different is the great emphasis of the ordinary lives of the citizens. There is unlimited space for citizens to raise their own issues, interests and stories not dictated by an editorial board. Some citizen reporters regularly cover the problems of public transportation and traffic systems, others report about the condition of street vendors, small-and medium-scale business, or even a musical concert, soccer game, history about prominent soccer players, education, social issues and politics, and art and literacy events. A marine researcher wrote about the destruction of coral reef in Sulawesi waters.
Running the citizen journalism class is a strategy for us to promote this new journalism model. The third term of the scholarship, which has been running since last December and will finish in March, has trained three new citizen reporters. The second term also recruited three writers, and so far we have 13 citizen reporters from this class.
In addition, another 30 citizen reporters have been writing for Panyingkul! on a voluntary basis. Most of them live in Makassar, others are from other cities and some are Indonesians living overseas. We pay around $10 for each report published in Panyingkul! and unexpectedly, some of them have donated that money back to support our activities.
Since December a transportation firm agreed to support our activities by placing its advertisement on our Web site. With around 200 page views per day, Panyingkul! has not yet become a spectacular site in terms of the number of visitors, but the firm believed that it is important to take part in grassroots media in order to gain credibility among citizens.
Local to international
The stories that appear in Panyingkul! significantly differ from mainstream media in the city. On international issues, for instance, we focus on Indonesian citizens’ own experiences in the US, Europe, Australia, Middle East and other Asian countries. When news about the Malaysian government’s operation to crack down on illegal workers from Indonesia became a headline, we had a story from an NGO activist involved in migrant workers’ issues.
Another citizen of Makassar studying in State College, Penn., sent a report about the lives of Indonesian university students to reveal life in America. “I think it is important to inform people in Indonesia about the real life in the US, so they do not think the life here is similar with the glamorous life in the Hollywood movies,” says the citizen reporter from State College.
As for local news, we rely on citizen reports, which vary from their responses on new transportation regulations to their reports about initiatives taken by poor urban communities and rural villagers to meet their basic needs such as clean water, cheap food or alternative education systems. So far we have received positive responses saying that citizen journalism provides more space for regular citizens to be recognized not only as media consumers, but also as the creators of the news.
“I think becoming a citizen reporter makes me realize the importance of my position as a part of this city. I would like to write more stories, to do more research on the history of this city and share them with all citizens,” says Nilam Indahsari, 22, a citizen reporter who has been writing for Panyingkul! since the first edition.
We are still facing criticisms and even skepticism regarding our determination to spread the practice of citizen journalism in Panyingkul! Hurdles remain to invite more citizens to write their stories or join our classes, but we will not give up. We believe that this is not impossible for us to maintain this city-based collective work and say: “In Panyingkul!, together we report!”