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Demotix

www.demotix.com

Demotix, set up by journalist and lecturer Turi Munthe, is a news service which gives people the chance to upload news, stories, photos and videos, which will then be sold on to established media outlets all over the world.

A NEW KIND OF NEWS SERVICE

In effect, Demotix acts as a middle man. For brokering deals for the sale of your work it will take 50% of the fee. The site says it is interested in giving the 'voice of the little guy' a chance. It also says it wishes to fill in the gaps left by the closure of many foreign news desks around the world.

It's straightforward to submit content to the site. First register, set up a contributor profile, then share your story. Demotix is particularly keen to encourage anonymous use of the site by those who may not be free to express themselves due to political repression. (However, it is also keen to warn of the dangers of doing this and encourages responsibility and an awareness of risk.)

GAME CHANGER

The internet is transforming the media game, bringing the formerly passive consumer of news right into the centre of the picture. For some, this so-called 'citizen journalism' is little more than a cult of the amateur which devalues the notion of professionalism. For others it represents a liberating development in the generation and consumption of news content and raises questions about authority and trust. Whatever your take on it, the fact that major news organisations such as the BBC now integrate regular public commentary into their programmes through email and text messaging is evidence that there is no going back.

1 December 2010

COMMENTS

A middle man between citizen journalists and mainstream media.

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