Social Media Tool Promotes Media Accountability and Citizen Journalism to Counter Media Bias
Charleston, SC (PRWEB) November 18, 2007 -- Media bias is rarely more evident than during election season, including the current lead-up to the presidential primaries. Seekers of unbiased news often must spend their time browsing several media takes on the same story to get the full picture. The new online service, America Talks Back (http://www.americatalksback.com), aims to give readers a voice in holding the media accountable for their actions and biases, while also offering a platform where citizen journalists can contribute their own news which they feel is being neglected by major media outlets.
America Talks Back is a free membership site where, unlike typical news aggregators and social news services, users can evaluate major media news stories on multiple criteria including the importance of the news, their perceived media bias (liberal, conservative, biased against or towards the story's subject, or fair and unbiased), their personal reaction to the story, and the general tone of the story. Registered users can also comment directly on any news story, and can "vote" in agreement with comments left by other users.
"In today's world, news is still provided within a 'broadcast' paradigm, in which major media outlets determine what is news, frame each story, and then present that story," says Erick Recors, VP of Marketing for America Talks Back. "It is a system rife with opportunities for distortion and bias. It is also a system in which 'authority' speaks to, and thereby controls, the lay population. What we do at America Talks Back is report on stories presented by major print and broadcast media in summary form. Our goal is to provide a place where both sides of the aisle come together and knock heads, triggered by news stories. It's primarily up to users to point out and comment on bias. We don't want to be an echo room for either side."
The site's latest feature, youNews, allows registered members to act in the role of citizen journalist by contributing their own stories based on the news that is most important to them, or news not being featured by major media outlets (smaller-scale stories, unpopular stories, overlooked stories, local coverage, and more). The citizen journalists have the ability to publish stories on America Talks Back under their username, or they can apply for certification to publish under their own name. "Certification means that [the America Talks Back team have certified that they are who they say they are, and their avatar becomes an emblem of this certification," says Recors. All youNews (http://www.americatalksback.com) stories are published in a separate section of the site, treated collectively as one media outlet.
Another way in which America Talks Back counters bias in the media is to cover news from a wide variety of sources, providing users with a balanced overview. It is possible to catch up on a whole broadcast day of news from both CNN and Fox in half an hour. The site currently features fifteen major media outlets, such as CNN, Fox News, and The New York Times, and even Radio Havana. Approximately fifteen to twenty five new stories are published each day, and around one thousand registered members since the site's launch in October. Additional media outlets will be added in the future.
About America Talks Back:
America Talks Back is a website allowing members of the public to "talk back" to major media outlets and major media personalities, to enable the public to hold the media accountable for their actions and biases. The free service also allows citizen journalists to contribute their own news stories (which are held equally accountable by members), to include news not being presented by major media outlets. America Talks Back was launched in October 2007.
For additional information about America Talks Back, please visit www.AmericaTalksBack.com or contact Michael Watts at 843-971-4480.
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