Blogger's Rights

In a recent article by Sieon Roux at the Oregonian, "Bloggers might be excluded from Oregon's executive meetings," Roux discusses how certain city councils, like that of Lake Oswego, do not have any legislature on the legal rights of bloggers as either journalists or citizens.

Oswego may define news organizations as "institutionalized," "well-established," and producing at least 25 percent news content.

This is ridiculous. It is an arbitrary decision that, if decided upon, would greatly restrict the dissemination of pertinent news information to the general public in that local area. This is against a journalist's first amendment rights, and, in this day and age, bloggers just happen to be journalists.

Judson Randall, President of Open Oregon, discussed how it is nearly impossible to define what exactly news is and who could

"The policy also raises new and troubling questions because it attempts to use content and "news" to determine whether a media organization is legitimate, said Judson Randall, president of Open Oregon.

"'Who defines news?' he asked. 'If somebody writes a column, is that news? Is there information in there that is newsworthy you wouldn't consider news? There's all kinds of shades in there. If I were a city council, I wouldn't want to be in a position to decide that.'"

With the same concerns that surfaced when television came into being and the future of radio seemed uncertain, it is clear that the future of print journalism is facing the same concerns, but in light of this situation, it seems backwards to prevent the new media from having access to the same information that an apparently dying breed has access to.

In the independent blog Lorell on Wordpress, she states that "Freedom of speech is the foundation of democracy, and Internet bullies shouldn't use the law to stifle legitimate free expression."

Because there are an abundance of independent journalists with blogs and access to internet-based media with which they can make their pieces viral, the online consensus is that bloggers have the same right as "professional" journalists.

Wait one second. Do you know how many "professional" journalists have turned into indy bloggers. Furthermore, what exactly is a "professional" journalist and who is to decide? Is it their credentials, their title, the status (or lack thereof) of the publication where they work?

The answer is clear. In a world of citizen journalism, everyone is a journalist. However, it is the moral integrity and talent of the journalist that determines their credibility and the "professional"ism. Those who prove themselves should be awarded the same rights as "professional" journalists, and it is absurd that this is even still a discussion.