Syrian protests BY K.WHITE

Overview. The Syrian Protests started on 26th January 2011 and escalated by 15th March 2011. This uprising was influenced by ongoing protests in the region. It started with the Tunisian revolution of January 2011 reached Syria at the beginning of the year when residents of a small southern city took to the streets to protest the torture of students who had put up anti-government graffiti. President Bashar al-Assad, who inherited Syria’s harsh dictatorship from his father, Hafez al-Assad. At first he went between force and hints of reform. However not long after he starting lifting the country’s old state of emergency, he launches the first of a series of withering crackdowns, sending tanks into restive cities and security forces opened fire. Their demands include President Basha al-Assad to step down, the ruling Baath Party (socialist party founded in Syria in 1943) to allow other political parties as there are no others currently allowed to be in action, equal rights for Kurds ( member of a mainly pastoral Islamic people living in Kurdistan) and broad political freedoms, such as freedom of press, speech and assembly. The forms of protests that have been going on include marches, hunger strikes as well as vandalism of government property and rioting of shops. Some Islamic groups in the North of Syria have taken advantage of protests to launch attacks against the government. As they continue the Syrian government have used tanks and snipers to force people off the streets. Water and electricity were shut off and security forces began confiscating flour and food in particulary restive areas, including Daraa, Douma and Homs. As the violence escalated the death toll reached 2000 in early August. The death toll as of the 14th October 2011 is at 3000 with over 200 children dead too.

8th november 2011 Death toll reaches 3,500 on the 8th November 2011.

Citizen journalism. Video Citizen Journalism Definition: The collection, dissemination, and analysis of news by the public, by means of mobile phones, digital cameras, social networking such as Twitter and Facebook etc, blogs, and other forms of technological means. Citizen Journalism in my own opinion is a great way in which people can get the news across when it is happening. Without citizen journalism nothing would be current.

Impact. The media 20 years ago would have found this story hard to report. Why? NO Citizen Journalism NO videos or images live directly from the scene during the attack NO facebook NO twitter NO youtube. (Social Networks to upload these to). 11 Year Old Boy Killed By Syrian Troops Video. Journalists would have been required to attend the scene which could’ve been a safety issue - just to report it for the 10 o’clock news! Satellite links were not as strong then so the pictures were sometimes blurry or time delayed or still. Nothing compared with the world now. I believe that without Citizen Journalism viewers would not be able to feel a powerful emotion as when it is properly reported by a news reporter because you genuinely feel like you’re the one recording when you see certain videos.

أن يموت ظلما Conflict. Video. ‘Terrorists kill civilians then fabricate videos saying they only want freedom’ The Syrian security officers who were meant to be protecting the country and trying to settle it back into order destroyed a family. To tell a mother that her son was shot in his hand then arrested because they were looking for him, for then her to visit the body and find he had been shot several times and murdered. Having to then identify her daughter who had been mutilated, chopped up and burnt. What kind of government is this? The government who cause the trouble but blame everyone but themselves. أن يموت ظلما

Social media. This story was posted onto twitter by #Syrian. This story would be viewed by people on twitter most probably before anyone viewed their website. Most people spend their time on social networking than scouring the web for news. Why would you need to when you have apps for these sites in your pocket? Why would you ‘waste’ time looking for the story that’s right infront of your eyes? The technology we have now is so powerful. 20 years ago this story would have taken hours to get to us.

….. By people using social media you can find out information about the world in a split second. I would argue that it is a good thing. I don’t believe citizen journalism puts actual journalists out of a job if anything it helps them. If they cant make it to a particular place they can still get information and proof of the event by CJ. Social media was used to video damages made my troops and the protests. It wasn’t so much used on social networking other than short stories. More videos were uploaded onto youtube. A reporter wouldn’t have been able to film these damages as quick as a CJ which creates a wider view in the social media eye. Destruction.

Theorists. Dan Gillmor. – Is a citizen journalist. Most of his work appears on blogs on the internet. ‘I’m also involved in citizen-media efforts, and am a blogger, author, media investor and co-founder of several online businesses’. @dangillmor A Facebook poster was one of many online campaigns triggered by reports that the supposed Syrian blogger 'Amina' had been kidnapped in the protests; only later did it emerge that 'Gay girl in Damascus' was a fictional creation. Dan Gillmore suggested they needed more safe guards. Clyde H.Bentley. ‘Citizen. Journalism. Simple words but a complex concept variously seen as either the end of the literate media world or the salvation of disconnected civilization.’ Citizen journalism is no more a replacement for professional journalism than teabags are a replacement for water. Both can stand comfortably alone, but when combined they produce something quite wonderful.

Conclusion. In conclusion I believe that without citizen journalism this story would not have been put forward enough for people to believe. I found some of my stories directly from twitter and facebook (both social networking sites) with every day people posting every day happenings. Without citizen journalism the stories wouldn’t be ‘live’ and current. News companies would have to send reporters to these places would could be harmful. So I believe without citizen journalism the stories wouldn’t be as emotional as they are. Being eligible to use technology is a great thing as everything is now in a modern world.