Dan Gillmor, the online journalism pioneer now powering the Center for Citizen Media, has published one of those required-reading-to-set-the-mind-clear packages.
It examines principles for new media literacy, and of all the bytes I've absorbed that push new approaches to journalism and its consumption, this essay comes as close as any to definitiveness in breadth, in pragmatism and in relevance. Which is to say a lot of other advanced thinking just couldn't find its way into the ecosystem today. Gillmor's package is grounded in an understanding of how media work and are bound to work in the time ahead.
His principles, in short form here and expansive there, involve:
1. Be skeptical of absolutely everything.
2. Although skepticism is essential, don’t be equally skeptical of everything.
3. Go outside your personal comfort zone.
4. Ask more questions.
5. Understand and learn media techniques.
For creators he has the following advice:
1. Do your homework, and then do some more.
2. Get it right, every time.
3. Be fair to everyone.
4. Think independently, especially of your own biases
5. Practice and demand transparency.
