05/02/2011

Citizen journalists report when journalists can't

As unrest spreads through North Africa and the Middle East, "citizen journalists" help get the word out on what's happening in those countries even as regimes clamp down on traditional news sources.

■Class discussion: Cell phones and new media tools like Twitter and Facebook help broadcast news from stricken areas. But how do you know who to believe when you read something on the Internet? Just because it's on Facebook, does that make it true? What's to stop governments from using the same tools for disinformation campaigns?