PressEthic

In his book "We The Media," Dan Gillmor writes of a new, grassroots journalism where technology has become an empowering and enabeling multiplier of independent media. The recent Michael Richards fiasco, which forced the comic and actor to make repeated formal apologies and to state he needed to enter therapy, was captured on video from a patron's cell phone. Test messaging, or SMS, Gillmor writes, brought much-needed attention to the SARS epidemic in China and was instrumental in the South Korean presidential election of 2002.

The Fox News report, making use of an AP-AOL pole, fleshed-out details such as roughly half the number of teenagers polled use SMS, or IMs, and they do so at a rate of twice the adults polled. Also, teenagers turn to SMS more than email, while adults still turn to email for most of their communication using technology. Think about the trend for a moment. Rather than sitting at a computer, whether on a lap or a desk, teenagers are forging a new standard of having the majority of their communication and information - and entertainment - in their hand. It will be amazing to see how technology advances and provides even greater access and capabilities from what we can attach to our belt or put in a purse.

Not only will news, literature, music, communication using voice, video and text be standard but so will things not even thought of, yet. Where a journalist can not be on every street corner or at every rally or incident or accident, someone, everyone, with a multi-use camera or PDA will be, and that will be the news. It will be captured, commented on, and passed on - to potentially a global audience. Journalists, of a sort, are everywhere.