THE SOCIAL web came of age in India, immediately after people starting reporting on the Mumbai carnage during 26/11 in which gunmen created mayhem by opening indiscriminate firing in restaurants, hotels and railways station. Before mainstream media could report on the massacre, netizens has started posting on their social media websites about the attacks in the financial capital. One guy Vinukumar Ranganathan even ventured out of his house, grabbed his camera and clicked the pictures of bloodbath, frightening crowds and jumbled cars and posted them on Flickr. This was the real and firsthand account of the terror attacks that the world could see, before the satellite vans of mainstream news channels could set up their operations. Though, the action distressed security agencies that feared that the terrorists or their handlers could use the information but it kept people informed of various facets of the multi-pronged attack. Minutes later, a wikipedia page was created that was regularly updated by a group of citizen editors, almost in real-time, as the mayhem continued across the city.

The concept of citizen journalism had already assumed its formal roots in India after few websites dedicated to the citizen journalism were launched. Mostly, during the times of disasters that led to destruction on a large scale, citizens had a fair chance of reporting from their location, since reporters of the traditional media couldn’t visit all the spots.

One of the biggest and revolutionary changes that happened in the World was also guaranteed by the citizen Journalism – Arab Spring that toppled authoritarian regimes across the Arab World was a result of Citizen Journalism only. After people posted the picture of a vegetable vendor, who was beaten by the police in Tunisia, on the social networking website, Facebook, the wave of protests took over the country. People started to post the news, views and pictures on the social media that became citizen’s media and ultimately it forced the country’s president to resign and flee to neighbouring Saudi Arabia.

The seeds of revolution flew to neighbouring countries such as Egypt and Syria, among others and forced the downfall of Hosni Mubarak who had been ruling Egypt for decades. Since the international press and limited access to these countries, citizens would post the videos, comments and pictures of the protests on their blogs and foreign media would use that in their reportage.

During the American raid on the hideout of Osama Bin laden in Abbottabad in Pakistan, a blogger Sohaib Athar tweeted all the action live through a data connection. The IT guy was sitting in his house in the Sleepy Abbottabad town when the Navy seals attacked and killed the world’s most wanted man. Immediately after the first helicopter crash created a bang, Athar started tweeting and later added by reporting like ‘gun fire heard’, etc. Pakistan mainstream media was yet to know of the action and the whole world had gotten to know about the raid through Athar’s tweets.

A Malaysian student, Ashraf Haziq was robbed of his belongings and beaten to pulp by the rioters in London during the Glasgow riots that swept the country for weeks. A blogger has shot the video and later uploaded it on YouTube. The whole of the mainstream media uploaded the video on their websites and a public opinion was generated in favour of the student. Later, a website was created and donations were raised for the student.