The Bicameral Fifth Estate, Journalism in the Digital Age
…is the English title of this book. Bicameral in Norwegian is «tokammer» (two chambers). In any language it boils down to a website with two separate editorial chambers, both under the same «roof» i.e. owners, most preferably owners with no commercial bindings. One chamber is published with the traditional responsibility and freeedom of the press (as in The Fifth Estate), with professional journalists and editors working. The other chamber is a citizens' user forum. This forum will, when called for, have professional journalists from the other chamber as their coaches. The technical staff takes responsibility for the workings at both sites. This way of running a bicameral site, and practising bicameralism on the web, may (simply) be called the YouBlee way. The YouBlee site contains details on «why and how».
YouBlee is a term coined around 2003, when journalism and the ailing fourth estate (i.e. the news industry) got their feet into social media on the internet. «You» as opposed to «We Media». I don't think the profession of being a journalist quite fits the «We-term. Partly, sure, but while «we» do it for free, journalists do it for a fee. Journalists have a professional hat (now and in the future paid by the fifth estate), and we have to wear that hat openly, also in the virtual world.
Further, in 2011 we celebrate a Jubilee: August 6th this year the web will be 20 yars old. There will be a limited, numbered print edition of YouBlee for this celebration.
The Fifth Estate: The main stories and political agendas, social changes big and small, as brought about by information surfacing on the internet. «The Fifth Estate» was the title of my book (in Norwegian) published in 2000. The fifth estate is now firmly in the lead as most main news originate on the net.
Surely We Media participants and outlets are part of this. But in the longer run the challenge and issues at stake demand something different. We'll have to up the ante. In many years to come the fifth estate hopefully will mature both professionally and institutionally.
As of 2011, its now clear: Big media owners don't fit either, definitely not. Their journalists and media may collaborate and contribute. But in a purer, «YouBlee» sense the fifth estate by and by will be owned by other principals.
YouBlee: This book advocates a spesific kind of websites, within the concept of the fifth estate, run by professional journalists with a substantial community participation, both as contributors and stakeholders. The work of these two collaborators is published in two separate parts of the site. The term also defines the model of management, economic and editorial arrangements of the site, its surroundings and activities outside the net.
DISCLAIMER AND ON PARTICIPATION
As this site goes public on midsummer eve 2011 most of its content is written in Norwegian. However I may gradually increase its English content, if so most visibly through its blog, where updates will be posted.
This blog has no space for comments. This is due to various circumstances. Not so much my ideas about the usefulness and/or the work implied by such spaces. As I am in retirement, I am only devoting a part of my time to maintaining this site. I am an avid observer though, of landscapes in the media, in the computer industry and in nature. Most of my time is devoted to where I live and is spent working on my immediate surroundings. A mindconsuming matter also, as I am always on to some new projects at our place in the woods. Small-scale building has turned out to be my favourite thing (as is the tune with John Coltrane + Eric Dolphy).
Comments by mail
This certainly don't imply I don't welcome comments. Any valuable new insights, news and points brought to me by mail, to broaden or correct the content in YouBlee, will be published, if the messager so wish.
A special note about translation
I have tested the Google way. Please dont do it! I will try my best, by and by, to convey into English the main issues in YouBlee, chapter by chapter. Serious native tongue writers with a working knowledge of the Norwegian language will of course be OK'ed. And by the way: «Forgive my French».
Scamclip
Most of my future work for the web will go into the building of Scamclip: A historical archive of photographs mostly, from time to time made into videos. A rather vast pile of material will, litle by litle, keep me on this road for, hopefully, a long time.
NON COMMERCIAL
This is all completely non-profit. There is no money involved. Thus, anybody who regard any linking or use of mine of outside material to infringe on their copyright or patents, can just send me a mail so I can remove it. However, in some cases I inform copyright holders prior to or by the time of publishing.