ABSTRACT. The aim of the present study is to examine and evaluate the perception of users as members of a peer community, today’s fragmented and rapidly changing media environment, the integration of blogging and other forms of user-generated content into journalism, and the adoption of audience participation in news production. The results of the current study converge with prior research on the reliance of the global public on citizen journalists, the relationship between media producers, gatekeepers and consumers, the enhanced communicative power of networked individuals, and the role of the non-professional journalist in the news space. pp. 143–149

Keywords: Internet-enabled digital media, user-generated content