New Website Demotix is Launched

By: Allison McNeal


Calling all journalists! A new outlet has opened for journalists, who are either just starting their career or those who are professionals, on the Internet.

This new Website, called Demotix, allows citizens to submit news videos and images, and in turn, these individuals get paid for their news stories from other organizations that want that particular story.

In all cases, individuals get paid 70 percent for each photograph or video image. Demotix.com also states that non-exclusive rights for a photograph could be sold at $80 to $1,600 and a video $500-$600 per minute. Exclusive rights for a image or video could be sold for $100,000.

This Website almost sounds too good to be true, which is exactly what the two founders, Turi Munthe and Jonathan Tepper, want to convey. According to journalism.co.uk, these men want "to give freelance journalists the opportunity to showcase their work and forge links with mainstream media." They also want this Website to become the place for citizens to turn to get their news.

Vivian Norris de Montaigu, who has a PhD in Cinema Studes and has studied Globalization and Media, voiced her opinion about the lack of news that was being reported in the United States and felt that citizen journalism needed a boost away from companies that reported stories just for profits. She met with Turi Munthe in London and believes this Website could break barriers for citizen journalists.

Demotix.com could be the answer that many individuals are looking for. Journalists all around the globe could profit from this inventive site as well, including our Beginning Newswriting and Reporting class. It is very important to know what is going on the in the world and how to be well-informed journalists. It seems like this Website could help give students a starting point and improve their journalism skills.

I believe that this Website could become a huge sucess for citizen journalists. Demotix allows individuals to showcase their pictures and video clips of a news story, which gives them experience and recognition for their work. The site goes to show that citizens are a very important part of news and that executives are not the only ones that have a say in society.

In the meantime, citizens will hopefully watch and see how this Website continues to grow and prosper in the coming months and years to come.