My experience with Mobile Community Zimbabwe (MCZ) has been what I can describe as a “roller coaster”. It has impacted both my personal and professional lives so much as I got the chance to venture into a field that I never dreamt of taking part into—broadcasting. Having trained as a print journalist, I never foresaw myself editing videos or audios in the near future.
At first the whole mobile reporting thing was too technical for me, and to be honest it took me some time before I got used to it, thanks to the patience of my mentors. Overally, the whole journey has been an exciting one so far. It has awakened my creativity so much that I can now easily identify issues that are under-reported in the mainstream media but can be great stories through the use of StoryMaker. Given the opportunity I would want to continue learning more about citizen journalism.
Having been in the mainstream media for some time, I have come to appreciate how citizen journalism has been the lacking tool in the exposure of small community issues that have an impact on everyday life, like where I come from. Combined with community-based reporting, citizen journalism is the next big thing to happen to the world of news.