Recommendations

As a final reflection on the findings of this study, we offer the following recommendations as guidance. In so doing we fully acknowledge that each story comes with particular pressures and issues, and that there can be no ‘one size fits all’ solution to the issues raised. For example, the question of whether or not to credit somebody can be dictated by individual circumstance if, for instance, their safety could be at risk or they could get into trouble for being somewhere they shouldn’t.

Recommendations for online news sites

1. Where possible, consider embedding content instead of scraping. This provides a degree of control for uploaders (i.e. enabling them to remove content if they no longer wish it to be published) and will help foster more collaborative, mutually reciprocal relationships that will be vital in future as eyewitness media continues to make its mark on news output.
2. Ideally, when embedding, get permission from/give warning to the eyewitness so they can take appropriate action if they do not wish for their content to be exposed to a new site’s global audience.
3. Take care to credit eyewitnesses (where requested) instead of platforms and agencies. In the case of the latter, news outlets should pay attention to the crediting information detailed in the dope sheets provided by the agency supplying the content.
4. When utilising screengrabs from eyewitness videos, follow the same protocol for crediting as is applied to the video from which the stills are taken (i.e. crediting the content creator where desired).
5. Additionally, take caution when using graphic or potentially upsetting screen grabs from videos in news articles. Unlike videos – which are typically preceded by a warning and which readers can choose not to play – these screenshots are harder to avoid and may cause undue distress to readers who would rather not be confronted by such material.
6. Be consistent and transparent in the labelling of eyewitness media. It is important that news organisations are transparent about the source from which footage has been obtained, be it ISIS, Greenpeace or an ‘accidental journalist’. Detail about the authorship of the footage should be considered as part of any story containing eyewitness media.
7. When transporting eyewitness media videos from a news article to a standalone video page, take care to ensure all vital contextual information is transferred with it, e.g. clarification that the content is unverified; notice that the content is eyewitness media and was not captured by someone connected to the news organisation.
8. When dealing with unverified content, be consistent in the language used to describe it, ensuring that readers are not given mixed messages about the verification status of the content in question.
9. When embedding content, ask the uploader’s permission in the same way as would be expected when not embedding – or, at the very least, make the uploader aware their content has been placed before a sizeable news audience. This will give the uploader the opportunity to take evasive action if desired.
10. When embedding content from a platform that does not include the uploader’s name in the resulting embed (e.g. YouTube), add a credit to give due attribution to the content creator.
11. Ensure that staff are trained to respect and perpetuate ethical and respectful practices when acquiring permission to use eyewitness media and crediting it appropriately.
12. News outlets should refrain from scraping content without permission and using it as if it were their own.
13. As and when eyewitnesses refuse permission for their content to be used, this decision should be respected.
14. News organisations should heed the warning that eyewitnesses may have an appetite to take action if they feel they or their content has been exploited.
15. Even if eyewitnesses do not take legal action, news outlets should recognise that they are risking future co-operation if they are not respectful of content.
16. News room staff should be trained to understand and appreciate the ethics of using eyewitness media. It should be recognised that when eyewitness media is not used ethically, the potential distress to eyewitnesses can take many forms, e.g. anxiety, embarrassment, etc.
17. Where possible, journalists should resist from assuming that permission will always be forthcoming or that eyewitnesses will automatically be happy for their content to be published in exchange for a credit. This is an overly simplistic approach that does not give due recognition to the strength of feeling eyewitnesses can have towards individual news outlets (e.g. some may be willing to let News Outlet A use their content with credit, but not News Outlets B and C).
18. Where permission is granted, news organisations should be clear with eyewitnesses about their distribution and syndication policies.
19. News organisations should also be clear with eyewitnesses about their intentions for re-using content beyond initial usage.
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Recommendations for platforms

1. Social platforms should make information about their users’ rights more visible and accessible. While this information is available in each platform’s terms and conditions, they are currently too convoluted. Were users aware of their rights, they would be less likely to believe their content to be ‘fair game’ and would be better positioned to control the spread of their content.
2. Tools should be provided to allow users to watermark their content where desired.
3. Steps should be taken to introduce functionality that simplifies the process of permitting or denying permission for content to be used by news organisations.
4. Functionality could be introduced to alert users when their content is embedded into news sites, just as they can receive alerts when they receive comments, their content is shared, they are retweeted, etc.
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Recommendations for eyewitnesses

1. With news outlets’ crediting practices still somewhat patchy, uploaders keen to ensure attribution travels with their content should consider adding their own credits. In some instances unobtrusive credits can be added using tools such as iOS app Marksta. The absence of a visible credit is also an issue with embedded YouTube videos – in such instances uploaders could use the platform’s ‘Branding watermark’ functionality, or add their name/credit to the title of their video as a makeshift solution.
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Recommendations for educationalists and other stakeholders

1. Journalism schools should ensure that sufficient time is dedicated to training the journalists of tomorrow in the the ethics of sourcing and using eyewitness media.
2. Educationalists and other stakeholders should strive to develop educational materials to help inform eyewitnesses about their rights.