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ABSTRACT
This study examined the Relationship Between Citizen journalism and Fake News in Contemporary Society. The researcher anchored his study on two theoretical frameworks, namely: social responsibility theory and democratic participant media theory. Survey research methodology was adopted, while questionnaire was used as instrument of data collection from his study population. The researcher relied on Social Responsibility Theory and Democratic Participant Media Theory to argue his views. Data collected were presented and analysed using simple frequency and percentage table. Research findings revealed that citizen journalism and fake news are interrelated in several ways: citizen journalism contributes to the spread of fake news since the practitioners are untrained and their news and information do not pass through any form of editorial scrutiny; and on the other hand, it can as well be used as a veritable tool for combating same fake news. The findings of the study also discovered that Facebook (51%) is the highest medium of communication through which citizen journalists spread fake news, followed by WhatsApp and Twitter (15%) each. The research further found that fake news by citizen journalists has negative effect on the society and questions the truthfulness of citizen journalism as an agent of development in the society. It however concluded that regardless of the fact that the relationship between citizen journalism and fake news is complex and multifaceted, citizen journalism when well harnessed by the citizen journalists and the government, remains a critical agent for wholesome developments in the society. The researcher therefore recommended that citizen journalists should endeavour to verify the sources and authenticity of their news and/or information before sharing them to others. He further recommended that since citizen journalism cannot be expunged from our information and communication order, the government through its agencies like Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and National Orientation Agency (NOA) should educate the people (citizen journalists) on how best they can put to use the social media without necessarily sharing fake news and misinformation.
