THERE was a time when the nearest newspaper readers got to seeing their own thoughts in print was on the letters pages. But this was before video phones, blogs and mobile cameras changed the way we receive and disseminate information.

Now, the boundaries between reporters and the public are being blurred as technology allows ordinary people to help shape the news, rather than simply being told it.

Some of the biggest stories of recent times have been captured on amateur film, such as the doomed Concorde flight taking off from Paris, the devastating 2004 tsunami and the grainy underground footage of survivors caught up in the
7/7 bombings.

This growing public involvement, dubbed citizen journalism, has forced news organisations to rethink the way they gather news and how to deal with the ever-growing mass of what's called "user-generated content".

A recent conference at Leeds University brought together editors from the BBC and Sky, along with media academics and students, to discuss the implications of citizen journalism and whether anyone can actually be a reporter.

Among those speaking was Sky News associate editor Simon Bucks, who a few years ago,
when asked about citizen journalism, replied "How about citizen heart surgeon?"

It's a stance he has since recanted, and he now believes that not only will this kind of public journalism have an increasingly important role to play, but that future journalists may well make names for themselves on internet sites like Facebook and YouTube.

Individuals, though, aren't the only ones to benefit from this ever-expanding media world. In Leeds, Radio Asian Fever has become an integral part of the social fabric for many Asian communities in the city. The radio station has been broadcasting live since 1999 and has now been awarded a permanent licence by Ofcom.

Sakina Rehman is one of 24 volunteers who work for the community radio station, which she says provides an important link to the outside world.

"Many Asian people feel alienated by the big channels because they don't have the cultural sensitivity, or the understanding of what
they want.

"But when they come on our radio station, it's down to earth, it's on their level and they
can participate fully in a discussion, which they can't do on Radio 1, or something like that," she says.

Radio Asian Fever is on air seven days a week and averages between 800 and 1,000 calls a day from listeners, something many stations would die for.

"We are chock-a-block from the minute we start in the morning because the community is waiting for us, they help run it and they participate in it."

Sakina says the station plays
a crucial role in providing information about local services, events and job opportunities that otherwise wouldn't reach many in the Asian community.

"It allows people to go further than their own street. I remember a few years ago we spoke to one woman who said, 'I've been here 25 years and I haven't gone further than the shop at the bottom of the street to get a pint of milk, but with you, the world comes into
my house.'

"She said she listened to all the people coming on to our radio station, and felt part of a big family. This is what is happening because people are gettingencouragement from each other to step forward and broaden their horizons."

She says the station continues to give voice to a community that sometimes struggles to be heard. "Following the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, some reporters here were saying democracy had died, but ask the people who
had to live through her régime and they might have a different stance.

"It was the same with 7/7. The Muslim community felt isolated, they felt they didn't have a voice, they felt they had to go back into their houses and shut their doors and be on their own again.

"But when we came back on air and started talking about it, there was overwhelming grief about what happened, but nobody else was asking them what they thought or how devastated they were," she says.

"We are a community radio and we're here because the community demands it. If
they didn't want it then we
would have packed up a long time ago."

In South Yorkshire, the Sheffield Forum has enjoyed similar success as a thriving online community. It now has more than 48,000 members and offers local people – who can register for free – advice and information on everything from house buying to parenting.

Volunteer support worker Wendy Wells is one of its regular users. "I came across it by chance, but once you get involved, you're hooked."

She points to last year's floods that devastated large areas of the city, to show how valuable the forum has become.

"I watched the water rising and sent out a message saying I was evacuating my house.

"When I got back on dry land and logged on again a few hours later, people from all over the city were already organising to come out and help.

"They brought blankets and food before the local authorities were able to mobilise anything."

The forum has also created its own social network where anyone can have their say.

"It allows us to have an honest, unedited debate, you can say whatever you want within
reason and it's in the public domain straight away," explains Wendy.

"People discuss anything, from politics and questions about the Government, to why kids roam the streets at night."

There is no denying the success of online communities like this, but the big news corporations are aware of the dangers that unedited debates can bring.

Peter Horrocks, head of BBC newsroom, says public journalism can enhance debates but has to be carefully managed.

"It's getting bigger but it can't
be our master, we have to control it. We can't just open up our airwaves and websites to whatever people want to say;
we have to make editorial decisions."

Some five million people log on to the BBC website every day but fewer than one per cent actually contribute to its debates and message boards.

Horrocks says that the BBC's reputation could be undermined if it allowed information and opinions to appear unchecked.

"We could be hijacked by people with particular opinions, and in the end it has to be
our editorial judgment about what's important, rather
than just listening to the audience," he says.

"Anything that is potentially inflammatory we clearly have to think carefully about because we are a responsible public broadcaster, although censoring things or stopping views usually isn't the best way of dealing with situations."

That said, he believes citizen journalism is here to stay.

"It will definitely grow because more people will be online,
more people will have the technology, but I don't think direct participation will ever be a majority activity in itself.

"There will always be those who feel strongly about the world around them, just as some people are happy to sit and watch the news in the evening and let the debate wash over them.

"But every news organisation, whether we're talking about newspapers, radio, or TV, needs to wake up to how important this is and be able
to deal with it."

So, is it time professional journalists started thinking about a career change?

Simon Bucks doesn't think so, he believes it's more a question
of managing and authenticating the mass of material out there.

"Journalism is the first draft of history, and now citizen journalism is the pre-first draft of history.

"Like any first draft, it's not always right first time, and it's the job of professionals to try to make sense of it."