Posted some of my own thoughts on this, http://ollywompus.wordpress.com/2007/04/17/the-stark-reality-of-the-citizen-journalist/, but wanted to comment here. First off, as I said in my post, I share your discomfort at posting videos like this, but I think that you shouldn’t feel too guilty about it. It’s citizen journalism like this that actually shows the heart and terror and raw emotions of situations, no matter how horrible, that a CNN spot can’t.

Secondly, the fact is that Jamal’s mobile phone, and the mobile’s of millions of others, are increasingly playing an important part in how we view our world and it’s events. I think it’s important that we highlight these things whenever possible, to show that there are in fact real world impacts, not just the typical news outlet spin.

-olly