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Using in-depth interviews with 65 participants from the CGNet Swara and the Video Volunteers, two citizen journalism organisations, this study investigates how citizen journalism in India is encouraging a new generation of women in very resource-poor areas to participate in the news production process and produce what they call a 'journalism of change'. Women journalists say they have found a 'space' and 'channel' through these organisations to report on stories that are women centric but also serve the community as a whole. Viewing their roles as ones of responsibility rather than power, they also work to motivate other women to join, creating networks of empowerment that encourage greater participation from women who hitherto had few such opportunities. The reporters speak up for the rights of women but reporting on women's issues can often be a delicate negotiation with patriarchal social structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alternative media in the Indian sub-continent is still an under-researched and underrepresented topic especially in the area of citizen journalism. There is a dearth of qualitative literature about how citizen journalists view their work and potential for social change. Using the theories of James W. Carey's ritual view of communication which conceives of communication as a process that enables and enacts societal transformation [Carey, J. W. 2005. "Historical Pragmatism and the Internet." New Media & Society 7 (4): 443–455] and the Most Significant Change Technique (Davies, R., and J. Dart. 2005. "The 'Most Significant Change' (MSC) Technique." A Guide to its use. 10.13140/RG.2.1.4305.3606. Available at (accessed July 2018)), a form of participatory monitoring and evaluation that involves the collection of significant change stories emanating from the field level, this study looks at how reporters of the CGNet Swara, a dedicated citizen journalism site in India, define the impact of their work in bringing social justice in their communities. Through in-depth qualitative interviews with 70 participants and ethnographic field visits, this analysis seeks to contribute to the area of research focusing on the implications and effects of citizen journalism on resource-poor communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]