Ohmynews, founded by Oh Yeon Ho, champions the concept of 'citizen reporters,' allowing anyone to contribute news and information, leading to a surge in contributors from 727 to over 60,000. The platform combines citizen journalism and professional reporting, covering various topics and utilizing technology for broad reader engagement. It also explores the challenges and potential of home-grown web platforms in transcending cultural barriers in the global digital landscape.

1. OhmyNews was founded on the premise of “Citizen Reporters” “ Every citizen's a reporter. Journalists aren't some exotic species, they're everyone who seeks to take new developments, put them into writing, and share them with others.” – Oh Yeon Ho, founder and CEO of OhmyNews

2. Number of Citizen Reporters exploded from 727 to 60,000+ Feb.2000 Sep. 2000 Mar. 2001 Nov. 2001 Oct. 2002 Mar. 2003 Nov. 2003 Apr.2004 Presidential Election 2002 General Election 2004 General Election 2000

3. OhmyNews Editorial Process Citizen Reporters (60,000+) Staff Reporters (54) Essays & Columns Film & Book Reviews Media Criticism Screening by News Guerilla Desk Hard News Analysis Columns & Editorials Screening by Editorial Desk Publication Publication

4. Citizen Journalism Potential business models for citizen media or UGC Do It Yourself Journalism 6 billion people as Advertisers  Audience as Content  Education and Training  CJ as People’s Ad Agency

5. A long tail economy? Misses Hits Units Sold Items

7. Tale of Two Internet News Media Content Reader participation Use of technology Updates Attitude News consumption Use Web as… Quality news, analysis, editorials and op-eds Limited feedback to the editor via “Readers’ Opinion” Web as a carrier of print news to cyber space New York Times Digital 10~15 times per day Modernistic elite media I produce. You consume and leave. a pipe for news delivery Focused news on politics and social issues by staff reporters Essay style reports by citizen reporters Write as a citizen reporter, post your comments or give money to reporters HTML, Web-radio, Web-TV, Mobile news and Weekly print edition OhmyNews As many as necessary; 24 times per day in case of live text casting Post-modernistic “We” media We produce. We consume and stay. a playground for readers

8. Stumbling int’l web brands in Korea -- Can a home-grown web platform transcend cultural barrier?

9. Struggling Korean web brands in the global market – Can a home-grown web platform transcend cultural barrier?

10. MY BIG QUESTION: Every web service is uniquely home-grown and reflects its cultural idiosyncrasy. Then how can a web platform overcome cultural barriers and be transplanted to other cultures? If it can succeed in doing so, what would be the transcendent element that would have an universal appeal across different social and cultural context?

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