The article examines the factors, stages and current trends in the formation of citizen journalism in Uzbekistan. The study combines a theoretical review of the concept, an analysis of national legislation on information and the media, and secondary analysis of official statistics and published survey data. The author proposes a four-stage periodisation of citizen journalism in Uzbekistan and argues that its distinctive feature is platform centralisation: news created by citizens circulates mainly through Telegram channels, which gives it speed and reach but also makes it dependent on a single platform. A typology of five models of interaction between citizen and professional journalism is developed: signal, amplification, verification, co-production and competition. The ethical and legal risks of the field are identified, including unverified information, intrusion into privacy and dependence on a single platform. Concrete recommendations are offered on verification practices, a voluntary code of ethics, the response standards of press services and media literacy education.

citizen journalism, digital media space, Telegram, platform centralisation, agenda-setting, gatewatching, verification, media ethics, public oversight, Uzbekistan.

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