What's read all over but isn't so black and white? As it turns out, it's a local political blog and its status as a media organization.

The County Legislature meets each month in a large room in the County Office Building, and reporters covering those meetings sit in the press area - essentially, a table and some seats located in a front corner of the room. Before the May 8 County Legislature meeting, President Wayne Zyra asked two of the people gathered there - Sahar Massachi and Andre Chappel - to leave the area.

Massachi and Chappel, who said they were representing RochesterTurning.com, a local progressive political blog, moved. First they tried to set up their video camera in the aisle just outside of the public seating area, but security officers told them to move because they were in the way. Then they moved to the seating area, and after a discussion with security officers, they were allowed to tape from there.

Questioned by reporters and several others, Zyra said that the two weren't "credentialed" media representatives. He said the next day that he differentiates the press from bloggers through their responsibilities and established code of ethics. "Those individuals last night are no different than any other public individual," he said.

Massachi's and Chappel's credentials certainly don't fit the journalistic stereotype. Massachi is a senior at Brighton High School who plans to attend Brandeis University, majoring in global studies. He's interested in politics and frequently writes about economic issues and other topics on RochesterTurning. Chappel is a graduate student in health-services research at the University of Rochester. He's been involved with RochesterTurning for about six months.

Unwittingly, Zyra has highlighted an ongoing media debate. Technology has been reshaping traditional journalism and driving new forms of it. Citizen journalists, including bloggers, have also driven changes in the business, and defining "the media" has become increasingly complicated. The issue has been debated in industry publications like American Journalism Review and Columbia Journalism Review and has been studied by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press.

A generation ago, says Jack Rosenberry, a professor in St. John Fisher College's communications/journalism department, the only way to reach a large audience "was to work for a major media organization." And a journalist was defined as someone who worked for that kind of organization.

Now, however, "journalist" is becoming more self-defined, Rosenberry said in an e-mail interview. The internet has given individuals - and media organizations - a potential audience of millions. And he points to a frequently cited argument that while traditional beat journalists need to know a little about a lot, private citizens with specialized training or experience in a given area may be able to report on an issue with a sort of authority that may provide greater benefit to the public.

But Rosenberry also refers to the argument that news organizations take rigorous steps to ensure the accuracy and quality of their reporting. It's the media company's reputation on the line, not just an individual's. (That's no guarantee, of course, that the news is credible, he adds. Just look at Jayson Blair, the disgraced former New York Times reporter who made up information in his stories.)

RochesterTurning, like the area's traditional media, provides information and analysis of local issues. And opinionated coverage doesn't prevent publications and broadcast programs from being considered legitimate, often influential, media. The Nation, The New Republic, National Review, and The Weekly Standard have presented topics from a specific political viewpoint for decades.

And locally, Frederick Douglass established his own newspaper, The North Star, in 1847 to help spread anti-slavery views.

Late last week, Massachi said wasn't surprised that the legislature didn't want to treat him and Chappel as members of the press. But, he said, in some communities, bloggers are often treated the same as other media.

"It was worth a shot," he said.

And he plans to attend more legislature meetings. By covering them, he said, the blog is serving a useful purpose in a democratic society. He also hopes to post videos of the legislature meetings on RochesterTurning, to allow viewers to see what goes on inside the legislature's chambers.