Gatekeeping Theory, What is it? (EOTO #2)

For my final Each One Teach One, I presented on the Theory of Gatekeeping. Gatekeeping Theory is the process of filtering the information that goes in different communication forms like broadcasting and internet. The process is controlled by gatekeepers like journalists and editors. This theory has been around for about seventy years and is extremely prevalent in our news today. 

I would like to give a brief history of Gatekeeping which will provide great background information on how it was developed. The idea was first identified by Kurt Lewin (1890-1947), who was a a German psychologist and pioneer in social psychology. He developed the theory to understand human behavior, with nothing relating to the news. At first it was widely used in the field of psychology and social psychology. It was later moved to the field of communication as mass communication because it was a specific area of study. This was largely due to the invention of mass publication technology. It is now one of the essential and foundational theories in communication studies.

In 1950, Gatekeeping was officially applied to the news. David Manning White was one of the first to use Gatekeeping. He was a journalism professor at Boston University, where he researched the factors an editor takes into consideration when deciding which news would make it into the paper and what news would not. He also had some power in making that decision himself, so he is recognized to be the first person to implement the Gatekeeping Theory. 

It provides a way of understanding organizational processes: how journalists and managers source, filter and edit content on its way to the end user. It more of a tactic to focus on specific messages. This theory uses three specific tactics. The first is limiting information which means they have the power to hold back the full story or not provide all information. They also expand information which can be seen through extreme exaggeration or emphasis on a topic. Finally, they may reinterpret information which provides new angles or different viewpoint. In Intentional Gatekeeping, such as a newspaper- the reporters, editors, owners, government, and pressure groups have the power or ability to gatekeeper. In film, the producers, censor board, and directors are the Gatekeepers. Gate keepers are necessary in media because it allows information to be filtered, useful, credible and reliable but sometimes there are negative effects. 

The Gatekeeping model shows the step by step channels and how information is passed from gate to gate or channel to channel. 

The Editorial Process is also an important aspect of the theory because this decides what content reaches the viewer. The focus is on how journalists and managers source, filter and edit content on its way to the end user. Here, the gate is found within the organization itself.  In addition, some people look at gatekeeping in connection with government regulation. Here the emphasis is on how gatekeeping affects the workings of the economy and how governments uses competition law, media regulation, and licensing to create a framework for the media market. Within ecology and media marketing gatekeeping is seen through competition and cost. This means that organizations such as news broadcasting stations control access to media and uses the gate to gain a competitive advantage. 

Find Out More Info Below: 

https://www.businesstopia.net/mass-communication/gatekeeping-theory#:~:text=When%20gatekeeping%20is%20done%2C%20the,dissemination%20by%20David%20Manning%20White.

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/107769905002700403

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GOwcFiAbbIE