The Gatekeeper allows only the most worthy to enter through the gate. They have the power to reject anything that tries to go through under their terms. On the other side of the gate is the world ready to absorb what was allowed through the gate. The gate is a symbol to represent an open and shut structure to allow in and keep out.
The EOTO Theory, Gatekeeping is the process through which information is filtered. It is a process used to sort out relevant information to be shared with an audience. Gatekeeping can help narrow our focus towards certain information.
This Theory was first instituted by German social psychologist, Kurt Lewis in 1943. During his quest to understand human behavior and its important consideration of total life space he developed the concept of Gatekeeping. Originally it was meant to and was widely used by the field of psychology and social psychology. Later it developed as a form of communication and is now used in the field of mass communication.
Gatekeeping occurs at all levels of the media structure. We see Gatekeeping on a daily basis without always realizing it. When a reporter chooses which sources to include in a story, editors deciding which stories are printed or even reported, or even individuals sharing certain posts on Social Media. These are all examples of Gatekeeping.
A large part of Gatekeeping is understanding how personal preferences and biases can affect what we are exposed to. The same news item coming from CNN, NBC, or Fox News can be presented in different ways and trigger audiences to pay attention to different aspects of the news that is presented, based on their preference. Because of this people may not pay attention to a whole story because they are only looking at what others find to be important and are unable to make their own opinions on the topic.
Gatekeeping has its benefits but also its negatives. Because of Gatekeeping we are able to know the key details of content. If there was no filter put into place information could become confusing. On the other side you may not be receiving all the information and things can get left out.
It is important to always read more than one source because of Gatekeeping. This is the best way to make sure you are getting the most of a story and not just what is important to one Gatekeeper.
Gatekeeping is a concept that is all around us but isn't talked about. I think it should be talked about more. It plays a huge role in the way we absorb news and media. Not only do we see it come from large companies we also participate as Gatekeepers in our personal lives.
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