Gatekeepers with Fatima Syed

Season: 1 Episode: 3 [download this episode (MP3, 19.7MB)]

Elizabeth chats with journalist Fatima Syed about gatekeeping theory. Gatekeepers control the flow of information but Fatima isn't sure if there really are gatekeepers in a digital media ecosystem. The traditional role of news media assumes journalistic ethics will guide gatekeeping decisions but that doesn't apply to social media companies which are also important information controllers. In the end, it seems like gatekeeping theory still makes sense but the idea of who can be a gatekeeper is definitely a lot broader than it used to be.

Additional resources:

• Wikipedia article on gatekeeping theory (remember to follow links to original sources!)

• Academic article on networked gatekeeping by Barzilai‐Nahon: Toward a theory of network gatekeeping: A framework for exploring information control.