1. SOC101 Introduction To Sociology
Answers:
Role Of Media And Conflict Perspective With Reference To Gatekeeping
The conflict viewpoint, concentrates on the formation and perpetuation of inequality, which
disrupts society rather than contributes to its smooth functioning. The digital gap, which is
manifested in disparities in media and technology, is a major focus of the conflict
worldview. Also, conflict theorists examine who controls the media, and how it supports
upper-middle class white people's norms while marginalising the working class,
particularly people of colour in the United States. According to conflict perspective many of
our society's and world's groupings, such as those based on sex, ethnicity, gender and
socioeconomic class, are shown in the media (Treviño, 2017). But few individuals and
institutions who wield considerable power are able to influence the introduction of new
technologies as well as the types of media that are accessible to us, which is a sort of
gatekeeping.
The media, according to conflict theorists, plays a key role in determining what information
is disseminated via a process known as gatekeeping. Shoes and Voss describe gatekeeping
as a method by which a large number of potential messages are narrowed down to those
that can be effectively disseminated by mass media (Wittel, 2016). According to C. Wright
Mills, the power of the media is derived from the fact that the individuals in command of the
media determine what the public sees and consumes (Chadwick, Dennis & Smith, 2016). If
we Consider how "new media" are evolving and replacing established hegemonic media
types. Culturally varied societies may be controlled by one race, gender or class that
manipulates the media to establish its vision as the accepted standard in society. The
gatekeeper function in the delivery of information is being undermined by new media. In
addition to allowing more individuals to freely exchange information, popular sites such as
YouTube and Facebook enable users to participate in a type of self-policing. Users are urged
to alert moderators to any instances of misconduct, which they will then handle. The way
newspaper editors filter significant news from a large amount of news is a typical example
of gatekeeping (Tandoc & Vos, 2016). The editor is responsible for deciding which stories
will be published and which ones will be kept under wraps. The news station gets a wide
range of stories from across the globe every day. The editor of the channel selects whether
news items will be published, broadcast, or omitted based on a set of ethics, principles, and
2. prejudices. As part of the gatekeeping role, certain news items are rejected by the editor
owing to the organization's policy or the news items that are not fit for publication. As a
consequence of this, the American political landscape has become more imbalanced, as
explained by the conflict theory viewpoint. It is possible to purchase the maximum media
exposure, organise smear campaigns against your rivals, and optimise your visual presence
if you have the money. Gatekeeping is used to keep out information that would threaten
their established order.
References
Chadwick, A., Dennis, J. and Smith, A.P., 2015. Politics in the age of hybrid media: Power,
systems, and media logics. In The Routledge companion to social media and politics (pp. 7-
22). Routledge.
Tandoc Jr, E.C. and Vos, T.P., 2016. The journalist is marketing the news: Social media in the
gatekeeping process. Journalism practice, 10(8), pp.950-966.
Treviño, A.J., 2017. Conflict Theory. In The Sociology of Law (pp. 349-372). Routledge.
Wittel, A., 2016. Digital Marx: Toward a political economy of distributed media. In Marx in
the age of digital capitalism (pp. 68-104). Brill.
