Browsing by Subject "Gatekeeping"

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    SPORTS information directors and the don't ask, don't tell narrative: applying gatekeeping theory to the creation and contents of Division I women's basketball online coaching biographies
    (2014-10) Calhoun, Austin Stair
    Researchers suggest that gay and lesbian coaches often respond with silence regarding their sexual orientation or family dynamic (Anderson, 2005; Griffin, 1998). Scholars speculate as to why this silence exists from two antipodal approaches: self-policing and institutionalized policing (Krane & Kauer, 2013; Norman, 2011). While we know that coaches respond with silence narratives (i.e., don't tell) when it comes to same-sex family narratives (Calhoun, LaVoi, & Johnson, 2011), it is unclear what dialogues (i.e., don't ask) occur between sports information directors (SIDs) and coaches with regard to including same-sex family narratives in online coaching biographies. Using Gatekeeping Theory (Shoemaker & Vos, 2009) as a guide, I examine the routines of BCS Division I women's basketball SIDs and investigate how the construction of online coaching biographies contributes to the absence of same-sex family narratives. The results from semi-structured interviews with SIDs (n = 14) provide insight on processes and dialogues between coaches and SIDs. Major findings were trifold: (1) SIDs presented similar communication routines when creating online coaching biographies, (2) each level of Gatekeeping Theory was reflected the content in online coaching biographies, and (3) SIDs explained the absence of same-sex narratives by placing the blame elsewhere and absolving themselves. This research has the potential to affect stakeholders and constituents in the sport and LBGT communities. Future research should address how SIDs can neutralize their routines and offer opportunities for inclusion of same-sex family narratives in online coaching biographies.
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    Towards a networked gatekeeping theory: Journalism, news diffusion, and democracy in a networked media environment
    (2014-01) Ernste, Thomas John
    This dissertation describes the development of a networked gatekeeping theory for the study of an increasingly internet-mediated news diffusion process. Prior gatekeeping research provides a rich theoretical and methodological framework for investigating and illuminating the process through which certain events and issues on an international, national, and local level become the mediated messages that reach the public. Towards a framework for reconceptualizing gatekeeping theory in which I incorporate principles of graph theory and social network analysis, I describe the development of a more participatory but still asymmetrically structured networked gatekeeping process that is forming according to the communication infrastructure afforded by the internet and its associated technologies. In particular, this dissertation focuses on the implications of these developments for both the practice of and research about news diffusion, journalism, internet-mediated communication, and democracy. In an empirical study of the Twitter-based news ecology of a large Midwestern metropolitan area, I conduct a case study using primarily social network analysis methods that uncovers insights about the patterns that emerge within this dynamic participatory news construction and diffusion process. The findings of this dissertation can be useful for media scholars, media practitioners, and for anyone with an interest in understanding the evolution of the new media of the public sphere.