Gatekeepers
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
Please see the discussion on the talk page. |
A gatekeeper is defined as someone who controls access to something. It also refers to individuals who decide whether a given message will be distributed by a mass medium.
Contents |
[edit] Gatekeeping rolls
Gatekeepers serve several different purposes such as academic admissions, financial advising, and news editing. Academic admissions plays a vital role in every student's life. They look at qualifications such as test scores, race, social class, grades, family connections, and even athletic ability. Perhaps one of the most important kind of gatekeeper is one who provides financial advice. In order to reduce fraud and unqualified advice, various certifications for financial advisers exist. Another type of gatekeeper is a news editor. An editor picks out what stories would be most informative and popular. For example, a presidential resignation would be on the front page of a newspaper rather than a celebrity break-up in most cases.
[edit] Network television gatekeeping
Television gatekeeping has a variety of responsibilities such as the coordination of activities, control of money, management and personnel, and the application of authority. A gatekeeper in this field decides what subject and when the subject airs on TV. They also have control over what television programs actually air on their broadcast.
[edit] Gatekeeping risks
Accountants, analysts, and credit rating agencies function as gatekeepers to financial markets by providing information on investment products to investors. Accountants have been accused not only of being aware of accounting irregularities but even of aiding and abetting the violators. Enron's auditor, Arthur Andersen, is suspected of putting higher emphasis on carrying out its more profitable consultancy work for the company than on confirming that the company's accounts were in order. The number of households investing in stock and mutual funds increased over the past ten years. This means that more market participants depends on information provided by financial gatekeepers. In response to these concerns, the U.S. Government enacted the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. This act strongly regulated the accounting industry by two ways. It requires chief executive officers of public companies to certify the reliability of their companies financial statements. It also increases penalties for corporate fraud.
