(although we should talk about him more often)
No, the kind of gatekeepers I'm talking about exist within the world of media. Media being everything you see hear and partake in that's created by other people for public consumption. So we're talking anything from T.V., to video games, to music, to those terrible ads in America for every single lawyer's office. Behind every single thing, there lies a gatekeeper, probably more than one, and in most cases, there's whole teams, groups, and departments of gatekeepers. You see, a gatekeeper is essentially a behind the scenes person working on media. In the example of news we could say that almost anyone other than the on-screen anchor is a gatekeeper. Because behind the scenes, the editors, the directors, the reporters, and promotions people, will all usually have a news story pass through their hands at one point, and if they make any sort of edit, whether it be an addition, deletion, change of wording, or what have you, they are gatekeeping. Gatekeeping then, is specifically controlling what information will be viewable by the consumer.
Gatekeepers are both the most constructive, and the most destructive element in media, for these are the people who control the final product, so anytime the public is truthfully and fully informed of an important topic, it's constructive gatekeeping, and conversely, when things are changed and withheld, it's destructive.
For a potent example of gatekeeping, I have current news to use. Rumors are abound right now that the lead singer of the shock-rock band GWAR, Dave Brockie, has died. He's age 50, and plays in a band that dresses like something out of a Tim Burton film, and has lived that hard rock life, so it's not the most unbelievable story, but so far there are no details at all about what has happened. Not a time-of-death, not how or what happened, nothing. The fact that he's dead, is in fact unconfirmed. It wasn't till mid day today that GWAR's management announced they will be making a statement. But at the time of writing that's still 14.5 hours away, and this story's been around since the early hours of the day.
So this then, is a great example. Any media outlet reporting on this right now are being fairly loose gatekeepers, filling the minds of the public with speculation and leaving room for wild and untrue rumors to surface. Conversely, GWAR's management could put a stop to this easily. I have no doubts that by now, they for sure know whether or not Brockie has died, but the fact they haven't told us means likely that there are still things unfolding, that being said: they're being pretty tight gatekeepers.
(Update: He is dead. RIP David Brockie.)
Now, having explained what Gatekeeping is, we have to move on to the nitty gritty of this post. I'm going to talk a bit about the case of Erin Chorney. Erin Chorney was a fairly typical 18 year old girl living in here in Brandon, Manitoba. She suddenly went missing on April 21, 2002, and left the entire town wrought with concern and questions. There was much speculation, and a thorough investigation by Police, but ultimately, no one had any clue about the whereabouts of Chorney, and time began to pass. I can personally remember still seeing printed out flyers around town by mid summer of 2003, but despite the best efforts of everyone who was initially involved, the case remained unsolved.
Flash forward a little bit, and we see Brandon Police Service turn to the RCMP for help with solving the case. Brandon Police Service had long operated with a strong suspicion that the culprit was Chorney's then boyfriend Michael Bridges, but had never been able to find sufficient evidence to actually charge him with anything, nor obtain a search warrant.
RCMP took up the job, and proceeded to set up an elaborate ruse, that would see Bridges befriend an undercover officer, and travel all the way to Calgary under the belief he was to be initiated into an underground crime organization. The undercover officers told him that to become a member, he would have to confess to a previous crime, in turn, Bridges then outlined entirely his murder of Erin Chorney, in which he choked her to death, cleaned her body of evidence, and buried it in a grave already occupied by someone else's corpse. They promptly arrested Bridges and dug up the body, finally bringing closure to a long running, and emotional case for the city of Brandon.
Now I have to wonder, if I were a reporter in this situation, I wonder if I'd have a hard time remaining impartial. Putting myself in those shoes may yield some answers.
Is this a story I would report on?
Absolutely, not only is it local interest, but it's a matter of life and death that affected a great number of people. On top of this, a man has officially been sentenced as a result of a complex, detailed, and swiftly executed police action. This story may bring back negative memories for people, but it is motivational in that there will be justice for people directly affected by this tragedy.
How would I report on it?
I'd try my best to remain emotionally detached, and focus solely on established facts, and not at all at theories or maybe even the thoughts of the public in general. A story like this can spark a lot of emotion in the general public, with a story like this, you should stay as straight laced as possible, while also remaining sympathetic to those affected by the loss.
What parts would I emphasize?
I would emphasize the police investigation, the wonderful and extensive work they did, as well as the confession. As sorry as I am to say this, by the time the confession was gathered, this case was becoming old news, and also widely known, people are aware Chorney has been missing for sometime. I would try not to emphasize the gruesome details too much, but I would not leave anything out. It's important the public has everything they can learn from this story, but I don't want to turn off readers who are faint of heart.
What would I de-emphasize?
I wouldn't touch much on the minor details that had been established before this chapter in the story took place. As I said, the Chorney case had been around for a while at this point, and many people had been actively keeping up with it, there's no need to waste space that could go to new information on what's already widely known, or no longer relevant.
Who is going to read it?
Well, hopefully much of the mature population of Brandon, beyond that, I feel because of the intensity of the story, and the high level of police work that took place, I would hope that some version, being full or condensed, of my story would make it to a national audience. At that point, I'd be looking at a much smaller demographic, likely those who keep up with police activity or gruesome stories.
What factors would affect the story and how?
Well, I suppose the fact that Chorney has been known as missing for a while would result in a scaling down of her overall mention in the story. At this point, the story is more about the confession and the police work than the murder itself. Also, I feel that the fact that Bridges had already been arrested, may lead to him being portrayed in a very negative light. Now I'm not saying that he shouldn't be, but in terms of being impartial, the story will end up slightly skewed against him.
Track of the day is White Knuckles by OK Go, off their amazing album, "The Blue Color of the Sky." I'm sure I could find a way to tie this with gatekeeping, but I don't feel compelled to. Just an amazing song.
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