User Generated Content and the Gate-keeping process in the Digital Age: A study of Digital Media Users and Broadcast Organizations in Nigeria

Abstract

The ever growing digital and online content and the complexities associated with content sift for credibility have placed User Generated Content and Gatekeeping among the widely discussed issues in the digital age, especially in the media circle. This paper examines the kind of information they digital media users generate and share through interactive web sites, how this information is subsequently processed and used by traditional broadcast organizations. Three hundred and Eighty-Six (386) copies of questionnaires were administered to purposively selected respondents in Ikeja, Lagos. In-depth interview was conducted with two broadcast professionals in selected media organizations. The findings revealed that political news prevails amongst contents digital media users generate and share with broadcast organizations on interactive website. Most of user generated contents sent to the broadcast organization by the digital media users are in form of audio and video. The study further revealed that almost all the procedures used by digital media users in processing news contents for the broadcast organization violate the standards of media practice. However, it was found that in making use of User Generated Contents, the broadcast media have in place some gate-keeping procedure. The study concludes that though the users generated content are useful in providing additional news materials to the broadcast organizations, yet such content offered by these non-professionals are subjected to gate keeping procedures. Therefore, in the light of these findings, the study recommends that traditional broadcast media may encourage the patronage of User Generated Content, but in doing so, they must ensure strict gate-keeping.