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A return to 'Mr. Gates': Photography and objectivity
Newspaper Research Journal, Summer 2000 by Bissell, Kimberly L
This thought addresses research question #2. While a single gatekeeper's biases in decision-making were certainly evident, each published photograph seemed to be the product of chain of gatekeepers. In some cases, a single gatekeeper's decision-making opened or shut the door on a photograph, but it was via the gatekeeping chain that so many minor decisions altered the content.
By the nature of the medium, the viewer's social construction of reality is shaped from the first snap of the shutter. And, as Schramm' suggests, the longer the gatekeeping chain, the more likely reality will be altered.
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Since this is a case study, these findings are not generalizable, yet they may open the door to future research. Few studies have examined the way reality has been constructed photographically. This study's primary limitation then is also a strength. Extensive observations and interviews combined with a quantitative component allowed for comparison between the two. The findings of one portion of the study are more greatly understood based on the findings from the other. The findings are also important when media effects are considered. Audience's perceptions of the world - the crisis in Kosovo and the school shooting in Littleton, Colorado - are shaped in part by the images seen. Individual memories of historical events have been shaped via visual imagery. If the visuals misconstruct the world, the perceptions of the world become more skewed.
As F.P. Hoy says, "in many instances, the photograph is interpretive, in that it can also present a point of view - the photographer's personal intellectual stance, opinion, or unique attitude toward the subject."17
When any attempt is made for accurate representation of subjects in photographs, a decision is made to select in or out other subjects who may have also been a part of that reality. While this is certainly not a new concept in determining what becomes news, this thought illustrates how subjective the process really is. Each decision made concerning what becomes news photographically reflects one or maybe a few gatekeepers' opinions about what is important and what the public needs to know. Each decision made reflects one of a series of gates a photograph goes through to become a part of news. And most importantly, each decision reflects some portion of reality that has been selected out. What this means, then, is that the transparent window on the world has now become a few people's perceptions of reality.
Some degree of subjectivity is inherent in the process. But, based on the observed forces that facilitate the flow of news, the question is, are too many decisions based on opinion?
Future research should continue to examine photographic gatekeeping, the influences on photographic content, and the notions of objectivity in photographic news.
Notes
1. David Manning White, The Gatekeeper: A Case Study in the Selection of News. Journalism Quarterly, Fall 1950, pp. 383 - 390.
2. Gaye Tuchman, Objectivity as Strategic Ritual: An Examination of Newsmen's Notions of Objectivity. American Journal of Sociology, 1977, No. 4. pp. 660-679.
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