The Relevance of Gatekeeping in the Process of Contemporary News Creation and Circulation in Saudi Arabia

The Relevance of Gatekeeping in the Process of Contemporary News Creation and Circulation in Saudi Arabia Abdullah Almaghlooth A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Digital Media at the University of Salford School of Arts and Media 2013 i Table of Contents List of tables and illustrations ........................................................................................... v Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................... vii Abbreviations ................................................................................................................. viii Abstract ............................................................................................................................ ix Chapter 1: Introduction 1.1 Objectives .................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Rationale for the study ................................................................................................ 1 1.3 Significance of the study ............................................................................................. 3 1.3.1 Contribution to knowledge ...................................................................................... 3 1.3.2 Importance of the study to Saudi Arabia................................................................. 4 1.4 Research questions ...................................................................................................... 6 1.5 Study design, process and methodology ..................................................................... 7 1.6 Conceptual framework ................................................................................................ 8 1.6.1 History of gatekeeping ............................................................................................ 8 1.6.2 Print newspapers in Saudi Arabia ......................................................................... 10 1.6.3 Electronic newspapers ........................................................................................... 12 1.6.4 Blogs ..................................................................................................................... 12 1.6.5 Microblogs ............................................................................................................ 13 1.6.6 Religious and social effects on Saudi media production ...................................... 13 1.7 Structure of the thesis ................................................................................................ 14 Chapter 2: The Impact of Technology on Journalism 2.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................... 19 2.2 Resistance to early print technology ......................................................................... 21 2.3 Resistance to twentieth-century print technology ..................................................... 24 2.4 Tensions in Saudi newsrooms ................................................................................... 26 2.5 Journalism and the internet ....................................................................................... 29 2.6 The prevalence of blogging ....................................................................................... 36 2.7 Microblogging and the influence of Twitter ............................................................. 39 2.8 Technology as a new gatekeeper............................................................................... 42 2.9 Technology, journalism and society ......................................................................... 44 2.10 Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 53 Chapter 3: Theoretical Framework: Gatekeeping 3.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................... 55 3.2 Gatekeeping............................................................................................................... 55 3.3 Criticism and discussion of gatekeeping ................................................................... 57 3.4 Gatekeeping in Saudi Arabia .................................................................................... 59 3.5 Twitter gatekeeping ................................................................................................... 71 3.6 Saudis on Twitter ...................................................................................................... 78 3.7 The power of Twitter and its limits ........................................................................... 84 3.8 The growing impact of gatekeeping in the digital era............................................... 86 3.9 Gatewatching: an alternative model .......................................................................... 88 3.10 Why gatewatching cannot replace gatekeeping ...................................................... 90 3.11 Summary ................................................................................................................. 92 ii Chapter 4: Study Design, Process and Methodology 4.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................... 93 4.2 Research process ....................................................................................................... 93 4.3 Research philosophy ................................................................................................. 94 4.4 Research approaches ................................................................................................. 98 4.5 Research strategy ...................................................................................................... 99 4.6 Time horizon ........................................................................................................... 100 4.7 Research questions .................................................................................................. 101 4.8 Methodology ........................................................................................................... 101 4.9 Participant observation ............................................................................................ 105 4.9.1 Rationale and purpose of participant observation ............................................... 106 4.9.2 Observation protocol ........................................................................................... 106 4.9.3 Advantages and disadvantages of observation .................................................... 107 4.9.4 Research participants .......................................................................................... 109 4.10 Interviews .............................................................................................................. 110 4.10.1 Interview questions ........................................................................................... 110 4.10.2 Interviewees ...................................................................................................... 112 4.11 Data analysis ......................................................................................................... 115 4.11.1 Organizing the data ........................................................................................... 117 4.11.2 Immersion in the data ........................................................................................ 117 4.11.3 Generating categories and themes ..................................................................... 118 4.11.4 Coding the data ................................................................................................. 118 4.11.5 Offering interpretations ..................................................................................... 119 4.11.6 Searching for alternative understandings .......................................................... 119 4.11.7 Writing the report .............................................................................................. 120 4.12 Ethical issues ......................................................................................................... 120 4.12.1 Approval and consent ........................................................................................ 121 4.13 Translating the interview questions ...................................................................... 122 4.14 Summary ............................................................................................................... 122 Chapter 5: Observation 5.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................. 123 5.2 Alriyadh ................................................................................................................... 123 5.2.1 The importance of Alriyadh within the mainstream Saudi media ...................... 123 5.2.2 Justification of the observation method .............................................................. 125 5.2.3 Setting ................................................................................................................. 126 5.2.4 First observation of Alriyadh .............................................................................. 129 5.2.5 Second

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