Jurnal Sosiologi USK: Media Pemikiran & Aplikasi
Vol. 20 No. 1 (2026)

Gatekeeping Practices in Maintaining News Credibility: A Study of UKM Pers DETaK's Online News Portal at Universitas Syiah Kuala

Naily Jannati (Universitas Syiah Kuala, Banda Aceh)
Rahmat Saleh (Universitas Syiah Kuala, Banda Aceh)



Article Info

Publish Date
30 Jun 2026

Abstract

This study examines the gatekeeping practices of the UKM Pers DETaK editorial team in pursuing news credibility on the DETaK online news portal at Universitas Syiah Kuala. As a campus-based news organization, UKM Pers DETaK is expected to provide timely, accurate, and balanced information while maintaining editorial independence within the higher education environment. This study employed a qualitative descriptive approach, using gatekeeping theory and Shoemaker’s Hierarchy of Influences as the analytical framework. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with key members of the UKM Pers DETaK editorial board for the 2023–2024 period, individuals who had served as news sources in DETaK's reporting, and relevant documentation concerning the news production process. The data were analyzed through data reduction, categorization according to the individual, media routines, organizational, extramedia, and ideological levels of influence, followed by thematic interpretation. The findings indicate that the editorial team pursues news credibility by restricting members' involvement in campus politics, providing staged journalism training, conducting editorial planning meetings, carrying out direct field reporting, implementing multi-stage verification and editing procedures, publishing follow-up stories when confirmation remains incomplete, and maintaining clear distinctions among news reports, opinion pieces, editorials, feature stories, and articles. At the organizational level, DETaK strengthens editorial professionalism through role differentiation, editorial evaluations, consultations with alumni, and strategic social media management. At the extramedia and ideological levels, the editorial team seeks to maintain issue diversity, respond to audience feedback, and navigate relationships with news sources and university authorities. This study does not assess students’ perceptions of or trust in the DETaK online portal; instead, it explains the editorial strategies and gatekeeping practices employed to produce accurate, balanced, and ethically responsible campus journalism. abstrak Penelitian ini menganalisis praktik gatekeeping redaksi UKM Pers DETaK dalam mengupayakan kredibilitas pemberitaan pada portal online DETaK di Universitas Syiah Kuala. Media kampus menghadapi tuntutan untuk menyajikan informasi secara cepat, akurat, dan berimbang, sekaligus menjaga independensi redaksi dalam lingkungan institusi pendidikan tinggi. Penelitian ini menggunakan pendekatan deskriptif kualitatif dengan teori gatekeeping dan konsep hierarchy of influence dari Shoemaker sebagai kerangka analisis. Data dikumpulkan melalui wawancara semi-terstruktur dengan anggota inti redaksi UKM Pers DETaK periode 2023–2024, narasumber pemberitaan DETaK, serta dokumentasi yang berkaitan dengan proses produksi berita. Data dianalisis melalui reduksi, pengelompokan berdasarkan level individual, rutinitas media, organisasi, ekstramedia, dan ideologi, kemudian disajikan untuk memperoleh pola praktik redaksional. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa upaya menjaga kredibilitas dilakukan melalui pembatasan afiliasi politik kampus bagi anggota, pelatihan jurnalistik bertahap, rapat proyeksi, peliputan langsung, verifikasi dan penyuntingan berlapis, penggunaan berita lanjutan ketika konfirmasi belum lengkap, serta pembedaan yang jelas antara berita, opini, editorial, feature, dan artikel. Pada tingkat organisasi, DETaK menerapkan pembagian peran redaksional, evaluasi hasil penyuntingan, diskusi dengan alumni, dan pengelolaan media sosial sebagai representasi profesional media. Pada tingkat ekstramedia dan ideologi, redaksi berupaya menjaga keberagaman isu, merespons masukan pembaca, serta mempertimbangkan relasi dengan narasumber dan institusi kampus. Penelitian ini tidak mengukur persepsi atau tingkat kepercayaan mahasiswa terhadap portal DETaK, tetapi menjelaskan strategi dan praktik redaksional yang dijalankan untuk mengupayakan pemberitaan yang akurat, berimbang, dan sesuai dengan etika jurnalistik.

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Journal Info

Abbrev

jsu

Publisher

Subject

Description

Jurnal Sosiologi USK: Media Pemikiran & Aplikasi (JSU) is an international, open-access, and double-blind peer-reviewed journal committed to fostering critical sociological inquiry and empirical research. The journal serves as an academic forum for researchers, academicians, and practitioners to ...