This paper explores what the tension between information abundance and attention scarcity implies for the diversity of information accessible to users of the World Wide Web. Due to limited user attention, there is a role for gatekeepers in the online content market. Sites that catalog Web content and primarily present themselves as content categorization services are identified as the gatekeepers in the new information age. Exploring the mechanisms by which they organize content is essential to understanding how user attention is allocated to information available on the Web. Theories about media content diversity are delineated to suggest what we may expect with respect to content diversity online. Methods for future empirical investigation are suggested. Finally, the policy implications of the argument are presented.

Outline

Introduction
The Production and Distribution of Cultural Goods
The Rise of Navigational Sites on the World Wide Web
Locating Content on the Web
Informed Advertisers, Uninformed Public
Portal Strategies
Diversity in Media Content
Online Content Diversity
Policy Implications
Conclusion

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(If you download this paper, please send me a note at eszter@princeton.edu. I'm always curious to hear who else is doing related work or has related interests. Thanks.)

An earlier version was published in the Working Paper Series of the Center for Arts and Cultural Policy Studies, Princeton University. A previous version of this paper was presented at a Spring 1999 Workshop of the Center.

*Acknowledgements