RELIGIOUS GATEKEEPING BY THE CENTER FOR QUR'ANIC STUDIES (PSQ): THE CURATION OF USTAZ ON THE CARIUSTADZ.ID PLATFORM

Abstract

This study examines the religious gatekeeping mechanisms employed by the Center for Qur'anic Studies (PSQ) to curate ustaz and ustazah (Islamic preachers) for the Cariustadz.id platform, in response to the crisis of credibility regarding religious authority in the digital sphere. The central issue addressed is how PSQ executes its screening (gatekeeping) function regarding the religious competence of these preachers, guided by three research questions: (1) how PSQ’s gatekeeping mechanism operates across five levels of influence individual, routine, organizational, institutional, and social system; (2) how religious competence and a dakwah (preaching) persona characterized by friendliness (ramah) and compassion (rahmah) are operationalized as selection criteria beyond formal academic credentials; and (3) how this mechanism functions as a strategy for PSQ’s dakwah wasathiyyah (moderate) in the digital space. Employing a qualitative case study method, the research gathers data through in-depth interviews, platform observation, and analysis of official Cariustadz.id documents, interpreting the findings through Gatekeeping Theory (Lewin; White; Shoemaker & Vos), a framework adapted from mass media studies. The results indicate that the curation process does not rely solely on academic credentials but also prioritizes a preaching persona that is both competent and characterized by friendliness and compassion, reflecting the dakwah persona of PSQ’s founder, M. Quraish Shihab. The study concludes that Cariustadz.id’s gatekeeping serves as an instrument for PSQ’s dakwah wasathiyyah strategy in the digital realm; it also extends previous research (Rakhman, Zain, & Muthi'ah, 2025) which described a similar process through the framework of "digital isnad" (chains of transmission) by offering an organizational gatekeeping lens that encompasses institutional strategic dimensions previously underexplored.