The rise of digital media has prompted news portals to increasingly engage the public in the news production process through User-Generated Content (UGC). This engagement offers audiences the opportunity to contribute as creators, while necessitating effective management to ensure content quality. This study examines how gamification and participatory journalism are utilized to enhance audience engagement with UGC on news portals. Employing a qualitative approach, the research utilizes a case study method to investigate the Indozone Z Creators program. The study gathered data through in-depth interviews with the Head of Community and the Editor-in-Chief. The study's findings reveal that UGC management occurs in four stages: planning, content creation, distribution, and analysis. In the planning phase, Indozone builds its community by partnering with various stakeholders, providing training, facilitating communication, and running challenge-based activities. During the content creation stage, the implementation of points and badges incentivizes creators to produce content, while journalism training and mentorship strengthen their skills. In the distribution phase, social rewards, such as visibility and recognition for their contributions, motivate creators to continue participating. Every piece of content goes through an editorial curation and verification process, which is a crucial aspect of media management that ensures the quality, accuracy, and credibility of news coverage. Lastly, in the evaluation stage, media management assesses several factors, including audience engagement, creator loyalty, content rejection rates, and public trust in the media. Overall, the research indicates that media management's approach to handling UGC prioritizes not only the enhancement of audience engagement but also the effective management of creators, the maintenance of content quality, and the preservation of reporting credibility. As such, media management plays a vital role in balancing the participatory opportunities available to creators with the editorial responsibilities of the media.

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