INCUMBENT CONTROL OF THE MEDIA: AN ABUSE OF THE FREEDOM OF MEDIA IN NIGERIA

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1       BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Since the media are social organizations who hope to offer a moral contribution to society, there is a need for laws to govern journalistic practice. According to Oso and Pate (2011), Johnson said that the media can be a "great secular church" and a "machine of evangelism for dispelling the darkness of confusion, expelling mistake, and maintaining reality." Journalists have been accused of being subjective in the course of their duties, and their position has been debated. Briggs and Burke (2005) opine that "journalists are not to be believed" and that they are "slanderous". The explanation for this is that, due to the existence of ownership, employers of the news industry, whether government-controlled or privately owned, are subject to editorial oversight. Politicians who can pay to operate a publishing company can control what is in the newspaper's columns (Dare, 2010).

 Government-owned media works to defend the government's interests, while commercial media works to protect the interests of the founders, resulting in violations of the code of ethics. "He who pays the piper sets the stage," as the phrase goes. This study would look into how the art of journalism is practiced in Nigerian news outlets. Journalism is a trading technique or occupation that involves using different media to convey news to the public. “Journalists face several difficulties in collecting, processing, and disseminating the news,” Stovall (2005). Journalists face serious obstacles in the course of their work. Journalists are culture's watchdogs or gatekeepers and they determine what news is and making significant decisions on what society does about it. As gatekeepers in culture, journalists are governed by a code of ethics that ensures they are performing their duties in accordance with the law. Journalism ethics refers to the code of ethics that journalists are expected to follow.

 They provide a dedication to reporting the facts objectively without being swayed by self-interest; preserving the confidentiality of sources and attributing what is said to the appropriate source; and maintaining the secrecy of sources and attributing what is said to the appropriate source (Ike, 2005). Media has evolved to the point that it is as important as food and clothes. It has played an important part in the development of civilization. The media is sometimes referred to as a "mirror" of our society; nevertheless, it is the media that forms our lives.

The capacity of the media to inform us what topics are relevant is referred to as "agenda setting." According to McCombs and Shaw, agenda setting is the news media's development of popular consciousness and outrage over important topics. Much agenda-setting analysis is based on two assumptions: first, the press and media do not represent reality; they filter and mold it. Second, since the media focuses on a certain topics and subjects, the audience perceives those problems to be more relevant than others. “The news media are a principal source of those images in our minds about the wider field of public relations, a world that for most people remains out of view, out of sight, out of mind,” wrote Walter Lippmann in his 1922 classic, Public Opinion. The aim of the media is to keep people informed about current events and to keep them up to date with the latest news and fashion. It tells the story of citizens who are separated by geography. In other terms, media will make a significant contribution to society. It has the ability to influence people's minds when it has connections to people, which gives it a lot of power. This power may be utilized constructively by informing the public or destructively by deceiving the public. The most effective use of the media is to inform the public regarding fundamental human rights. The media serves as a link between government and the general public. With the media's critical position in culture, there is a need for ethical considerations. 

1.2       STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The freedom of the media is very necessary for the media to function freely in the society today, however, over time; the freedom given to the media has been abused as the government infringes on this right and prevents the media from fully expressing its freedom. Other than reporting on certain relevant news or happenings in the country, the media is forced to act in certain ways that oppose their freedom and restrain the dissemination of certain news because prominent individuals have enticed them to not disseminate such news. The freedom of the press should not allow for the press to indulge in irresponsible actions that will impair with its primary function and role to the society which is to disseminate timely relevant news to the recipient audience.

This study seeks to examine the incumbent control of the media as a result of the abuse of the freedom of media in Nigeria.

1.3       OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

The primary aim of this study is to examine the incumbent control of the media as a result of the abuse of the freedom of media in Nigeria. Thus the following objectives;

1. To determine the various roles of the media to the society.

2. To investigate the ways in which the freedom of the media has been abused.

3. To proffer solutions to the issue of abuse of the freedom of the media.

1.4       RESEARCH QUESTIONS

The following questions guide this research;

1. What are the various roles of the media to the society?

2. What ways has the freedom of the media been abused?

3. What solutions can be proffered to the issue of abuse of the freedom of the media?

1.5       SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

This study will be effective in understating the how the media functions and its various roles it plays in the society. It will also be significant as it will expose the ways in which the freedom of the media has been abused. This study will be helpful to the academic world as it will provide material for researchers who want to focus on this subject matter and conduct further studies on it. The study will also proffer solutions to curb the abuse of the freedom of the media.

1.6       SCOPE OF THE STUDY

This study will only cover ways in which the media has abused its freedom that has been attributed to it. The roles of the media to the society will also be looked into as well as the possible solutions to keep the media in check and prevent them for further abusing their freedom. Some selected electronic and non-electronic media in Lagos state shall serve as enrolled participants for this study.

1.7       LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

This study was only limited by lack of funds in order for the researcher to delve deeper and expatiate on certain concepts and undertake certain investigations.

1.8       DEFINITION OF TERMS

1. INCUMBENT CONTROL: Simply refers to the existing control of a superior body or office over a sub body or office.

2. MEDIA: It refers to any medium used to disseminate information.

3. FREEDOM OF MEDIA: Simply refers to the freedom attributed to the media in execution of their duties.

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