ABSTRACT

        This study was carried out to determine the newspaper readership pattern among youths.  This arose because it was thought that the youth did not read newspapers and their use of other media was minimal.

        Against the background of seemingly lack of readership among the youth.  Questionnaires draw administered to ascertain the extent of reading habit formed by this group.

        The student of the Institute of Management and Technology, Enugu were used as a focus.  This  was a good sample as the they represent the youth found all over the country.

They  all experience similar socio-economic dilemma.  They also face similar financial as well as education problems experienced in the nation.  250  respondents were sampled randomly and data analyzed and presented as percentages in frequency distribution tables.  The work traced the reading habit found among the youth.  Researcher questions and hypothesis were used a guide for analysis and conclusion respecting.

        The work reviewed other literature on the topic and found out what their results were the conclusions down were based both on other related work of literature and the results gathered from the  questionnaire.  The result showed that there were indeed readership patterns among the youth

The showed that students read newspaper and they also bought majority of respondents bought or read.  Result also showed that students who bought were both more financially and academically favoured than others that had lower reading habit.  It was also  found out that sex was no barrier to who read and what was read.  The female students read more than the male student  but they both read the same content in their favourite newspapers.  Male youths read entertainment news in equal proportion with the female youth.  There was also equal reading proportion in contents that have to do end at the study, recommendations were made about activities that will help the youth develop readership and use pattern for the newspaper and other media. 

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1      BACKGROUND OF STUDY

The population explosion of youth in Nigeria generally has

been a cause of interest to economists as they study consumerism.

        This branch of economics helps in understanding consumer patters.

        Communication, as old as man, being what it is, is very vital to the growth and development of the psych0-social make-up of man.  This in turn equips man in fitting into healthy patterns, modeled for definite objectives in national polity.

        The background against which thus study  is being get up include; issues like literacy level, interest in role of newspapers (Newspaper Consciousness) for the development of man, factors that  influence choice/preference of man,  factors that influence choice/preference of news contents, sex dependent variables among the study of age brackets etc.  it is in view of this that a remote understanding of the history and principles of communication is vital to this study.

        Since the existence of man varying forms of communication have been invented or rediscovered.  These include interpersonal, group public and mass communication, each characterized by peculiar and channels of information dissemination.  The channel have further been modified and divided inter radio, books etc.

The Newspaper being one modified channel of information dissemination present the element of research for this study.  Newspaper with its vital role to the development of man has undergone changes in both content and form as to satisfy man’s consciousness in search of information.  It is worthy to mention that information massages in newspaper are structural to the readership pattern of the cross section of the society.

        The mechanics of communication which include picture, cartoons and literate information become a remote but powerful factor  in creating on interesting pool from which a  semi-pattern consequently emerges.

        The principle of communication applied in this work emphasizes only on the laws of efficient communication, some of which are good grammer and syntax, appropriate use of literary devices that are not etc.

        The above subject quickly recommends themselves to the intelligence quittance of any readership.  This  form the determinant in newspaper consciousness as it is well understood that over and above poriny at payees of contents is fundamental to habit forming.  A highly literate  as well as versed section of the society can literally was the seemingly meaningless black print into a fabric of pleasure b because of level of exposure to the element of literary appreciation.

        In the present work, the word readership-pattern in understood as the cross section of the society  that find time out of interest and habits to indulge in the act of gathering information from newspapers.  This understanding is only elementary as further into the work readership assumes a wider scope.  The present study will seek to comparatively the subject matter from the background of more complex definition. In view of this, readership among the youth in general and students of Institute of Management and Technology, Enugu  in particular, presents a particular, phenomenon that arouses interest. 

        More serious emphasis is laid on habit orientated readership pattern- a pattern which is sustaining.  This is not to say that this readership pattern influence positively than this demand and supply curve.  In fact both readership patterns confine with a complex.  And this is what actually influences the demand and supply.

        An easily recognizable or predictable trend creates comparisons which are made to create a model hypothesis that will help in decision making. Last but not the least, comparative are here refere to relationship existing between under studied elements from the background of stocktaking.

        In comparative presented in this work, comparison model have been created are got.

        The following are the comparison models employed in this work:

(a)        Sex oriented comparison model.

(b)        Age oriented comparison model

(c)         Finance oriented comparison model

(d)        Education oriented comparison model

(e)        Popular trend oriented comparison model

(f)          Political oriented comparison model

(g)        Religious conviction oriented comparison model

A.     SEX ORINTED COMPARISON MODEL

           There is no point in doubting the fact the, gender goes a long way to determine emotional responses to news content.  It is in view of this that study seeks to investigate the determining factors that make a particular sex to be more or less responsive to male-female ration among the students readership will be determine and critically studied.

B.     AGE ORIENTED COMPARISON MODEL:

From an earlier assertion, the age brackets have been defined

among which this study is to be undertaken namely.

        16 to 26 years to discover the more responsive age group among these brackets.  A bird view of the problem anticipated under this model is that hypothetically, the upper age bracket appears to be more responsive for seasons that may be stated from the questionnaire whereas lower group for other peculiar reasons hypothetically may be less responsive to reading of newspapers.

C.     FINANCE ORIENTED COMPARISON MODEL

        It is no secret in economics that as people’s spending powers grow with their standard at living; they can more easily afford to indulge in less “necessaries”.  If will not be out place for a hungry man to spend his last Nzo for a lunch than by buy a newspaper and go hungry.  This becomes more acute with students who always run budget-line.

D.     EDUCATION ORIENTED COMPARISM MODLE.

All things  being equal, the more educated one is, the easier it is 

for him to appreciate as well as extracting information from the newspaper

        hence one’s level of education, in this case, the student goes a long way to determine and habit in newspaper indulgence.

E.     POPULAR TREND ORIENTED COMARISON MODEL

        This is a less serious model as it is not sustaining.  Nevertheless, when its cycle come up, it can be quite impressive.

        By trend, we mean a particular response due to a bias in society.  An example of trend could be seen in old early country Newspaper pictures of the English gentry where it is fashionable and popular to take snapshots with newspaper or folding.

E.     POLITICS ORIENTED COMPARISON MODEL

        Nationalism and patriotism can compel ardent readership from patriots as they prefer their own local newspaper to better produced but foreign newspapers.

        It is under such a model that we see customer ship done to certain newspaper that advance the cause of independence.

G.     RELIGIOUS CONVICTION ORIENTED MODEL

        Under this model, we find people who for one religious conviction or the other prefers some kind of news content in a newspaper.  Which presence may persuade or dissuade them from doing custom to newspaper publishers.

1.2        STATEMENT OF THE RESEARCH PROBLEM

Researcher is done to identify a problem.  Hence the identification these problems gives direction to research works in this case the problems that led us into research are media

1.           Media illiteracy as an impediment to Newspaper consumption among Nigerian youths.

2.           financial difficulty that are facing Nigerian youth which in turn stand as an obstacle to Newspaper consumption.

3.           the problem associated with the reading habit among Nigeria youths.

1.3        OBJECTIVE OF STUDY.

The aim embarking on this study was promoted by an observation made by earlier researchers that the youths are generally not information conscious and it is only the males among the youths, that try at all to obtain information, specifically through the print media like newspapers.

        This study wants to know if summaries and conclusions of other works are also applicable to youths with lugh level at educational exposure.  The work wants to find out if the new socio-economic status of the females, their new political awareness orientations has affected their readership pattern.

        It also aims at finding out if it only the female youths that still read entertainment and family based materials in newspaper or if the males have been affected by changes in the society and why their sudden interest.

1.4        SIGNIFICANCE OF STUDY

The result of this study will help editors editor of different newspapers to know the demography of their audience.  With the results obtained, they will know what material to retain or remove from their news content. The study will help to find out the problems they youth grapple with, that have made them lose interest in bunny and reading newspaper.  It will also help editors know how to reach out the young generation so as to create good reading habit in them.  The project will help editors know how to reach out the young generation so as to create good reading habit in them.  The project will help editors and publishers know the psychological disposition information dissemination.   1.5        RESEARCH QUESTIONS. 1.           Do educational and financial positions affect newspaper readership among youth/ 2.           Do male youth read more newspapers than female youths? 3.           Do female youths and more of entertainment news than male youths? 4.           Does age affect newspaper readership among Nigerian youth?   1.6        RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS 1.           Hi Educational and Financial positions affect newspaper readership among youths. Ho: Education and financial position do not effect newspaper readership among youths. 2.           H2:        Male youths are more newspaper readers than male youths. Ho:        Female youths are more newspaper readers than male youths. H3:        Female youths read entertainment material than female youths. Ho:        Male youths read entrainment material than female youths. H4:        Age as a factor affect newspaper readership among the youths. Ho:        Age as a factor is not affecting newspaper readership among the youths. Does age  affect newspaper readership among the youths?   CONCEPTUAL AND OPERATIONAL

1.7    DEFINITION CONCEPTUAL DEFINITION OF TERMS:

PATTERN:  A way, in which something happens, moves, develops, or is arranged.

NEWSPAPER:     A part printed daily or weekly containing news material.

READERSHIP:    the number or type of readers of a Newspaper, magazine, etc or of a  particular writer

YOUTH:     The time when a person is young, especial the time before the child becomes an adult.

SEX:This means being male or female.

NEWSPAPER CONTENT:      subject matter in Newspaper.

OPERATIONAL DEFINITION

Newspaper:       The printed dailies e.g punch, daily champion, vanguard,

sum etc

Pattern:     The level consumption (e.g daily, weekly, occasional etc.

Youth:       Relating to the age that consumed the newspaper, e.g 16-

25, 25-30 year etc

Newspaper Content:   These are contained in the volume of news,

articles, adverts, Arts, fashion, foreign news

etc

YOUTH:     This word includes children and young person of both sexes.  It also involves status classification of children and young adults.

SEX:This means differences that exist between male and female.  This term as well means the sum total at characteristics, which distinguish male from female.

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