CHAPTER ONE
1.1 INTRODUCTION
Newspaper since inception, was society’s primary instrument of mass communication. It was for a long time, the chief instrument by which the people learnt of each other, debates the problems which troubled them and spoke their minds on public issues. Today, however, it shares the communication spectrum with radio, television and magazines. The earlier method of spreading news included public announcements by town criers, the posting of proclamation and the circulation of newsletters. There are national newspapers, local newspapers. magazines, comic pamphlets and journals. All quoted by Hyndi (1972).
Newspaper are published periodically, usually daily, weekly, monthly quarterly, annually to convey news information and opinion.
Newspapers own their origin to three major factors – the people’s desire to know about themselves, their government and their economy. Thus, the earliest newspapers were meant to acquaint communities with chronicle of their commerce and industry, Hynds (1972).
“A community needs news said and English author for the same reason that a man needs eyes.”
Throughout the history of journalism, the three-fold demand of the public for news itself, its government and its commerce had given the newspaper its function in the society.
Years back, newspaper covers such areas as sport, crimes, sciences, news and disaster. Newspaper also report arts, politics, woman and children special events of human interest in order to keep people in formed interest in order to keep people informed of happenings in their environment.
Also, various print media houses have published sport stories in their national newspaper this therefore does not revealed that the sport pages allotted to newspaper especially the tribune newspaper which is our main focus in this research work.
Daramola (2003:……) in his book Introduction to mass communication 2003 said “Newspaper are basically local media and specified newspapers that are closely identified with the communities in which they are published, nation advertisers used newspaper primary for sport coverage of top market which can be secured through the use of multiple newspaper.”
Newspaper, unlike transistor radio, enjoys the great advantage of portability. They can be carried almost anywhere, read anywhere, supplied at the reading point such as library, waiting room, reception hall, home, offices, taken along while travelling or read while eating. They can also be carried to places beyond the reach of the electronic media but to which level are people heading to the Nigerian Tribune Sport page?
In Nigeria and other developing countries, educated members of family and community leaders may take newspaper to their village or towns with the hope of reading translating them to the illiterate relatives.
Meanwhile, sports pages of Tribune Newspaper, which has not been to remote discovered to be part of newspaper pages for making the publication of the particular print media houses complete, will be the major focus in this project
Moreso, the readership of sports pages of Nigerian Tribune among students (The Polytechnic, Ibadan - (Scope of the study), Adeseun Ogundoyin Campus, Eruwa) will thoroughly x-ray so as to ascertain of how actually tribune sport pages have effect on the readers, especially the students of Mass Communication Department of The Polytechnic, Ibadan, Adeseun Ogundoyin Campus, Eruwa.
