INFLUENCE OF OWNERSHIP IN RADIO NEWS COVERAGE IN NIGERIA
Abstract
This study was conducted to investigate the impact of ownership on radio new coverage. In Nigeria, there are two types of media ownership: private and government-owned, but the researcher focused on government-owned media because that is the researcher’s area of study.
The study’s goal is to determine the impact of ownership on radio news coverage in order to determine whether the news covered is oriented toward the owner’s interests or the public’s interests. Using questionnaires, a survey of the selected broadcasting stations’ news coverage was conducted over a two-week period.
The collected data were used to calculate the study’s frequency. The simple percentage method and chi-square were used to analyze the data. This was used to determine the study’s percentage prominence and degree of freedom in news coverage.
The analysis revealed that radio news coverage is heavily influenced by the owner’s (government), and the news covered is oriented toward the owner’s interests rather than the public’s. The study also demonstrates that the government has an impact on radio news coverage.
Based on the studies, recommendations were made that the government should interfere less in the operation of the station and focus on subvention and overall performance of the station as a tool for national developments covering news that is of people’s interest rather than the owner’s interest.
CHAPITRE 1
INTRODUCTION
1.1 The study’s context.
The mass media is a vital communication tool that allows information to be spread to even the most remote corners of the globe. They allow us to communicate with one another by overcoming time and space barriers. They serve the society in both primary and secondary capacities.
The media works in a variety of ways. First, mass media keeps us informed of events in our community and around the world that would otherwise go unnoticed.
The media also influences us, primarily through advertisements. As we can see, newspapers, magazines, radio, and television are all available.
In addition, the media provides us with entertainment. Television and radio broadcasting offer a wide range of programs that both educate and entertain us.
The media systems that exist in a society are inextricably linked to the political system that governs that society. The precise relationship between the media and the government is determined by the political system. The relationship between the media and the people is also influenced by the political system in place. It also determines the capacity with which the media will operate.
A country’s political system influences the flow of information in the country in which it operates. If, for example, a country’s political system is authoritative (i.e. military rule), there will be no free flow of information because the media will act in fear of the government and will cover the information that the government wants the people to be informed about, and the people of that country will continue to live in ignorance of their government’s activities. However, because Nigeria is a democratic society, the researcher will discuss the role of the media in a democratic society.
The role of the news media in a democratic society stems from the people’s right to learn about issues of public concern.
Nigerians, as citizens of a democracy, have the right to speak freely about the workings of government, as well as the right to debate government behavior and demand that policymakers defend their decisions. These rights are dependent on access to information.
People can only play a useful role in a democracy and hold their government accountable if they are well informed. In this context, the news media serves as a conduit as well as a watchdog. Freedom of expression also encourages a government to be accountable to its citizens. Indeed, thanks to advancements in Internet communications and mass media, governments have never been better able to answer directly to those who elect them.
However, people’s access to information is limited, so it is the job of the news media and journalists to provide accurate and concise information to the public so that they are kept up to date on the activities of their government and their environment. This brings us to the subject of broadcast management and media owners.
The distribution of audio and video content to a dispersed audience via radio, television, or other digital transmission media is known as broadcasting. Receiving parties may include the general public or a sizable subset of it. It is critical to note that broadcasting organizations provide a variety of services to their audiences.
Those offerings are referred to as programs of the organization; programs are artistic products packaged as tangible goods in an economic sense for consumption by an audience of a broadcast channel in the medium (Owuamalam, 2002).
Because radio is an audio-oriented medium, radio news programs are designed for the ears. It is considered an audiovisual medium, however, because the audience can see the programs and interpret them in their minds’ eye.
Broadcast management is the organization and control of a broadcasting organization’s affairs. The control of a broadcast management or media house has an impact on the content of news that is broadcast to the public. Also, the type of government policies/policies that the management will put in place.
Private ownership of media houses was not permitted until 1992, during the Babangida administration, when he was forced to establish the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), which successfully licensed private individuals to participate in broadcasting due to mounting agitation and pressure. This leads us to the topic of media ownership.
When A. J. Liebling, a US media pundit, wrote that freedom of the press belongs to those who own one, he summed up the emotion that distinguishes the media business from almost any other. Today’s press, or mass media, stands for more than just the ability to cover information; it also stands for the assumed ability to shape attitudes, opinions, and beliefs.
The media serves as a vehicle for both education and propaganda. Who controls these outlets and what the players intend to do with them have been contentious issues since at least the 15th century. When both the church and the state recognized the printing press’s potential and sought to control it.
As Edeani (1985) pointed out, the pattern of media ownership has become central to the discussion of class media and society.
“The nature of ownership of any press system determines to a large extent whether that press is dynamic, vigorous, responsive, and responsive; or an emasculated, timid, spineless, ineffective, or irresponsible press.”
However, there are three major types of media ownership: government ownership, private ownership, and mix ownership.
However, the researcher will be constrained by government and private media ownership.
The fact that the medium is owned by the government implies that it is entirely financed by the government. The government owns NRCN (Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria) and NTA (Nigerian Television Authority), among others; the government not only finances the media house, but also encrypts policies for the media and assists in their implementation.
The government examines news content and news programs to see if they agree with their policies and what they (the government) desire. Furthermore, any news that the government does not want the public to know about that is in the news content will be removed by the government.
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Furthermore, the government exerts further control over the media through their decision to invest or not invest. The government’s interest will be reflected in the appointment of qualified personnel.
Private ownership, on the other hand, refers to the situation in which individuals (either a single person or a group of people) establish, finance, and manage a media organization.
AlT (African Independent Television), MINAJ BROADCAST, SILVER BIRD, and other privately owned media houses or organizations are examples. The key variable, whether a station is government or privately owned, is listenership and viewership; what the audience wants should be balanced with what the broadcast believes they should hear.
Influence, on the other hand, is both external and internal, owing to the media organization’s nucleus of interdependence or coexistence. According to Shoemaker and Rees (1991), there are many established groups that frequently influence the message of broadcast and print media. This category includes proprietor influences, leadership influences, and house policy.
In Nigeria and elsewhere, there is a common adage about media control that has become a cliché: “he who pays the piper calls the tune.” This means that media owners organize, channel, and control what the media covers (reports on), broadcasts, and how they broadcast it.
It is undeniably true that media owners wield dangerous control over the press, regardless of whether the media is managed by a board of directors appointed by private owners or by a public corporation established by the government. The board of directors also establishes policies for the media. The policies define the operations in the short and long term.
1.2 Statement of the problem
Most news coverage in Nigeria is determined by the organization’s owners and gatekeepers. These owners are those in charge of the government’s affairs, and the gate keepers, like the ruling government, take orders from the owners. The management of radio stations, as well as various news editors and news and program producers, are among their ranks. In Nigeria, the philosophy of any media operation is determined by the government in power. The goal of this study is to investigate the impact of leadership decisions on radio news coverage.
Second, consider how these decisions can benefit the public. Third, how to persuade the government to intervene less in the running of the station’s affairs in their own self-interest rather than the public’s.
The right news coverage decision and programming can lead to the radio station’s success. Whatever the practice in Radio Nigeria (FRCN), the federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria, the influence of leadership and gate keeping on programs is still present, and if not handled well, it can greatly impair the success of any program, which is what the research is attempting to discover.
It is hoped that the responses received will assist the researcher in making some observations and policy proposals that will aid in resolving the current problems of radio news coverage in FRCN, if ever.
1.3 The Study’s Objectives
This study aims to accomplish the following goals:
1. Determine the impact of ownership or leadership on FRCN Enugu’s radio news coverage.
2. Determine whether the radio news covered (coverage) is oriented toward the public or the owner.
3. Determine the impact of gatekeepers on radio news coverage.
To make recommendations in likely areas of recommendation and improvement.
1.4 Research Questions
If the following questions are correctly answered, the research objectives will be met.
1. How much influence does the media have on news coverage?
2. To what extent is the pattern of news people’s or owners’ interest oriented?
3. How much influence does the gatekeeper have on radio news coverage?
What are the suggested areas for improvement and recommendation?
1.5 Research Proposal
The following hypothesis will assist the researcher in carrying out her research more efficiently and will provide her with more focus and an agenda.
Ho: Ownership or leadership has no effect on radio news coverage.
H1: The ownership or leadership of a media company has an impact on radio news coverage.
Ho: The news coverage of FRCN Enugu is not oriented toward the owner’s interests, but rather toward the interests of the people.
H2: FRCN Enugu’s news coverage is oriented toward the interests of the owners rather than the interests of the people.
1.6 Importance of the Research
The FRCN was chosen over radio stations because of its importance in Nigeria. Perhaps, as it is frequently stated to be Africa’s largest radio network, it has been a relying point for people (listeners) to hear during prime listening time. Nigerians are paying close attention to the news story on network period.
In terms of reach, FRCN is thought to have surpassed all other radio stations. The ultimate significance of this study will be determined by its final utility and ability to influence current policies regarding how, where, and what news to cover for Nigerians).
1.7 Term Definitions in Operational Context
1. Influence: refers to the impact of government ownership or leadership on FRCN Enugu news coverage.
2. Media: the media are communication tools. FRCN, as a mass medium, tries to see how it functions, whether it performs all of the functions of a medium without bias from its owners or leaders.
3. Ownership: the legal right to possess something is referred to as ownership.
The ownership of a media house, particularly the ownership of the FRCN station Enugu, manipulates the station’s performance, news coverage, and other programs.
4. News Coverage: this entails gathering data and information (news) to be covered. Also, to determine whether the news covered is geared toward the general public or the government.
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INFLUENCE OF OWNERSHIP IN RADIO NEWS COVERAGE IN NIGERIA
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