THE INFLUENCE OF MASS MEDIA ON THE DEVELOPMENT AND PROMOTION OF NIGERIA UNIVERSITY GAME (NUGA)
ABSTRACT
This study was designed to determine the perceived impact of mass media as indices of development and promotion of Nigeria University games in Nigeria using The Sun Newspaper as a case study.
The purposive and random sampling techniques were adopted in selecting one hundred and fifty (150) respondents made up of sports journalists and stakeholders in the sports industry, descriptive research design with a self-structured questionnaire was used for data collection… (Scroll down for the link to get the Complete Chapter One to Five Project Material)
INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study
It is an undeniable fact that sports are a dependable tool for the development, health, and peace of a nation (Venkateswarlu, 2006a). The Federal Government of Nigeria realizes these potentials of sports to contribute to the national development when it emphasizes the need to promote sports in all sectors.
In its – strategic plan for the development of the education sector –(2011 – 2015), government-directed that sports participation should be encouraged at all levels of education through the provision of facilities, equipment and personnel for the promotion of health, development of skills, and socio-emotional wellbeing of all the age brackets in our educational institutions (Federal Ministry of Education, 2012).
In fact, the United Nations general assembly adopted a resolution 58/5 titled ―sports as a means to promote education, health, development, and peace. Furthermore, it proclaimed the year 2005 as the International Year of Sports and Physical Education and urged all nations of the world to take deliberate steps towards ensuring that sport is given a befitting place in their developmental program as a panacea for development (United Nations (UN), 2003; 2006).
In view of the established benefits of sports, Educational Institutions in Nigeria in adherence to the directives of the Federal Government have been encouraging students’ participation in different sporting activities through the provision of facilities, equipment training personnel, and opportunities of participation in various sporting competitions such as intra-mural and extra-mural schools sports as well as local, national and international competitions.
The main objectives of such participation are to promote the health, fitness, and performance of students (Ladani 2008; Venkateswarlu, 2006a). This has been especially evident in tertiary institutions in Nigeria, in which different types of intramural and extramural competitions are organized… (Scroll down for the link to get the Complete Chapter One to Five Project Material)
Statement of the Problem
The persistent attitude of students towards sports participation in Europe and the United States has been responsible for the development and promotion of Nigeria University games that led to good organization and participation in games and sports among institutions of higher learning in Europe and the United States between the sixteen and eighteenth centuries.
This attitude of European and American students toward sports has greatly influenced the general public participation in sports in the United States and European countries (Bitrus, 2005).
It is amusing that the university authorities who vehemently opposed anything to do with students participating in sports in the early centuries are now in the forefront encouraging university and college students to participate actively in sports… (Scroll down for the link to get the Complete Chapter One to Five Project Material)
Research Purpose
The purpose of this project work is to examine the role of the Nigeria mass media in the development and promotion of Nigeria University games. The study will examine the problems faced by the mass media in the country and will also look into the relationship between mass media and the sports agencies in the country… (Scroll down for the link to get the Complete Chapter One to Five Project Material)
LITERATURE REVIEW
Concept of Development/Sports development
Development is a broad term whose meaning is relative, what may be seen, as development in one quarter may not be the same in the other quarter. Anyebe (2001) observed that the term development is an elusive term meaning different things to different groups of social scientists.
Most would agree that development implies more than just a rise in real national income; that it must be a sustained secular rise in real income accompanied by changes in social attitudes and customs, which have in the past-impeded economic progress.
Rodney (1972) stated that development is a many-sided process. At the individual level, it implies increased skill and capacity, greater freedom, creativity, self- discipline, responsibility, and material well- being. At the level of social groups, development implies an increasing capacity to regulate both internal and external relationships.
Anyebe (2001) however, refers to development as the total transformation of a system; thus when used to describe a nation, it describes the transformation of the various aspects of the life of the nation. In fact, development implies a progression from a lower and often undesirable state to a high and preferred one.
From all these permutations about the concept of development, development can simply mean progressive change or improvement from the existing system… (Scroll down for the link to get the Complete Chapter One to Five Project Material)
History and development of Sports in Nigeria
According to Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (2010) there is evidence that sports existed in all parts of the world, some sports are unique to certain areas while there are also similarities in certain sports between different parts of the world. Africa and indeed Nigeria are no exception to this development.
Among the many games of North Africa was ta Kurt om el mahal (―the ball of the pilgrim’s mother‖), a Berber bat-and-ball contest whose configuration bore an uncanny resemblance to baseball. Koura, more widely played, was similar to football (soccer).
Cultural variation among black Africans was far greater than among the Arab peoples of the northern littoral. Ball games were rare, but wrestling of one kind or another was ubiquitous. Wrestling’s forms and functions varied from tribe to tribe. For the Nuba of old Central Sudan, ritual bouts, for which men’s bodies were elaborately decorated as well as carefully trained, were the primary source of male status and prestige.
The Tutsi and Hutu of Rwanda were among the peoples who staged contests between females. Among the various peoples of sub-Saharan Africa, wrestling matches were a way to celebrate or symbolically encourage human fertility and the earth’s fecundity… (Scroll down for the link to get the Complete Chapter One to Five Project Material)
Sports participation
Mass participation in sports simply means an increase in a nation‘s population in sport participation, which extends to the grassroots level. Grassroots sports, in this case, refer to sports participation at the lowest level of society.
The concept of sports participation dates back to the middle age era when great Greece and Roman empires were in dare need of developing a large army of able bodies to defend their territorial integrity.
This quest subsequently led to the establishment of schools or places where a large number of youths in their societies were trained to receive discipline and made physically fit through physical activities and sports (Roche, 1993)… (Scroll down for the link to get the Complete Chapter One to Five Project Material)
Sports in Nigeria Tertiary Institutions
Tertiary institutions in this context refer to post-secondary or higher institutions of learning that are found within the Nigerian nation. These institutions include universities, colleges of education, polytechnics, and other similar institutions that learning is offered at a higher level.
These institutions as per the practice in Nigeria are in most cases located at the out sketch of cities inhabited by rural communities or where the underprivileged people live because the large expense of land is always available for the future development of such institutions. However, the development that always accompanies the establishment of such institutions transforms these rural communities into urban areas with time.
A typical example is the establishment of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, and the transformation of Samaru village into a semi-urban center. The presence of the institution has transformed every aspect of the life of the community including their sporting culture. Up to date, the rural areas enjoy the privilege to have most of these institutions sited in their domain… (Scroll down for the link to get the Complete Chapter One to Five Project Material)
Theoretical Framework
Sport is one of the well-published issues in the Newspaper. Sport issues gain a lot of publicity and discussions in the media. The examples are numerous: thousands of football news articles depict the reactions of trainers to a particular event. Important soccer games are an everyday issue in TV channels.
New technologies are used everywhere in coverage of sports: tennis streaming video presents the particular strokes of favored tennis stars, such as Rafael Nadal and Maria Sharapova. In the days of serious matches, fans enjoy watching the game of their favored teams in tennis or football online. We might ask ourselves: what is the role the Mass Media plays in Sport?
One probable answer would be that the media successfully exploits the public need for entertainment. People have always felt the need to be entertained, starting from the days of gladiators, when the public’s general demand was to see people die in front of them in exchange for their money.
As the years went by, the forms of the entertainment changed and became less cruel, but the principle of the crowd asking for Panem et circuses (i.e. “bread and circuses”) remained the same. In this matter, sports news is the best possible entertainment, and watching sport online or on TV is the best possible way to witness the actual thing happening… (Scroll down for the link to get the Complete Chapter One to Five Project Material)
RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY
Introduction
This chapter deals with the method that was used in gathering pieces of information needed. Therefore, both primary and secondary data were put in place.
Research Design
Research design is a blue mass or manual at activities, which a researcher intends to follow in fully carrying out an investigation to his studies. In other words, it is a plan of events that guide this procedural trend of well – structured research work.
There are five essential elements, which constitute a good research design. The first of these elements have to do with sampling subjects with regards to this; the researcher has to indicate what is going to be the population.
The population of the Study
In research work, the concept of population is of fundamental importance the major reason which can be given for this is that research work is carried out to involve that element of animate and non–animate objects if a personal opinion cannot give a good rather not convincing enough because of personal prejudices and boasts, the aggregate of opinion makes conceptual issues… (Scroll down for the link to get the Complete Chapter One to Five Project Material)
RESEARCH FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION
Introduction
This chapter deals with the interpretation of the data collected at the end of the survey. The conclusion researched in the chapters on sampling information gathered from the questionnaires as administered during the field of study is presented. It summarizes the result, showing respondents carried in research projects and their responses to items under investigation in such a way that will aid the hypothesis. The analysis is purely hypothetical.
The data are collected and presented in tabular form showing both the frequency and their percentages. Section A of the questionnaire is based and as such are not assigned value. Section B is in general and as such is the weighted value assigned as such as weight their response and use it to form the basis of reduction made on this study.
Analysis of Personal Data of Respondents
Table 4.2.1 Sex distribution
| OPTION | NUMBER OF RESPONSE | PERCENTAGE (%) |
| Male | 76 | 63.33% |
| Female | 44 | 36.67% |
| Total | 120 | 100% |
The table shows that the respondent, 76 were male while 44 were female.
Table 4.2.2 Marital Status
| OPTION | NUMBER OF RESPONSE | PERCENTAGE (%) |
| Single | 55 | 45.83% |
| Married | 65 | 54.17% |
| Divorce | – | – |
| Total | 120 | 100% |
The table shows that 55 of the respondents were married while 65 were single.
Table 4.2.3 Age distribution
| OPTION | NUMBER OF RESPONSE | PERCENTAGE (%) |
| Under 25 years | 20 | 16.67% |
| 25 – 30 | 60 | 50.00% |
| 31 – 35 | 30 | 25.00% |
| 36 – 40 | 5 | 4.17% |
| 41 – 45 | 5 | 4.17% |
| 46 above | – | – |
| Total | 120 | 100% |
The table shows that 20 of the respondents are under 60 years of age 30 are within the age group of 25 – 30 years, 5 were within the age group of 31 – 35, and 5 is within the age group of 36 – 40 years… (Scroll down for the link to get the Complete Chapter One to Five Project Material)
Summary of the Findings
From the analyzed data, the following are the findings
Impact of Journalism on Awareness:
Through the activities of journalists, the awareness of a group of people in a subject matter could be raised through public service announcements; information in media publications, and linkages. Sports development is a collective responsibility of the people in a nation. But then, their contributions could only be obtained when they are sufficiently aware of what is going on. It is the function of sports journalists to report sports events and thereby create a reasonable awareness among the citizen… (Scroll down for the link to get the Complete Chapter One to Five Project Material)
SUMMARY, CONCLUSION, AND RECOMMENDATION
Conclusion
This study reveals the impact of journalism on awareness and spectatorship as indices of sport -development in Nigeria. The findings revealed that (a) Journalism had impacted on sports awareness in Nigeria and (b) Journalism had enhanced sports development through the increased turn-out of spectators at competition venues and arenas.
As revealed by the study, the respondents were of the view that being aware of the happenings in the field of sports has made it possible for them to change their perceptions and attitude towards sports issues. This is in total agreement with the saying that if people are not aware of your sports activities, then nothing is happening… (Scroll down for the link to get the Complete Chapter One to Five Project Material)
Recommendation
The implication of the outcome of this study is that sports journalism, through creating awareness and enhancing spectatorship, has impacted greatly on the rate of sports development in Nigeria. For sports journalism to further contribute to the development and promotion of Nigeria University games in Nigeria, and indeed
In Nigeria, elite athletes should be projected to enhance awareness and spectatorship… (Scroll down for the link to get the Complete Chapter One to Five Project Material)
BIBLIOGRAPHY
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