ROLES OF THE MASS MEDIA IN THE FIGHT AGAINST RELIGIOUS CRISIS
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ROLES OF THE MASS MEDIA IN THE FIGHT AGAINST RELIGIOUS CRISIS
Chapter one
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background for the Study
Religion has become a crucial indicator in almost all cultures around the world, catapulting socioeconomic, cultural, and political institutions for better or worse. Nigeria, like any multicultural community, includes a variety of religious movements and practices, including Islam, Christianity, and indigenous religions.
Before the colonial masters invaded the previously peaceful Nigeria, our forefathers were devout followers of the African Traditional Religion (ATR). The ATR was a belief and worship system that was free of acrimony, hatred, and strife. Fagan (1994) claimed that a stable society is one that places a high importance on religion.
Fredrick Lugard proposed combining the northern and southern protectorates for administrative purposes. In 1914, Nigeria established as a political and administrative entity, combining over 250 ethnic groups. Ironically, the merger has now become a threat to Nigeria’s peace, growth, and stability.
Although Nigeria has seen occasional pockets of religious conflict over the years, it reached an alarming scale when the country adopted democratic ideals in 1999.
As a multi-ethnic and religious institution, Christians and Muslims (the two largest religions in Nigeria) have long attempted to outwit one another in terms of belief, adherence, structure, and growth in relation to the Nigerian nation.
As a result, a level of fanaticism was injected into religious activity. Unfortunately, the so-called religion has recently been a source of conflict, instability, and bloodshed in Nigeria.
Today, there is a severe departure from religion’s essential ideals, caused by Nigeria’s worrisome religious crisis, which has resulted in the loss of lives and property. Rather than promoting peace, togetherness, and stability, religion has endangered the very fabric of Nigerian nationhood.
The religious divide in Nigeria has been particularly prominent in the mostly Moslem-dominated north. In 1985, there was a Moslem-Christian dispute in Gombe and Bauchi States; a religious riot in Kaduna, Kaduna State, involving Christians and Moslems; and in 1991, Bauchi riots disrupted the National Sports Festival, which was held in Bauchi State.
The realism of Nigeria’s religious conflicts drove former military dictator Gen. Babangida to label one of the religious riots as the “civilian equivalent of a coup” in a public broadcast.
The implementation of the Sharia legal code in Zamfara, Bauchi, Sokoto, and Kaduna states was motivated by the desire to strengthen the Islamic faith. This one reason exacerbated an already fragile relationship between Nigeria’s two largest faiths.
Religion has been the bane of most communities around the world, especially in the Middle East and portions of Asia. Africa has had its own share of religious battles over the years. In Nigeria, the Christian south wants Christ preached everywhere, and the predominantly Muslim north wants Nigeria Islamized.
Although religious leaders continue to believe that religion is the source of Nigeria’s unity, other social critics believe it is pulling the country apart. Maduagwu (1991) stated that religious conflict is the most deadly and sad event, and that any country that engages in it is unlikely to survive.
Religious intolerance has expanded geometrically since 1999, while tolerance has maintained its arithmetic amplitude. As a result, mainstream media, particularly print media, has focused on this issue.
1.2 Statement of Problem
The truth that religious differences breed animosity and prejudice is beyond doubt. Religious conflicts have been a recurring issue over the years, and every attempt to promote unity, peace, and growth in a multi-ethnic and religious community like Nigeria has failed to yield any results.
One crucial function of the press in any society is correlation, in which media coverage should be streamlined to unite disparate purposes, but this appears not to have been the case in Nigeria.
Furthermore, there are complaints from numerous sources that the media (particularly print) has been sensationalistic and biassed in its coverage of religious conflicts in the country.
Previously, the news media, particularly the print media, covered a variety of religious crises. Regardless, the expansion of the Nigerian media and its coverage of religious crises may not have achieved the anticipated results over the years, notably between 1999 and 2011, when religious crises reached their pinnacle in Nigeria.
There appears to be a theory linking religious crises to media coverage, however previous research has left the link ambiguous. The pattern of media coverage, as well as the extent to which the news media (particularly newspapers) have contributed to the reduction of religious crises in Nigeria, are challenging issues in socio-communication research, prompting this study in the first place. As a result
the researcher sets out to investigate the roles of the mass media in the fight against religious crises, using Dekina Local Government Area in Kogi State, Nigeria as a case study.
1.3 Objectives Of The Research
The overall or primary goal of this research is to look into the roles of mass media in the fight against religious crises, using Dekina Local Government Area in Kogi State, Nigeria as a case study. The precise aims include:
i) To identify the reasons of the religious crises in Nigeria.
ii) To identify the benefits of media journalism for society.
iii) Examine the media challenges of crisis reporting.
iv) Understand the prevalence of religious crisis in Nigeria.
1.4 Research Questions.
The following are some of the questions that this study aims to answer:
i) What are the causes of Nigeria’s religious crisis?
ii) What benefits does media reporting bring to society?
iii) What are the challenges for media coverage of Nigeria’s religious crisis?
iv) How prevalent is the religious crisis in Nigeria?
1.5 Significance of the Study
This study will set the tone for the media to prioritise national integration and religious tolerance as essential tasks of the new Nigerian media. As a result of this inquiry, both Nigeria’s print and broadcast media will better recognise their weaknesses and, as a result, will be able to work together to reduce religious crises in Nigeria.
The findings of this study will help to establish professionalism in future coverage of religious conflicts. Furthermore, this study will considerably advance the media/religious crises theory by identifying the extent to which media stories might feed or worsen religious crises in Nigeria.
As a result, the study will work to unbundle the hypothesis so that other scholars can reproduce or dispute it. More importantly, this research will considerably contribute to the literature, which will be valuable to communication teachers, social workers, academics, and researchers in other domains of learning, particularly those who plan to conduct similar studies in the near future.
1.6 Scope of Study
This study will look at how newspapers cover religious crises and the consequences they have on Nigeria’s socioeconomic and political fortunes. It entails doing a critical and evaluative examination of religious crises in Nigeria, as well as newspaper coverage of the same, with a focus on report direction, balance, use of visual illustrations, space allocation, and prominence of coverage during the study period.
1.7 Limitations of the Study
The improper and careless preservation of newspapers, magazines, and journals in Nigerian libraries has a significant negative impact on this study. It is not only difficult but also time-consuming for the researcher to compile all of the papers. These were challenges that the researcher encountered over the course of her investigation.
1.8 Definition of Terms
The following terms were utilised throughout this study:
Crisis: According to Francis (2006), a crisis occurs when multiple groups pursue irreconcilable interests and aims. This study focusses on a crisis of belief systems and faith in the Christian and Islamic religions, as well as Christian and traditional religious distinctions.
Media: Nigerian newspaper organisations that publish daily news. Daily Trust, The Guardian, The Sun, and The Nation newspapers were chosen for this study because they are national in scope, published daily, and are privately owned.
Media coverage: Every day, newspapers write reports on happenings.
Religious Crises: A blind and obsessed mental and psychological negative attitude towards religious beliefs and practices that contradict one’s treasured beliefs and practices, Ekwunife (1992).
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