An Assessment Of Mass Media And The Management Of Human Rights In Nigeria

An Assessment Of Mass Media And The Management Of Human Rights In Nigeria

Chapiter 1

Introduction

1.1 The Study’s Background

Since gaining independence, the Nigerian political entity has persisted in various forms. Particularly with military leaders who have been forced to rule through decrees, suspending the constitution that protects citizens’ basic human rights, Ellinas, A. (2010). It is clear from there that when people’s rights are not protected, the fundamental purpose of government—to serve the interests of the people—is thwarted. Indeed, authoritarian leadership has not improved the situation for human rights, since abuse has been repeatedly documented, even in an odd way by the media.

This is where the role of the mass media comes into play, as it helps the government and the governed learn more about their various rights and restrictions, which are enshrined in the federal republic of Nigeria’s constitution, though only when the government is democratically elected. A society cannot be claimed to be free in the true meaning of the word if its members cannot be assured the protection of their fundamental human rights. (2002) Cohen-Almagor, R.

Human rights violations have always been brought to the public’s attention through the mass media. However, there are times when human rights violations are particularly difficult for the media to handle, either because of tribal or religious sentiment or direct ownership intervention. L. Henny (2012). Unfortunately, in these situations, the people whose rights have been violated receive the short end of the stick. Human rights violations should be able to be adequately handled by the mass media as they emerge in society. L. Henny (2012). Taking into account the fact that they frequently determine the topics of public discussion. They ought to be able to tell what should be known and what shouldn’t be known during the process. The people are apathetic and, as Plato emphasised, “they look up to the leaders of the state to say what goes” in that situation, since they seek to delegate the responsibility of defining the agenda to the government. Despite the mass media’s incapacity to always control human rights violations in Nigeria, they have occasionally predicted the actions of human rights organizations in the past, which has resulted in a crackdown on its members. L. Henny (2012).

Statement of the research problems, in paragraph 1.2

Human rights should only be intentionally violated since doing so is against nature and animalistic, while upholding them should be done out of moral obligation. Sadly, despite the efforts of human rights activists and organizations, there is barely a leader or location on earth’s surface where human rights are not being flagrantly abused with impunity. In actuality, human rights are being infringed upon throughout the world. Social instability, racial discrimination, extrajudicial executions, prejudice, forced sterilization, the sale of children, trafficking of women and children, sexual harassment, genocide, war crimes, and other violations fall under this category. There are very few countries or leaders that are not included, as was before mentioned.

1.3.1 Purpose Of The Study

1. The goal of this study is to determine how well Nigerian mass media has handled violations of human rights.

ii. It attempts to put the Mass Media’s management of violations of human rights in the proper perspective.

iii. The purpose of this study is to determine whether religious and ethical factors influence how cases of violations of human rights are handled by the mass media in Nigeria.

iv. The last step is to determine whether the ownership aspect affects how human rights violations are handled in Nigeria.

1.4 Questions For Research

The following are the numerous inquiries that this study seeks to address:

i. Has Nigeria’s mass media been successful in controlling breaches of human rights?

ii. Has reporting on violations of human rights been uncensored?

How have government policies impacted the reporting of violations of human rights?

iv. Are ethnic and religious considerations in Nigeria accountable for the administration of the mass media organization?

v. In Nigeria, is the mass media impartial in its reporting?

We can claim with certainty that professionalism will improve if these questions are answered objectively. It would have been as a result of the myriad issues that have beset the field. Resolved, assisting in the creation of unbiased and fair reporting on Nigeria’s human rights issues.

1.5 Relationship To Other Studies

This study aims to raise awareness of the advantages of the mass media’s efficient management of human rights in Nigeria. Additionally, it would improve media players’ understanding of their role in the effective and efficient reporting of violations of human rights in Nigeria. Additionally, it will now inform the Mass Owners about the restrictions on their ability to tamper with news reporting.

1.6 The Study’s Scope

In this study, the management of human rights in Nigeria will be evaluated in relation to the media.

Limitations of the study: 1.7

This study project has no limitations. The problem of acquiring materials for the project stood out among them. The lengthy process was made more difficult by the staff members of the media houses that were visited’s nonchalant, or should I say uncooperative, attitude.

The second limitation was time. I didn’t really have enough time to gather enough information because I had other classwork and tasks to complete.

Financial limitations made things worse. Finance really constrained my ability to converge because I was unable to move about much. I was therefore forced to reduce my intensity or scope in order to accommodate other schedules.