The Punch And Guardian The Newspapers Coverage Of Terrorism In Nigeria

The Punch And Guardian The Newspapers Coverage Of Terrorism In Nigeria

Abstract

This study delved the Punch and Guardian journals ’ content of terrorism January and June 2009. The study employed the docket setting proposition and the social responsibility proposition of communication as the theoretical frame for the study. The content analysis exploration design was espoused with the aid of a 3- content orders rendering distance. The sample comprised of 156 review issues published across four months by the two named Nigerian domestics including the Punch and The Guardian journals. Data generated were analysed with the aid of frequence Tables and simple probabilities through the rendering distance. Findings of the study revealed that the Nigerian journals gave acceptable content to reports on terrorism; despite the fact that utmost of the stories published by the journals on the issue were published on the aft runners of the journals making it feel as if elevation wasn’t accorded the reportage on terrorism. thus, the study concludes that since utmost of the runners devoted to the reportage on terrorism in the journals were placed on the aft runners, the story may not have gained the justified attention from the members of the society. The study still, recommends that journals operation should round the high content they give to issues that affect the society by featuring news stories on similar issues in prominent runners similar as the frontal runners to gain the due and justified attention from the members of the society.

Chapter One

Background of Study

In the once five to six times or further, terrorism has continued to assume more complex and worrisome dimension, not only in Nigeria but across the globe. This trend has posed serious trouble to the security of lives and parcels. Acholonu( 2012) argues that the frequence of terrorism across the globe are pointers of global peril. The frequentness of terrorism indicate that the world moment is growing more insecure for humans.

Afowowe( 2012) opines that terrorism has continued to claim the lives of millions and destroys property worth billions. Ofomegbe and Orittesesan( 2012) describe terrorism as conditioning that involve the use of violent acts with the intention to produce fear( terror) in the society. It’s executed to achieve a religious, political or ideological thing or ideal. The use of violence to produce fear is generally targeted atnon-combat or military labor force, who are civilians and substantially affected by terrorism. Throughout mortal history, there have been innumerous pitfalls to the security of mortal lives. In recent time, these pitfalls have continued to lead to destruction of mortal life and parcels, while the society dodge ruinous loss.

While all this takes place, the mass media which include journals have been described to be effective in carrying out juggernauts and public mindfulness to help members of the society to defy problems which affect their societal life and actuality. Asemah( 2011) avers that review as an arm of the mass media play necessary places in the society in this direction as it serves as agent of tremendous change with strong influence on mortal conditioning. The influence of journals cut across economics, politics, health and education. In March 28, 2018, the Punch Newspaper on pg. 20, had a Letter to the Editor named Dapchi girls ’ hijacking Some unanswered questions.

Temofeh( 2017) argues that through review reports on acts of terrorism, members of the society have been kept abreast of the conditioning of the terrorists. In Guardian Newspaper report in March 8, 2018, the news story on pg. 5, named Why insurrection may not end soon, by Fayose, is a good illustration to illustrate how review reports on acts of terrorism, give information on terrorism to the followership.

Acholonu( 2012) observes that while terrorism is getting a common circumstance across the globe, mass media channels similar as the journals are responsible for bringing the conditioning and objects of terrorists to the attention of members of the society. For case, In March 7, 2018, the Punch Newspaper on pg. 40, had a news story named Boko Haram no longer a serious fighting force, says Buhari. journals serve the part of watch tykes in the society and are considered major stakeholders in bringing about positive change and valuere-orientation among the members of the society. Through review reports, information, knowledge or ideas are enhanced in the society. These reports also transmit information and ideas which fight the objects of terrorists in the society as the places of the journals in the society include; conformation of heart, advocacy and mobilisation. The Punch Newspaper in March 7, 2018, had a Letter to the Editor on pg. 18, named result to Nigeria’s security challenges.

Information circulated through review reports have the capacity to foster social change and helped foster the docket of those who partake analogous pretensions with it. Anaeto, Solo- Anaeto and Tejumaiye( 2009) and Imoh( 2007) argue that journals are applicable to the society in the sense that they inform the public by supplying data, opinions, statistics, prints and illustrations on issues, events or miracle that affect the society. journals have the capacity to educate, members of the society on issues that hang their social actuality, by going beyond the introductory data to in- depth analysis through opinions pieces, point stories, columns and studies. Through all these, journals give records of mortal conditioning and events in the society. A good illustration to illustrate the give records of mortal conditioning and events in the society, is the Guardian Newspaper features composition in March 8, 2018, pg. 45, named How instability is ruining education in Nigeria.

Acholonu( 2012) argues that through journals reports and content on terrorism, people’s opinions and passions on terrorism are shaped and told in the society. journals relay ways and gests which enable members of society more estimate their own social conditions as humans. Ahuja( 1997) cited in Tejumaiye and Adelabu( 2007) opines that journals ply believable influence in the conformation of knowledge and combined action against problems defying the society. journals give information to members of the society and the further information members of the society get from the journals, the further they interested they come in the issues being reported.

Temofeh( 2017) avers that the journals also play the part of docket setting in their content of acts of terrorism. This easily explains that through journals content on terrorism members of the society can be directed on how to handle the issues relating to terrorism. A typical illustration that better illustrate the docket setting part of the journals in reporting acts of terrorism is a news story in the Guardian Newspaper in April 7, 2018, where a report monp. 6, was captured Okoh Kicks Against Amnesty for Boko Haram Member.

In several other cases, journals have fallen short of its part as trols in the society. Tejumaiye and Adelabu( 2011) aver

While it’s hard to conclude their positive benefactions overweigh their negative bones andvice-versa, numerous internal and external problems have agonized the Nigerian mass media including journals. The problems range from harsh profitable terrain, harsh political and social terrain, intimidation, assassination, check importunity, outright ban, low professionalism, poor remuneration system, unfriendly legal terrain, power manipulations, incapacity, and poor adherence to professional ethics and norms. All of these have contributed to the nearly lack of purpose for the Nigerian mass media. For case, the government possessed mass media is presumed on not smelling the fritters that feed them numerous private stations that are supposed to be critical and unprejudiced in their views have been compromised by power influence and sectional interests.

In similar moments, journals have been indicted to serve the interests of their guarantors and advertisers with little or no concern for the public interests, as the hunt to make profit or serve the retired docket of a select, which in utmost cases are top in their scale of preference. The Guardian Newspaper in March 8, 2018 on pg. 12, had a classical illustration suggesting how review served the retired docket of a select in their content Nigeria, EU, UNODC Renew Commitments Against Terrorism.

Acholonu( 2012) notes that review reportage on terrorism exerts considerable influence in either bridling the trend or in encouraging the acts of terrorism in the society. This is because when mass media channels like the journals engage in reporting terrorism, they perform not only the function of dispersion of information but also a tool to advance the objects of terrorists. A good illustration to illustrate how the journals content exerts considerable influence in either bridling the trend or in encouraging the acts of terrorism in the society is The Punch Newspaper report in March 8, 2018 pg. 3, where it was reported that Okah, Nwabueze, bag life imprisonment for Independence Day bombing.

Having established the considerable influence review reports have in the society, this study seeks to probe the extent to which journals content influence terrorism in Nigeria.

Statement of Problem

Nigerian journals apply considerable influence in the society as it serves as channel through which members of the society are informed, educated, enlightened and mobilised to take part in conditioning in the society. journals have the power to direct public attention and map the way in defying certain issues. This is apparent in the docket- setting function of the mass media.

Through its content, journals also perform the status conferral function. As similar, journals report on terrorism can accord status or credibility to acts of terror in similar fashion where members of the society are either encourage or discourage from supporting similar acts. Over the times, journals have proven to have the capacity to produce mindfulness, accelerate information inflow and mobilise members of the society to take part in conditioning which the journals play up before them. thus, to what extent has journals reports on terrorism influence Nigerians to either support or join the fight against terrorism?

Objects Of The Study

The main objects of this study are;

To find out the position of elevation the named Nigerian journals gave to the terrorism.

To ascertain the magnitude of reportage accorded to stories on terrorism by the journals.

To point out the direction on terrorism which were stressed by the journals.

Exploration Questions

The following questions were formulated for this study

What position of elevation did the named Nigerian journals gave to acts of terrorism?

What magnitude of content did the review gave to stories on terrorism?

What direction/ slant on terrorism were stressed by the journals?

Significance of the Study

The issue raised by this study is of immense benefits to achieving globe security, especially towards achieving the security of lives and parcels across the globe and particularly in Nigeria. Across the globe, further elevation seems to be accorded to issues on terrorism especially in countries similar as Nigeria where there’s upsurge in the acts of terror daily. journals while performing its docket- setting part in the society, also serve as platforms or channels through which issues that affect the society are stressed. thus, the outgrowth of this study would be useful to Nigeria as well as the world at large, as state actors across the globe continue to unite in chancing common ground to exclude the monster called terrorism.

This study would be of immense benefit to scholars of Mass Communication and scholars of journalism in advanced institutions of literacy. It’ll also profit mass media organisations in understanding the conception of communicating information that affect the security of mortal lives and safekeeping of parcels since it’s only through journals, which are aspects of the mass media, that members of the society get informed on issues that affect their social living.

Meanwhile, scholars of Mass Communication in other advanced institutions and all those who wish to conduct farther exploration in this area would also find the outgrowth of this study useful as it would serve as a precious reference material in the future.

Compass of Study

This study focuses on the journals reports on terrorism. Since every exploration has its time and limit, the compass of this study is the review reportage or content of terrorism between January and June 2018.

thus, this study will cover journals reports on issues relating to terrorism between January and June 2018 and appreciate the extent of the journals content on the issues of terrorism. Two Nigerian journals were named to include The Punch Newspaper and Guardian Newspaper. These journals were chosen intentionally owing to their rotation strength, vacuity, wide readership as well as wide range of content on issues of public interest similar terrorism.

Limitation of the Study

The major limitation for this study was the time it took the experimenter to take over the manifest contents of the named journals, couple with the fact that the experimenter was alsopre-occupied with other academic conditioning similar as lectures, and other forms of assignments during the period of accepted the study.

Functional Delineations Of Terms

Communication This is the process of sharing of information which includes five introductory factors an generator; a philanthropist; a vehicle or channel; a communication and an effect. The generator designs or encodes the communication and transfer the communication through the vehicle with the intent of stimulating an effect.

Coverage Coverage refers to the quantum or summation of news and information handed by the journals on issues through its contents over a specific period. It can also be defined as the way the Nigerian journals reported or gave account of issues pertaining to terrorism.

journals journals are written publications containing published news and information on issues periodically published daily. It refers to the journals that covered and reported about the issues relating to terrorism in Nigeria.

publish media The print media refers to the channels of communication that present information on paper, published, published medium similar as journals and magazines as opposed to the broadcast media.

elevation elevation refers to the position or dimension to which journals placed on a given issues or news item that affect the society.

Security communication Security communication refers to the study and practice of communicating with the end of promoting or furnishing security information that will impact the socio- frugality development of the society.

Society Also refers to as a social system consists of a collaborative people who take over different types of tasks to achieve common pretensions and break common problems.

Terrorism This refers to the use of violence by groups in a society to produce demons through acts of destruction and sabotage of mortal lives and parcels.

Theoretical Framework

The theoretical frame for this exploration is erected around the docket setting proposition and the social responsibility proposition of communication.

docket Setting proposition

The docket setting proposition is a proposition of mass communication that provides explanation on how the media through its programmes and contents purposely and unconsciously list, plan or outline effects, events or issues to be considered. The media according to the presumption of this proposition set docket for the public to follow through their content of issues, events or effects in the society. The mass media achieve this by fastening attention or pressing silent issues in the society through their content thereby making people to suppose along that line. The mass media according to the presumption of the proposition of docket setting play their cans and in the process the members of the society begin to dance to the tune of the music played by the media. The mass media in acting as docket setters to the members of the society, the mass media may not tell the members of the society what to suppose about but what to suppose about. ”

Considering this, McQuail( 2010), posits that the term “ docket setting ” was a concoction of McCombs and Shaw in 1972, in describing a miracle which had been noticed and studied in the environment to the part the mass media played during electioneering juggernauts. The main thrust of the proposition holds that the news media through it content to issues, events and effects in the society indicate to the public who are members of the society what the main issues of the day are and as similar it’s reflected in what the public perceives as the main issues. Trenaman and McQuail( 1961) as cited by McQuail( 2010) argues that “ the docket setting proposition explosively suggest hypotheticals that members of the society suppose what they’re told but at no time or position do they suppose what they’re told. ” Findings of studies on the docket setting proposition over the times after the development of the proposition indicated that there’s a correspondence between the order of significance given in the media to ‘ issues ’ and the order of significance attached to the same issues by members of the society and government officers.

The hypotheticals of the proposition revolve around how the media play an active part in giving significance to issues which they punctuate as important to the society. Nwabueze( 2006), added that the media frequent content and pressing or emphasizing elevation to issues in the media, members of the society attached significance to those issues the media have giving elevation to further than others.

journals reports, or content on terrorism outlines and highlight the significance it attached to the issues of terrorism. Governments and Nigerians began to pay serious amenities and attach significance to terrorism as result of the harmonious and sustained content of conditioning of terrorist groups by mass media channels similar as the journals. journals content on issues and events girding terrorism indicate to Nigerians what the main issues relating to terrorism areas reflected in runners of the journals. This in a way impact the growth of terrorism in Nigeria.

The way in which acts of demons are reported on the runners of utmost journals most frequently ends up suggesting to Nigerians that terrorism has come to stay with them. The corresponding significance attached reporting terrorism on the runners of review plays significant part in raising the objects of terrorism and how members of the society and government officers reply to it.

The docket setting proposition neglected the possible goods on what people suppose concerning who’s important, where important effects be and why effects are important. In it hypotheticals, the docket setting proposition didn’t give credence to who’s important in the content of the media that makes the individual important for the media content, the position the significance effects be and why are the effects or issues stressed by media content are important to the members of the society. All these aren’t considerations to the presumption of the proposition.

Another point of concern not reflected in the hypotheticals of the proposition is the description of what the docket portrayed by the media is, are the issues reflected on the media content the docket or precedences of the media, those of the public who are members of the society or those of the policy? In a way, was the content or highlight or elevation accorded to reports on terrorism, the precedences or interest of the media, members of the society or policy of the government?

The other proposition that supported the theoretical frame of this study is the social responsibility proposition.

Social Responsibility Media proposition

The social responsibility media proposition is a development of the libertarian proposition of the press. Okunna( 1999) cited in Asemah( 2011) described the proposition as a ultramodern proposition which was developed in themid-20th century. The thrust of the proposition, was developed from the growing concern and mindfulness that in some important felicitations, the free request idea in the media popularise by the libertarian proposition has failed to fulfil the pledges of the media and deliver anticipated benefits to the members of the society.

Asemah( 2011) argues that the social responsibility media proposition is anchored on the notion of a free press acting responsibly to the society. This indicates that the media which enjoys considerable freedom from the government is obliged to be responsible to the communication needs in contemporary society.

Ojobor( 2002) cited in Okujeni( 2013) opines that the proposition presuppositions that the operations and conditioning of the mass media interpreters and the media as institutions in the society can only be guarantee when the society is safe for all. thus, the mass media must purposely help the society to achieve considerable safer terrain for all its members.

In addition, the thrust of the proposition indicates that the mass media in appreciation for enjoying considerable freedom in propagating information to the members of the society must be responsible and responsible to the social requirements of the society.

McQuail( 2010,p. 147) argues that a social responsible media should ‘ give a full, veracious, comprehensive and intelligent account of the day’s events in a environment which gives them meaning ’. It should ‘ serve as a forum for the exchange of comment and review ’ and be a ‘ common carrier of the public expression ’. The media should also give a ‘ representative picture of constituent groups in society ’ and also present and clarify the ‘ pretensions and values of society ’.

McQuail( 2010) still, stressed the principles of the social responsibility media proposition to include the following

1. The media have scores to society, and media power is a public trust.

2. News media should be veracious, accurate, fair, objective and applicable

3. The media should be free, but tone- regulated

4. The media should follow agreed canons of ethics and professional conduct.

5. Under some circumstances, government may need to intermediate to guard the public interest.

Terrorism in Nigeria has continued to assume worrisome confines. It threatens the survival of the society and mortal lives and parcels. Terrorism in Nigeria accounts for the loss of thousands of mortal lives and the relegation of the living. Properties worth billions are lost the scourge of terrorism.

Still, the thrust of this proposition emphasizes the responsibility of the journals channels of communication in the society with strong influence in the society. It can impact thede-escalation of terror conditioning. journals like other channels of the mass media are anticipated to be socially responsible and responsible to the food of the society and can be effectively stationed in winning the war against terrorist. Since utmost journals in Nigeria enjoy considerable freedom from the control of government, it’s thus, anticipated and obliged to be responsible in communicating meaningful information that discredit the objects of terrorism, which is primarily to spread fear and terror in the society.