TABLE OF
CONTENTS
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1
BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
1.2
STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
1.3
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
1.4
SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
1.5
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
1.6
RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS
1.7
DEFINITION OF TERMS
CHAPTER TWO
2.1
SOURCES OF LITERATURE
2.2
THE REVIEW
2.3
PRESS FREEDOM AT A GLANCE
CHAPTER
THREE
RESEARCH
METHODOLOGY
3.1
RESEARCH METHOD
3.2
RESEARCH DESIGN
3.3 RESEARCH SAMPLE AND POPULATION
3.4
DATA COLLECTION
CHAPTER
FOUR
4.1
DATA ANALYSIS AND PRESENTATION
TABLE II
4.2
DISCUSSION
CHAPTER FIVE
5.1 SUMMARY
5.2
RECOMMENDATION
BIBLIOGRAPHY
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.8
BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
Siebert,
Peterson and schramm in describing the
Operation of the press in their book entitled four Theories of the press said
that, “The press is not an instrument of government but rather a device for
presenting evidence and argument on the basis of which the people can check on
government and make up their minds as to policy. It is imperative that the press be free from
control and influence so that truth can emerge, all ideas can get fair hearing,
that there must be a free market place of ideas and information”.
For the press to play their basic
roles, it must exercise full its freedom.
In other words, for the freedom of the press to be fully appreciated, we
must understand the implication of a citizen having a fundamental right to free
access to facts in all matters that directly or indirectly concern them and
also the right to express and publish its opinion there on.
It is in realization of these facts
that the General Assembly of the united Nations organization on December 14
1946 declared that “Freedom of information is a fundamental human right and is
the touch stone of all freedom to which united nations is consecrated. In the same view a sub-committee of the
common wealth press union headed by Lord Shawcross defined freedom of the press
as “The freedom that is not a special privilege of newspaper but derives from
fundamental right of every person to have full and free access to the facts in
all matters that concern him……. In protection of these fundamental human
rights, it is essential that the press should be free to gather news without
obstruction to publish the news and coment there on.
From the foregoing, it can be argued
that any obstruction on the press freedom is not merecy an attack on the
press. It is an indirect encroachment on
the fundemental right of the citizen to have knowledge and information. in fact, section 38 sub-sections 1 of the
1989 constitution concedes the right to freedom of expression and press by
explicitly stating that, “every person shall be entitled to freedom of
expression including. Freedom to hold
opinion and to receive and impact ideas and information without interference.
Prior to may 29th 1999, the
administration of Nigeria was predominated by the military regime. In successive coups begining from July 1966,
the military ruled the country. In line
with their coercive tendencies which of course sets them up every stratum of
the society by those who rule by instrument of coercion. This led to the use of force in carrying out
most of the policies that were, however, not spared as in certain cases,
headship of most parastatals under government control were change frequently
especially those who could not implement such policies. The media as the fourth estate of the realm
was not spared from the military obnoxious policies. Their controls which were determined by
decrees led to out right closure, permanent.
Death, intimidation, etc.
At a point in time, stiffer penalties
were imposed on the functions and operation of the press, making the atmosphere
very difficult for them to operate. For instance,
decrees one and two were introduced by Buhari ldiagbon administration which
subverted individual freedom and created social panic Decree enacted in 1984
which was the “public officers protection Against Fals Accusation”, also
limited press freedom. These reduced
Magazines, newspapers periodicals, radio and television to mere “papper
tigers”.
The incessant closure of newspaper
organizations like the news watch April 6, 1987, the Punch April 1990, the
Guardian May 1991, concord April 1992, tell magazine in August 1993 the
champion and vanguard respectively were the order of the day. The hounding of journalists in to jail over
reports the government felt unfriendily with including Tude Thompson and Nduka
Irabor who were jail under decree in
1987. others include, Chris Okolie,
Innocent Okparadike Editor of the Observer in Ben Tony Ikeakonam August 1991
was demoted for using an inappropriate picture of the first lady, Nosa Igiebor,
Ononie Whiskey may 1987, Nohammed Haruna 1987, Nduka Obiegbena 1988 etc.
Inundating media houses with threats
of closure and assassination of their editors, one of which was the death of
Dele Giwa, on 19th October 1986 and the killing of the news reporter
at Kano and other cases. Although those
regines may not entitely be written off as emenies of the media, they ushered
in an atmosphere that led to competition among the various media
organizations. Because, research has it
that excessive dictatiorial tendencies causes the press to become daring and
dedicated to publishing the truth and committed to seeking for its freedom and
expounding the peoples right to know.
Moreso, they acquire fame and become heroes if they are jailed, harassed
or hammed. This, they achieved using
these obnoxious policies which never favoured the media, but in which the
strived to survive by uncovering the misdeeds of the military to the delights
of the society.
It therefore, becomes the survival of
the fittest through articles, news stores , features and commentaries that will
always sell the product of such media organizations. It reduces some media houses into government
megaphone for fear of being intimidated or closed down such media who owe their
existence, control and sustenance on the government of the day depended on it
for subvention as a means of survival.
Mostly affected were the electronic media and some print media owned and
controlled by those in power.
Apparently, in pursuance of the
democratic doctrine of freedom of speech and of the press, whether we regard it
as a natural and inalienable right or not rests upon certain assumptions. One of these states that men desire to know
the truth and will be disposed to be guided by it. Another is that the sole method of arriving
at the truth in the long run is by the free competition of opinion in the open
market. Another is that since man will
invariably differ in their opinions, each man must be permitted to urge freel
and even strenuously his own opinion provided, he accords to others the same
right. And the final assumption is that
from neutral toleration and comparison of divese opinions, the one that seems
the most rational will emerge and be generally accepted. The above statement could be said to have
informed Babangida’s decision to open up or give access to move private participation
in information generation and dissemination.
It therefore gave the nod for
deregulation in 1989 to the media by issuing operating licensees especially on
those who want to own and operate the electronic media. This development led to the establishment of
private radio and television houses in the country, thus breaking the
electronic media industry.
Coming up on the heels of these
regulation were stations like African independence Television (AIT), the minaj,
the DBN, Rhythm’ 77, etc. but in spite
of these developments, the forture on the media continues; as today, newspaper
like the concerd is no longer in existence owing to long period of closure by
the military. Likewise some other media
houses that were closed down and opened some months before the exit of the
military in the governance of the country.
Thomas Jefferson was a philosopher and
a statesman who attempted to put his ideas into practice by fusing the
liberalism, legalism and traditionalism of England with the more radical
rationalism of France. Although as a
political figure he suffered greatly from the calcumnies of the press of his
time, he held to his conviction that despite his errors and vituperations, “the
press, should be subjected to a minimum of interference by the federal
government, but he was quik to add that, a government which could not stand up
under criticism deserved to fall. And
that the real strength of the federal government was his willingness to permit
and his ability to withstand public criticisms.
He held that press freedom was
implicit in the recognition of the insistent demands for the protection of the
individuals from arbitrary power.
To Facilitate this, he maintained that
“the individual in the society should be educated and informed. He contended that the press was an essential
source of information and guidance, and in order to properly perform its
functions, it should be free from state control.
Jefferson therefore, recommended that
the first approach towards press freedom was for the enthronement of democracy
for the smooth passage of information, ideas, opinions and actions, aimed at,
creating, maintaining and increasing the
greatest happiness for the greatest number of persons for the good of the
society. It would also aim at giving
them the liberty of expression, of thinking and to act for themselves.
Consequent upon this, the Nigerian
media decide to wade into the struggle fully by promoting those ideas which
could be enjoyed by the society under a democratic rule and deonouncing those
of the military. It therefore turned out
to be a struggle between an “oppressed media” and a government shrouded in
promoting of policies that were not of public interest. The impression created then was a polarized
media, improverished citizens and a few hawks in the control and dominace of th
affairs of society. It therefore
heightened the need for the enthronement of democracy, at least for the
advancement of the media and other sectors of the economy.
In 1999 therefore, the military quit
politics and the leadership of the country was handed to a democratically
elected government led by Olusegun Obasanjo.
Under this administration, the press may have being said to have an air
of freedom in the exercise of its constitutional role as the eye and ear of the
society. Although there have been some
innovations in the operations of the media that may have resulted of the
increase of technology. Enough may not
have been achieved in terms of ownership of the media in the last four years of
the current administration.
Presently, in the print media industry
not much have been achieved while the electronic media may not have achieved
any at all. The situation may be
attributed to the soaring economic situation that is currently prevailing in
the country and the coeritic political nature which does not seem to find or to
led a solid foot path for the political stabilization of the society. There is also the feeling of insecurity that
has meditated agaist the excellence of economic activities.
Although the administration has done
its best in initiating policies that can lead to the protection of industry and
manufacturers, especially the local manufacturers, it has not done much in the
area of information technology or highway that today is the order of the
society in making the world global village.
There are still feelings that the news
contents of the media are being doctored to fit or rather to suit the
aspiration of those in power. There is
also a feeling that the coertic political nature of the society may have
polarized the media in such a way that each pursues an agenda favourably to its
ethnic origin or its ethnic consideration.
The other school of thought has it
that the media have lost bite and is no longer that which fought for the
enthronenent of democracy in the country this allowing a lot of mal-practices
to have their way into the nations fabric.
While most people attribute this to their resolve in supporting the
democratic dispensation, some others felt that the media for fear of being
intimidated, they have succumbed to the feelings and aspirations of the government.
These issues therefore make this study
very important as I will in the following chapters discuss the operations of
the media in the current administration of president Olusegun Obasanjo; the
attempt will hinge on providing solutions to some of the starting issues posed
in this background.
1.9
STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
The study
under review has the operations of the press as its epi-centre in the current
democratic dispensation of Olusegun Obasanjo.
I am going to look at some of the polices that have undermined the
social responsibility of the press, as well as policies that have favoured the
activities of the press in the said administration.
Is the word
press freedom in existence in the true sphere of life and if so, how does it
function? Or are they determined by the kind of government in operation from
society to society?
1.10
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
1.
To understudy the problems militating against press
freedom in Nigeria.
2.
To understudy how the press has operation in Nigeria
since 1999.
3.
to understudy what the future holds for the press in
the event of discontinued governance of president Olusegun Obasanjo.
The
results achieved here will enable me to say in concrete terms whether the press
should be left free or should not be left free in the discharge of their statutory
functions.
1.11
SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
This study is signicant in view of the negative
feelings the present administration has received from its citizens and the
belief that has press have played into the hands of government. But it no longer carries her activities in
line with the constitution that set them up.
Also is the fact that the present administration tends to intimidate the
press on their activities, thus lending credence to the allegation that the
press have been bought over.
1.12
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
The basic assumption is that the press in any
society is the ear and eyes of such society; it means that the society reposes
its confidence in the ability of the media.
For this, bringing the activities of the people to the government and
that of the government to the people is a sacred duty which must be carried out
with all amount of responsibility. But
the argument lies to whether these responsibilities are carried out to the
satisfaction of the masses on one hand and government on the other. Again is the issue of who controls the media;
for this the research questions will aim at exposing, assessing the performance
of the media, the atmosphere in which they operate, even in the current
dispensation and the freedom exists in Nigeria.
i.
Whether press freedom exists in Nigeria, to what
extent is the freedom applicable to the government and to the media.
ii.
Having the media compromised in the discharge of their
statutory obligations
iii.
What is the extent of influence of the government in
the activities of the media?
iv.
Under civilian rule, have the media lived up to
expectations?
v.
The media are said to be agenda setters, how far have
they gone in this responsibility?
1.13
RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS
HI: Civilian rule
will foster brighter prospect for the media.
HO: Civilian rule will not foster brighter
prospects for the media.
H2: The media have thrived well in this
dispensation than any other civilian rule.
HO: The media have not thrived well in this
dispensation than any other civilian rule.
H3: Press freedom is guaranteed under civilian
rule.
HO: Press freedom is not guaranteed under civilian
rule.
H4: The press is used as instrument of
government under civilian rule.
H0: The press is not used as instrument of
government civilian rule.
H5: Government uses the press to pursue her own
agenda than that of the masses under civilian rule.
HO: Government does not use the press to pursue
her own agenda than that of the masses under civilian rule.
HO: Government does not use the press to pursue
her own agenda than that of the masses under civilian rule
H6: The media are presently being controlled by
the Obasanjo’s administration.
HO: The media are not presently being controlled
by the Obasanjo’s administration.
1.14
DEFINITION OF TERMS
APPRAISAL
This refers to the
assessment of an expert opinion on the value of an issue such as freedom.
PRESS FREEDOM
This is refered to as the
fundamental right of every person to have fress access to the fact in all
matters that directly or indirectly concerns him and from his equal right to
express and publish his opinion there on and to hear and read opinion of
others. In protection of these
fundamental rights, it is essential that the press should be free to gather
news without obstruction, to publish the news and comment there on.
CIVILIAN RULE
This refers to the exercise of
power or authority over a given society or country which does not have its
roots or foundations from the armed forces.
GOVERNMENT
This refers to the exercise
of political authority over the actions, affairs, etc, of a political unit or
people as well as the performance of certain function for this unit or body.
1.15
LIMITATION OF THE STUDY
As
indicated in my topic, my research shall deal precisely on an appraisal of
press freedom under civilian rule presently being piloted or engineered by
Obasanjo. I do hope to limit the study on assessing the performance of Obansajo
on the media in the last three years.
Because of its nature, it could be
said to be a virgin initiative in view of the fact that relevant materials and
literature that would compliment the attempt are not available. It has nonetheless propelled me into action
to ensure that I at least meet with the obligations and requirement of the
exercise.
Adequate sampling size is likely to
pose threats to this research. This is
because not all the respondents may have exposure to problems which the press
has encountered presently. Again, the
multi-cultured nature of the socity is such that the press could be said to be
concentrated on few hands, thus giving a clear assessment of the incumbent
vice-a-vice his relationship with the media becoming a bit difficult.
Financial constraints make me to
streamline the research endeavor to meet the available resources. The time frame in view of the crowded
academic activities will equally limit my research effort. All these as highlighted above are the
several handicaps which I envisage will be limiting the sphere of this study.
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