‘Beyond Buhari, Jonathan’: an assessment of four Nigerian newspapers’ (The Guardian, Vanguard, Independent and Leadership) editorial coverage of the 2015 Nigerian general elections
- Authors: Eze, Ogemdi Uchenna
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Elections -- Nigeria -- Press coverage , Mass media -- Political aspects -- Nigeria , Guardian (Lagos, Nigeria) , Vanguard (Lagos, Nigeria) , Independent (Lagos, Nigeria) , Leadership (Abuja, Nigeria)
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/7656 , vital:21282
- Description: The success of Nigeria’s 2015 general elections was unexpected, given the tense political and security climate in which the polls were conducted. It is against this backdrop that this study explores the contribution of four newspapers (The Guardian, Vanguard, Independent and Leadership) and, in particular, their editorials, to the relatively peaceful and mostly credible 2015 general elections in Nigeria. This qualitative study, located with an interpretivist tradition, draws on both in-depth individual interviews with editorial writers, and thematic content analysis of selected editorials to explore three themes: - violence-free polls, rational voting and credible electoral process. These newspaper editorials made moral and ethical appeals urging “supra-national” and patriotic attitudes as well as more detailed process interventions. Drawing from the theories of argumentation, the research suggests that three kinds (forensic, epideictic and deliberative) of arguments were made and three modes of argumentation (logos, pathos and ethos) were used by editorial writers to advance their arguments. This study examines what the editorial writers hoped to achieve and the normative ideals they drew on in the discharge of what they saw as their editorial duties. Drawing on theoretical insights from normative theories of journalism, and particularly social responsibility theory, this research posits that editorial writers hoped to arrest the spate of violence in the Nigerian polity, raise the level of discussion and redirect the attention of politicians in particular to core issues confronting ordinary Nigerians. The study finds a correlation between the editorials written and the normative ideals embodied in the social responsibility theory, which, the study finds, is the most influential normative ideal in the ‘mainstream’ Nigerian news media, at least in print. This study thus argues that in view of the range and frequency of focus on three core themes, and the persuasive power of writing, a case can be made for the editorials of these four major newspapers playing a constructive and positive role and making some contribution to the eventual peaceful and credible outcome of 2015 national elections in Nigeria.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Eze, Ogemdi Uchenna
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Elections -- Nigeria -- Press coverage , Mass media -- Political aspects -- Nigeria , Guardian (Lagos, Nigeria) , Vanguard (Lagos, Nigeria) , Independent (Lagos, Nigeria) , Leadership (Abuja, Nigeria)
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/7656 , vital:21282
- Description: The success of Nigeria’s 2015 general elections was unexpected, given the tense political and security climate in which the polls were conducted. It is against this backdrop that this study explores the contribution of four newspapers (The Guardian, Vanguard, Independent and Leadership) and, in particular, their editorials, to the relatively peaceful and mostly credible 2015 general elections in Nigeria. This qualitative study, located with an interpretivist tradition, draws on both in-depth individual interviews with editorial writers, and thematic content analysis of selected editorials to explore three themes: - violence-free polls, rational voting and credible electoral process. These newspaper editorials made moral and ethical appeals urging “supra-national” and patriotic attitudes as well as more detailed process interventions. Drawing from the theories of argumentation, the research suggests that three kinds (forensic, epideictic and deliberative) of arguments were made and three modes of argumentation (logos, pathos and ethos) were used by editorial writers to advance their arguments. This study examines what the editorial writers hoped to achieve and the normative ideals they drew on in the discharge of what they saw as their editorial duties. Drawing on theoretical insights from normative theories of journalism, and particularly social responsibility theory, this research posits that editorial writers hoped to arrest the spate of violence in the Nigerian polity, raise the level of discussion and redirect the attention of politicians in particular to core issues confronting ordinary Nigerians. The study finds a correlation between the editorials written and the normative ideals embodied in the social responsibility theory, which, the study finds, is the most influential normative ideal in the ‘mainstream’ Nigerian news media, at least in print. This study thus argues that in view of the range and frequency of focus on three core themes, and the persuasive power of writing, a case can be made for the editorials of these four major newspapers playing a constructive and positive role and making some contribution to the eventual peaceful and credible outcome of 2015 national elections in Nigeria.
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A critical discourse analysis of representations of the Niger Delta conflict in four prominent Western anglophone newspapers
- Authors: Mushwana, Tinyiko
- Date: 2013
- Subjects: Newspapers -- Political aspects -- Nigeria -- Niger River Delta , Newspapers -- Economic aspects -- Nigeria -- Niger River Delta , Newspapers -- Social aspects -- Nigeria -- Niger River Delta , Mass media -- Political aspects -- Nigeria , Mass media -- Economic aspects -- Nigeria , Mass media -- Social aspects -- Nigeria , Insurgency -- Nigeria -- Niger River Delta , Petroleum industry and trade -- Political aspects -- Nigeria -- Niger River Delta , Public opinion -- Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: vital:2872 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007745 , Newspapers -- Political aspects -- Nigeria -- Niger River Delta , Newspapers -- Economic aspects -- Nigeria -- Niger River Delta , Newspapers -- Social aspects -- Nigeria -- Niger River Delta , Mass media -- Political aspects -- Nigeria , Mass media -- Economic aspects -- Nigeria , Mass media -- Social aspects -- Nigeria , Insurgency -- Nigeria -- Niger River Delta , Petroleum industry and trade -- Political aspects -- Nigeria -- Niger River Delta , Public opinion -- Africa
- Description: This thesis explores the manner in which the conflict in the oil-rich Niger Delta in Nigeria is represented in western Anglophone media. Large oil reserves in the Niger Delta have contributed millions of dollars towards the growth of Nigeria's export economy. Despite this, the Niger Delta is the least developed region in the country and is characterised by high rates of inequality. Residents of the Niger Delta have been outraged by the lack of action on the part of the Nigerian government and multinational oil corporations. Their discontent over the inequalities in the region has resulted in the proliferation of armed groups and militants who often use violent and criminal tactics to communicate their disgruntlement. This thesis closely examines the representations of the violent insurgency in the Niger Delta by conducting a Critical Discourse Analysis of 145 news texts selected from four western Anglophone newspapers from 2007 to 2011. The depiction of the conflict as it appears in the four newspapers is discussed in relation to an overview of scholarly literature which explores the portrayal of Africa not only in western media, but also in other forms of western scholarship and writing. The research undertaken in this study reveals that to a significant extent representations of the Niger Delta conflict echo and reflect some of the stereotypical and age-old negative imagery that informs meanings constructed about the African continent. However, the analysis of the news texts also shows that there are certainly efforts amongst some newspapers to move beyond simplistic representations of the conflict. The disadvantage however, is that these notable attempts tend to be marred by the use of pejorative language which typically invokes negative images associated with Africa. This study argues that the implications of these representations are highly significant as these representations not only affect the way in which the conflict is understood, but also the manner in which the international community responds to it.
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- Authors: Mushwana, Tinyiko
- Date: 2013
- Subjects: Newspapers -- Political aspects -- Nigeria -- Niger River Delta , Newspapers -- Economic aspects -- Nigeria -- Niger River Delta , Newspapers -- Social aspects -- Nigeria -- Niger River Delta , Mass media -- Political aspects -- Nigeria , Mass media -- Economic aspects -- Nigeria , Mass media -- Social aspects -- Nigeria , Insurgency -- Nigeria -- Niger River Delta , Petroleum industry and trade -- Political aspects -- Nigeria -- Niger River Delta , Public opinion -- Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: vital:2872 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007745 , Newspapers -- Political aspects -- Nigeria -- Niger River Delta , Newspapers -- Economic aspects -- Nigeria -- Niger River Delta , Newspapers -- Social aspects -- Nigeria -- Niger River Delta , Mass media -- Political aspects -- Nigeria , Mass media -- Economic aspects -- Nigeria , Mass media -- Social aspects -- Nigeria , Insurgency -- Nigeria -- Niger River Delta , Petroleum industry and trade -- Political aspects -- Nigeria -- Niger River Delta , Public opinion -- Africa
- Description: This thesis explores the manner in which the conflict in the oil-rich Niger Delta in Nigeria is represented in western Anglophone media. Large oil reserves in the Niger Delta have contributed millions of dollars towards the growth of Nigeria's export economy. Despite this, the Niger Delta is the least developed region in the country and is characterised by high rates of inequality. Residents of the Niger Delta have been outraged by the lack of action on the part of the Nigerian government and multinational oil corporations. Their discontent over the inequalities in the region has resulted in the proliferation of armed groups and militants who often use violent and criminal tactics to communicate their disgruntlement. This thesis closely examines the representations of the violent insurgency in the Niger Delta by conducting a Critical Discourse Analysis of 145 news texts selected from four western Anglophone newspapers from 2007 to 2011. The depiction of the conflict as it appears in the four newspapers is discussed in relation to an overview of scholarly literature which explores the portrayal of Africa not only in western media, but also in other forms of western scholarship and writing. The research undertaken in this study reveals that to a significant extent representations of the Niger Delta conflict echo and reflect some of the stereotypical and age-old negative imagery that informs meanings constructed about the African continent. However, the analysis of the news texts also shows that there are certainly efforts amongst some newspapers to move beyond simplistic representations of the conflict. The disadvantage however, is that these notable attempts tend to be marred by the use of pejorative language which typically invokes negative images associated with Africa. This study argues that the implications of these representations are highly significant as these representations not only affect the way in which the conflict is understood, but also the manner in which the international community responds to it.
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