BREACH OF MEDIA ETHICS AND THE 2015 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION: APPRAISAL OF AIT

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Media are social institutions that expect to make a moral contribution to the society; therefore, there is need for the rules that will guide the journalism practice. Oso and Pate, (2011: 145) quoted Johnson saying media are potentially “great secular church” and a system of Evangelism for dispensing the darkness of ignorance, expelling error and establishing truth.” On the process of their duty journalists were criticized of been subjective and their role has been a topic of discussion. According to Briggs and Burke 2005 they said “journalists are not to be trusted” and they are “slanderous”. (Briggs and Burke, 2005). The reason behind this is that; the nature of ownership, the news media weather it is government owned media or private media, the employers are working under editorial control. Politicians who can afford to run a media house can dictate what goes into the pages of the newspaper (Dare, 2010: 2). Government owned media tries to protect the government interest where as private media protect the interest of owners, these leads to the violation of stipulated code of ethics. Like the saying goes „He who pays the piper dictates the tone‟. This research will examine the practice of the profession of journalism in Nigerian news media. Journalism is the trade technique or profession of reporting news for the public by various means. James Glen Stovall says “journalists meet many challenges in gathering, processing and distributing the news...” (Stovall, 2005: 18). Journalists are facing serious challenges in the process of their duty.Journalists are watchdog or gatekeepers of the society because they decide what news is and they make much important decision about what society says to itself. Been the gatekeepers of the society the profession is guided by journalism code of ethics to ensure journalists are doing their job within the context. Ethics in journalism, is the code of morals that journalist are supposed to uphold. These include a commitment to revealing the truth objectivity without being influenced by self-interest; maintaining the secrecy of sources and attributing what is said to the appropriate source (Ike, 2005: 74).Media has become as necessary as food and clothing. It has played significant role in strengthening the society. Media is considered as "mirror" of the modern society, in fact, it is the media which shapes our lives. Agenda setting describes a very powerful influence of the media, the ability to tell us what issues are important. McCombs and Shaw pointed out that; Agenda setting is the creation of public awareness and concern of salient issues by the news media. Two basis assumptions underlie most research on agenda-setting: first, the press and the media do not reflect reality; they filter and shape it. Second, media concentration on a few issues and subjects leads the public to perceive those issues as more important than other issues. (McCombs & Shaw, 1972: 176).Walter Lippmann in his 1922 classic, Public Opinion, he noted that:“The news media are a primary source of those pictures in our heads about the larger world of public affairs, a world that for most citizens is out of reach, out of sight, out of mind.” The purpose of the media is to inform people about current, new affairs and to tell about the latest gossip and fashion. It tells about the people who are geographically divided. In other words, Media can contribute a lot to a society. It can change opinions because they have access to people and this gives it a lot of strength. This strength can either be used constructively by educating the people or it can be used destructively by misleading the innocent people, the most important use of media is to educate the people about the basic human rights. Media is a bridge between the governing bodies and general public. Considering this vital role of the media in the society, there is need for ethical issues.

STATEMENT OF THE GENERAL PROBLEM

Journalists, the world over, have to fulfil certain expectations and moral obligations because they hold privileged positions in the society in line with the value and the trust inherent in the fiduciary relationship between them and the society. Mass media practice in Nigeria is generally governed by the same laws and ethics, as such all the mass media professionals in the country are guided by the same laws and code of practice. Unfortunately, a cursory observation indicates that certain mass media and media professionals seem to operate and practise outside the bounds of media laws and ethics. Also, some journalists in the country write stories to express their sentiment and involvement. Sometimes, foul and strong languages are published in the media. In other instances, some journalists incur avoidable legal suits to their organisation on issues relating to media laws and ethics. The issue then is: to what extent have media laws and media ethics affected the practice of journalism in Nigeria?

 AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The major aim of the study is to evaluate the breach of media ethics and the 2015 presidential elections. other objectives of the study are;

1. To evaluate the major work ethics in journalism practice.
2. To examine the factors responsible for the breach of media ethics in journalism practice.
3. To examine if media ethics was breached in the 2015 presidential elections.
4. To recommend ways of enhancing standard journalism practice in Nigeria especially during elections

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

1. What are the major work ethics in journalism practice?
2. What are the factors responsible for the breach of media ethics in journalism practice?
3. Was media ethics breached during the 2015 presidential elections?
4. What are the ways of enhancing standard journalism practice in Nigeria especially during elections?

RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS

H0: Breach of media ethics was not evidential in 2015 presidential election in Nigeria.

H1: Breach of media ethics was evidential in 2015 presidential election in Nigeria.

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The study would be of immense importance towards the improvement of journalism practice in Nigeria. the study would also benefit students, researchers and scholars who are interested in developing further studies on the subject matter as the work would serve as a relevant source of literature.

SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The study is restricted to breach of media ethics and the 2015 presidential elections using the African Independent Television (AIT) as a case study.

LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

Financial constraint- Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).

Time constraint- The researcher will simultaneously engage in this study with other academic work. This consequently will cut down on the time devoted for the research work.