Text of a paper presented by Chief Joseph-Kyari Gadzama (SAN) at a Lawyers in the Media (LIM) forum of the Nigerian Bar Associaition (NBA) event.
This topic could not have been any more apt than it is now, given the recent national and global happenings as it provides an opportunity for all of us, lawyers, journalists, public officials and other professionals, to dispassionately assess the pivotal role played by the media not only today, but in the development of Nigeria from the Colonial days to the First, Second and Third Republic, naturally with the sporadic Military interventions in-between (one of which lasted for 13 unbroken years), and finally, the advent of our current nascent (one must never fail to use that word) democracy.
Throughout these aforementioned periods, our ‘gentlemen of the media’ were there. Some of them were detained for donkey years without trial and it looked as though they would never again see the light of day; others disappeared mysteriously and were never heard of again. Still some others were battered and bruised but despite these obstacles, the media has always performed its primary duty; informing Nigerians.
I would, therefore, be stating the obvious if I stressed the importance of the Media to the world at large. Without information dissemination through the media, whether through radio, television, social or print, the entire society would no doubt be in the dark and members of such a society would be deformed for not being informed. Our world’s age is so mass media-oriented that we learn almost everything we know today through some media of mass communication -radio, television, newspapers, social media, magazines, community media, traditional media, books, films and so on and so forth, among a host of other media of communication1.
Imagine a country without information; a country where you are pathetically oblivious of all that happens around you and where you travel to the next state not knowing that people have been told to stay off the road in that other state because there has been massive flooding for the past 3 days. It would not be an exaggeration to suggest that one would not survive for very long in an environment without information.The media is certainly a lot more developed than it was 100 years ago. We now have a high number of outlets; the internet has of late, become a very strong media tool and news spreads much faster.
In the past, you had to wait for the papers, watch the news on television or tune in to a radio station. Now, a status message on a person’s Blackberry Messenger Page, shared in ignorance, spreads faster than wild fire and may send half the nation into a panic induced frenzy within minutes.
In assessing the development and impact of our media in the last century, I have taken a look at its history as well as the long journey towards press freedom in Nigeria (By press freedom, I refer not only to the press but to all those who have retained their right to publicly express their opinion). Some of the pertinent questions to ask are these; After 100 years, can we say the Nigerian media is better off? Can we say that this is what we fought for? Are we satisfied with what we have? If not, how can we improve it? If we can find answers to these questions, then we will be able to say that we have successfully assessed the journey of the Nigerian media after 100 years.We would naturally refer every now and then, to Law, which is an instrument of social engineering, and which has authorised the operation of the media in Nigeria. Freedom of expression and the press which has been made one of the Fundamental Human Rights in our Constitution2 is a clear manifestation in this regard. The recently passed Freedom of Information Act 2011 is another giant step in this direction.
It would not be out of place to state that the law hadin the past, been found to serve as a two edged sword for and against the media in the struggle to influence governance positively in Nigeria. The “law”, during the colonial era and more predominantly during the military era was used to checkmate, whittle down, or cripple the smooth running of the media at one point or the other. This, no doubt accounts for the late emergence of privately owned Radio and Television outfits in Nigeria. As we celebrate the Nigerian media at 100 therefore, we would do well to remember some of these incidents which are deeply steeped in our history.
Once again, I must express my profound gratitude to the Lawyers in Media Forum of the Nigerian Bar Association for affording me this very rare opportunity to assess one of the strongest and most important components of the Nigerian State. It is my belief that our media will only improve after this.
Conceptual definitions
(a)Mass Media:
The Mass media is a term that will be used often in this paper. It may be used interchangeably (albeit loosely) with the “Media” and the “Press” but it is far larger than both as it comprises all means of communication to wit; the Press, Entertainment (Magazines ,Comics, Television and Cinema) and other means of communication which reach large heterogeneous audiences and in which there is an impersonal medium between the sender and receiver3.It basically describes a situation in which information is sent to a large audience at roughly the same time. Comics and magazines are sold en masse and News is beamed live and to billions of people globally for example.It is also possible for one to influence people’s attitude and thinking through the mass media. An anti-semitic blog for instance would generally whip up sentiments against Jews on a large scale due to the sheer number of innocent people who read what is posted daily.
(b) Journalist
The Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary defines a journalist as a person whose job is to collect and write news stories for newspapers, magazines, radio or television4. In carrying out his job, he disseminates information on a grand scale.
(c) The Press
The name encompasses the editors, the news reporters, paparazzi (who are also the photographers), the media hounds and the members of the Fourth Estate of the Realm. They aptly epitomize the old saying that ‘the pen is mightier than the sword’. Saddled with the task of reporting the daily news, interview people, take pictures, make video recordings and write reports.
They are also referred to as the Fourth Estate of the Realm.
1. Brief history of the media in Nigeria
Under this discussion, we shall look at the history of Nigerian media under the colonial era which is the period marked by the British colonialism and the post-independence era comprising both the military and the democratic governments in Nigeria. In 1859, the first newspaper in Nigeria, “IWE IROHIN” was established published by Reverend Henry Townsend who reportedly stated “my object is to get the people to read; and get them to inculcate the habit of reading”55The Media and the Democratic Process in Nigeria (1)
By Professor Sam Oyovbaire
culled from
The Guardian Online – http://www.ngrguardiannews.com
, .It was written in the Yoruba language of the South Western part of the country.
IweIrohin was published by missionaries who had at least two objectives namely; to influence the traditional government they found in Egbaland whose mode of operation did not conform to their idea of “good” governance; and to further educate their Nigerian converts who had been taught to read and write as a means of promoting the assimilation of religious information6.
Other newspapers followed IweIrohin not only in Yoruba, but also in English Language; and their locations were mainly in Abeokuta and Ibadan areas.
The newspapers of the period, however were short lived as most of them lasted between six months and two years only.
The important point however, is that between the 1850s and the late 1920s, the Christian press acquired some status of not only discharging the responsibilities of proselytising religion but also questioning the emergent colonialism and its multiple oppressive practices in Nigeria.
The post Media, law and good governance appeared first on The Nation.