A DISCOURSE ON THE MASS MEDIA AS IMPERATIVES IN NIGERIA’S EVOLVING DEMOCRACY
Abstract
Democracy is perceived as the best form of inclusive governance because it allows for periodic selection or rejection of key government officials in free and fair elections. With this, democratic governments tend to operate with high sense of responsibility, probity and equity. While democracy is a laudable form of government, it is a process and not a state and collective efforts are needed to guarantee its proper development and protect it from being hijacked and derailed. There is evidence that democracy in Nigeria has not been evolving properly since political independence in 1960 because of long period of military interregna and presence of civilian cabals who often hijack power at all levels of governance. There is also evidence that almost all general elections under Nigeria’s democracy have been characterized by irregularities and malpractices. Incidentally, the country has a heavily populated, robust and politically active mass media industry. This discourse therefore focuses on how the mass media can contribute to the survival of democracy in Nigeria through effective political communication, serving as societal “watchdog”, setting of societal agenda and serving as societal documentation resource.
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