Dissecting Anatomy of Parliamentary News Reporting: A Study of Bayelsa State House of Assembly

Abstract

The role of the legislature in every society cannot be overemphasised. The acticities of the house of assembly has become critical in the development, expansion and driving of policies that would expand the capacity of a country to achieve purpose. However, reporting the activities of the house of assemblies has become a critical issue in most recent times. Therefore the kernel of this study is to this study is to dissect the anatomy of the parliamentary news reporting using Bayelsa state as the theatre of study.

The survey research design was employed in this study. A total of three hundred respondents were survey with the aid of questionnaire from different media houses. The findings revealed legislature, advert withdrawal, subtle control of staff, licensing, control of production input, heavy taxation and suspension of production as indicators of an authoritarian government campaign. This establishes these factors as measures of authoritarianism in government campaigns. In addition, results has also shown relationships amongst these elements, thus establishing an interaction between the elements of authoritarianism and the government campaign against social media and fake news.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1       Background to the Study

News writing and reporting is a universal feature of print and electronic media. For an event to be newsworthy, it must meet certain criteria which among other things include prominence, proximity, oddity, magnitude, personality involved and so on. Reporting Public Affairs issues, which in this study is operationalized as reporting government officials and government institutions is an important area of coverage for journalists (You & Sanjev, 2005). Except for community newspaper or community radio/television, the major area of news coverage for provincial and national newspapers is government and its institutions. This is why most of our newspapers in Nigeria use government activities as the lead stories in the front pages of their newspapers, magazines and even on Radio and Television stations. As a matter of fact, the press outsmart themselves in covering public affairs issues. In covering such news, however, the primary the primary factors of consideration should revolve around what is called determinants of news or news values (Wei & Yi, 2010).

In all societies, communication is used to pass information from one person to the other or between or amongst groups. However, the form of communication differs depending on the stage of development of such a society. In other words, the stage of production of any society determines the complexity of its communication (Wei, 2005). According to Peil (1976), communication in pre-industrial societies was easy, simple and mostly face-to-face. He further points out that the town announcer was often used to pass information from one person or group to others in such societies. As societies develop and become more urbanised and industrial, face-to-face communication became less efficient and constrictive. Thus, with increasing need to reach more people, the use of newspapers, radio and television has become better means of mass communication. Television is one of such media that passes information almost instantaneously. This is because of its ability to combine audio and visual effects and its immediacy in reaching the audience (Ajia 1986; Lasode, 1994). Unlike the print media that were established at the initiative of Nigerian citizens, and used as a vehicle for venting dissatisfaction with the colonial government, the colonial government established the first broadcast medium, the Nigerian Broadcasting Service (NBS) to facilitate its governance of the country. NBS was established in 1932 as a re-diffusion station. According to Ake, (2011), Toyo (1983), Alubo (1990) and Madunagu (1989), the Nigerian society is deeply divided into the ownership of property and wealth. It is also a society characterised by great inequalities of power as a result of these divisions.

One aspect of this division is that ownership of radio and television stations are concentrated in the hands of the few who own private property as well as government. Those who own property such as television stations also may also have political and economic interests. In many cases, news reportage and presentation from such stations may be skewed to protect such interests. Hence the station will usually protect such owners’ capital (Curran et al, 2018). Reportage of news on television entails the provision of information on different issues at different segments of a programme. It also involves giving credibility to such event, especially, because, “Credibility in the minds of the audience being the sine qua non for news, beyond which all else is propaganda” (Smith, 2011). Thus the mass media have an agenda setting role, the ability to give events certain public prominence while ignoring others, as part of the processes of newsgathering and reportage. This agenda setting role according to Smyth (1991), Onoja (1992) is however not a value free exercise. In other words, the reportage of news has organisational, individual reporters and ownership bias

 

 

1.2       Statement of The Problem

The legislature is the first arm of government whose major function is to make laws for the peace, order and good government of the country or any of its component parts. It is followed by the executive arm of government which executes the law, and the judiciary that interprets those laws made (Vaiya, 2005). It is such a highly specialised arm that a young and inexperienced reporter sent to cover the beat would find him or herself submerged in the maze of highly technical activities. For the journalist covering this beat, it is therefore expected that he should be familiar with the nature, structure, powers, functions and language of the legislature before he can successfully carry out his given assignment. This study provides the basic information concerning legislative activities so that the reporter covering the legislature would be grounded to cover the beat appropriately and adequately.

News writing and reporting is a universal feature of print and electronic media. For an event to be newsworthy, it must meet certain criteria which among other things include prominence, proximity, oddity, magnitude, personality involved and so on. Reporting Public Affairs issues, which in this paper is operationalized as reporting government officials and government institutions is an important area of coverage for journalists. Except for community newspaper or community radio/television, the major area of news coverage for provincial and national newspapers is government and its institutions. This is why most of our newspapers in Nigeria use government activities as the lead stories in the front pages of their newspapers, magazines and even on Radio and Television stations. As a matter of fact, the press outsmart themselves in covering public affairs issues. In covering such news, however, the primary factors of consideration should revolve around what is called determinants of news or news values.

Not only is the State House of Assembly a replica of the National Assembly, it has also suffered the same fate under past military regimes. The state assemblies in Nigeria were also suffocated out of existence and were only restored with the return to democracy in 1999 (Alabi 2008). Though certain areas of jurisdiction may differ, its importance in the operation of democratic government at the state level can be seen in the functions it carries out. As the law making body at the state level, the state legislature is the source of laws that define the parameters of governance in the state. Second, through the scrutiny of state budgets, the state legislature plays an important role in determining government policies and programmes. Third, being an elected assembly that is closer to the people, the state legislature serves as a barometer for assessing public opinion on the operation of government. The closeness of the state legislature to the people helps it to articulate the peoples’ needs and aspirations in theory (Hamalai 1996).

In practice, however, what we have is a case of illegitimacy of government marginalizing some segments of the constituency from governance, and benefitting from democracy dividends. Apart from carrying out the important function of legislation at the state level, the state legislatures hear petitions, exercise powers of oversight over the executive, confirm appointments and check other agencies of government. This quality control function is essential for providing effective governance. Given the important role of the legislative arm of government at the state level, the nature and character of elections that produce members of the state as the means through which people choose between different political parties and candidates offering different programmes, they have also proved to be problematic in some cases, particularly where the people are denied the actual rights of choosing their representatives through free and fair contests (Obi 2008)

In this context, it must be recognized, however, that in many countries constraints posed by geography, ethnicity and language or economics affect the nature of the media sector and therefore hinder the prospects of private media organizations that do not have the material and financial resources of the state, e.g. in the case of the spread of the Fiji islands or of the challenge of reaching the more remote rural areas in countries such as Cameroon or Bangladesh. However, the state having a role at all in media ownership is not really questioned since it has a duty in ensuring that national linguistic, ethnic or religious diversity is not neglected. Another worrying trend is the disconnection or disaffection between the general public and the national media. For example, it has been pointed out that in the U.K. people tend to trust local media more.

The local press, however, does not cover national politics much or at all and if local voters do not get national news, they might not find out therefore what their MP has said or done. A similar potential problem lies in the fact that in many jurisdictions an increasing majority of people receive all or most of their news through the television (or the radio in less developed countries), while it is generally felt that television and radio stations devote less and less time to coverage of politics and Parliaments, or that what coverage they provide is superficial. In many countries the number of people buying newspapers is falling, while newspapers have tried to remain attractive to the public in the face of competition from other media by cutting down on “serious” political and parliamentary reporting. There is a real danger that such trends will only aggravate the often conflictual relationship between Parliamentarians and journalists. Many Parliamentarians and members of the public fear that the media are sometimes guilty of abusing their freedom to report. Governments and MPs have therefore often felt the need to call for more responsible behaviour from the media. This is reinforced by the assigning of inadequately trained journalists and commentators (a complaint frequently made by MPs), especially when they are not familiar with parliamentary procedures, by media outlets that have downgraded parliamentary reporting. The media, including the Parliamentary Press Gallery, have the ability to promote or destroy the careers of politicians, a power that in some countries is reinforced either by media convergence or arrangements for pooling reporters, which means the opinions – or prejudices – of a few journalists can form public opinion when spread through a large number of outlets. This only adds to the natural tension in the relationship between MPs and journalists.

Another problem is that in many countries governments and political parties have developed highly successful strategies for managing news, which can lead to restriction of access and to pressure on the media to bow to government demands in returns for access to stories. This in return can lead to a backlash from the media and a deepening of mistrust and cynicism between the two sides. Ultimately, a taut relationship of mutual mistrust between politicians and the media can sometimes. This study investigates the anatomy of the parliamentary news reporting using Bayelsa state as the theatre of study.

 

 

1.3       Aims and Objectives of the Study

The study aims to investigate the anatomy of the parliamentary news reporting using Bayelsa state as the theatre of study. The specific objectives are

1. What are the indicators of authoritarianism in the Bayelsa State house of assembly against fake news
2. What is the role of social media in the publication of the Bayelsa State house

• What are the indicators of other normative control measures in government campaigns against fake news and social media

1. What is the relationship between social media regulation and authoritarianism

 

1.4       Research Questions

1. What are the indicators of authoritarianism in the Bayelsa State house of assembly against fake news the Bayelsa State house of assembly
2. What is the role of social media in the publication of the the Bayelsa State house of assembly

• What are the indicators of other normative control measures in government campaigns against fake news and social media the Bayelsa State house of assembly

1. What is the relationship between social media regulation and authoritarianism in Bayelsa state House of Assembly

 

1.5       Significance of the Study

This study investigates the anatomy of the parliamentary news reporting using Bayelsa state as the theatre of study. It is expected that the outcome of this study would be of great value to all stakeholders within the environment of the study and beyond.

The study would add to existing literature on the issue of parliamentary reporting in Nigeria while expanding the knowledge on the gaps. It is expected that the findings of this study will provide the media houses in reporting parliamentary activities with information on how best to report activities of the parliament and what critical components to be considered

This study would also will enhance the capacity of regulatory bodies on media activities to proffer robust solutions in making sure the standard of reporting parliamentary activities is of best practices divulged of bias

 

1.6       Scope of the Study

This study investigates the anatomy of the parliamentary news reporting using Bayelsa state as the theatre of study. The scope of the study is limited to reporting parliamentary activities in Bayelsa state alone. Hence, it is expected that the information presented in this study would be using the Bayelsa State House of Assembly as the theatre of study. The survey research design would also be used in the study.

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