Public and Private Media Reportage of Free and Fair Elections: Views of Media Audience in Anambra State, Nigeria.

Abstract

Free and fair election is a cherished feature, a universally acceptable and an intrinsically inseparable characteristic of democracy. Reporting election in unbiased, truthful and factual terms is an important role of the press globally. However, at present, in most African countries that have embraced democracy, such as Nigeria, this feature has not been attained. This comparative study of government and private owned media reportage of election in Nigeria aimed at ascertaining the section of the media that pay more attention to issues of free and fair polls. The survey utilised questionnaire to collect data from 300 media audiences in triangulation with interview of select media professionals in Anambra State. It adopted purposive sampling procedure. The paper was anchored on the Social Responsibility and the Agenda-setting theories of mass communication. The study used the percentage method in data analysis. Findings of the study show, among others that privately owned media report free and fair elections, no matter who it favours while government owned media rarely report such issues except where such report favours the government. Based on the findings, the paper recommended that the media owned by government should be more proactive in reporting electoral fairness at all times.

Keywords: Free, Fair, Elections, Nigeria, Reporting, Media, Government, Private, Audience and Views.