Public Perception of Nigerian Newspaper Coverage of Xenophobic Attacks in South Africa

Abstract

This study investigates   public perception of Nigerian newspaper coverage of xenophobic attacks in South Africa with specific emphasis on portrayal of Nigerian victims, perpetrators and the South African Government.  With the aid of Cochran formula, a sample size of 385 respondents was drawn from Enugu State, Nigeria. The questionnaire was used as an instrument of data collection while the reliability of the instrument was determined through a test retest approach and this yielded a correlation coefficient of 0.92. Result  revealed  that respondents  perceived Nigerian newspaper  portrayal of Nigerian victims of xenophobia as positive  while the perpetrators  were found to  be  portrayed  in the negative  light.  Result also revealed that the South African Government was perceived to be portrayed as incompetent. Within the  frame work of  perception theory,  the researcher argues that the perception of the respondents may have been influenced by patriotism and recommends,  among  others  that  the media should avoid the temptation of portraying the South African Government in negative  light  as  doing so will not help  matters.

Keywords: newspaper, perception, portrayal, South Africa and xenophobia