Abstract
The study examines the impact of liberalization on broadcast media Broadcasting Industry or broadcasting media are radio and television which are two major genres in media environment. The primary function is to ensure that people, government organizations are fed with information. The study was anchored on the development media theory. The survey design was employed in carrying out this research. For the purpose of the population targeted the researcher limited the research sample to a manageable size of one hundred and forty (150) drawn from Delta State of Nigeria. The two major cities for this sample are Warri and Asaba. This is because of the political and economic strength in the State. the researcher adopted the sampling technique to select two cities from Delta State. However, the method used to take the sample is the systematic simple random sampling to select the respondents due to the large population. The study concluded that performance of the broadcast media under the liberalization era of the broadcast media in Nigeria is relatively high against that was obtainable in the post liberalization. The politics and business news were among the programmes of the broadcast media were the contents were objectively reported as well as subjectively. The study recommended that the broadcast media were able to generate this information through audience feedback and government policy. Liberalization of the broadcast media brought national peace and democratic development and this is done through investigative reporting. The government should ensure that freedom of information should be elastic to allow the media to operate well with restrictions of any kind.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study
Broadcasting is a major industry in any country that serves both the interest of the government and the people. It is the very industry that gathers, collates and distributes information to the public. According to Udomisor (2013), broadcasting is the distribution of audio and video contents to a dispersed audience via any audio- visual medium. The receiving parties may include the general public or a relative large subset therefore broadcast has been use for private recreation, non- commercial exchange of messages experimentation, self-training and emergency communication such as amateur (HAM) radio and amateur Television (ATV).
Broadcasting Industry or broadcasting media are radio and television which are two major genres in media environment. The primary function is to ensure that people, government organization are feed with information. Alcashoro, Okidu and Ajaja (2013) explained that broadcast means to disseminate information through mechanical mans (Radio and television) simultaneously to a wide, Diverse and heterogeneous audience made up individual within and outside a society.
The information or rather messages broadcast media distribute are classified into three major functional responsibilities. These are information (news) education (lesson) and entertainment (relaxation). These functions are targeted to the audience of broadcast media who could be the government or the citizens in a country. The basic understand here is the broadcasting has added new way of journalism in Niger ia. The short comings of newspaper were improved upon and this cause for more people to appreciate the broadcast media.
One distinctive benefit of broadcast media is the simultaneously transmission of programmers and the immediate feedback through telecommunication application. There are radio and television stations in any society. The two channels of communication perform the same function but different approaches in distribution. Radio is the elder brother of television. Radio came after newspaper. Radio is regarded as blind man theatre.
Onabayo (2000), broadcast audiences are able to access broadcast messages on the radio and television through their receivers which help in decoding such information. Chioma (2014) sees radio blind medium of mass communication it broadcasts messages through speech delivered to appeal to imagination. This underline imagination is coming from the point that the presenter of radio contents and the audience do not have physical interaction but words of mouth that is processed with transmitter and audio console. The audiences decode the message. In this regard language plays prominent role in the distribution of messages in radio station. Flaming (2010) right puts that radio is as a live predominantly personal broadcast medium which is personified through the vogue of its on air personnel who project a personality through which its listeners can identify, connect and establish a personal relationship with the station.
The history development of radio in Nigeria can be traced to the British colonial masters in 1939. The first broadcast was in Lagos with the establishment of the Re-diffusion broadcasting service (RDS). Later, the creation of radio distribution service 9RDs0 saw the expansion of broadcast to Ibadan and Kano between 1935 and 1950. Chioma (2014) pointed out that radio brand cast officially stated in 1932 in Nigeria when the British broadcasting corporation (BBC) one of mainly task was to relay the overseas services of the BBC through waved system with loudspeakers, a service when was then referred to as the Radio diffusion system (NBs) in April 1951.
Unlike Radio, television combines the audio and visual signs to project information to the audience. Chioma (2014) explained that television is considered to be the most powerful mass medium invented by man. Television provides its audience the opportunity to view as well as listen to its messages. It can now be said that television capture audience with high appealing elements and upon capturing hold the interest of the audience within a long period of their desire.
Television did not start the way radio started I n Nigeria, television was introduced by a Nigerian. The introduction was based on political motives, although the official objectives were to educate the people in intellectual notes. Udomisor (2013) television broadcasting in Nigeria started with the initiative of the first western regional premier, Chief Obafemi Awolowo who on October 3, 1959 launched television broadcasting at Ibadan, the headquarter of the region.
Chioma (2014) pointed out that establishment of television in Nigeria was mutated by two major factors; polices and education. According to Uche (1989) television broadcasting was established in Nigeria in order to foster education development it was serve as a tools to improve upon the level and quality of the regional education of system that were then handicapped by the storage of qualified teachers.
The broadcast media were mostly owned by the government. This reason was noted in the use of broadcast media as a propagate tool or public relations channel for the government of the day. Subjectively unprofessional and u nautical publication fly from left to right and up to down. According to ascension by Umeh (1989) "the establishment of the NTA was the first attempt by the federal government to have a centrally financed and co-ordinance joint broadcasting in Nigeria, the authority played a major role in further development of industry.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
The liberalization of the Nigeria broadcasting brought about enormous changes in the overall quality of broadcasting in Nigeria. It raised the standard of broadcasting, leading to better picture quality, variety in programming modernization of equipment, skilled broadcast personal, open door for partnership with foreign news media attracted Nigerian broadcaster abroad, not to mentor that it is also provide more channels through when the audience could gratify their needs, (Chioma, 2013).
Despite these achievements, one can witness some motive and movement of governments trying to clap down the liberty of the media in this age of freedom of information such of that incident was 2015 after President Buhari won the Presidential Election. The AIT was barred from reporting.
Therefore, this study shall critically look into the impact of liberalization of broadcast media on the Nigeria society on two prospect the performance of the broadcast media in post liberalization and the contributors of the liberalization on the Nigeria society using Delta as a study. The study aimed at closing knowledge gap as regards to the specific objections of the
1.3 Objectives of the Study
The major objective of this study is to examine the impact of liberalization of the broadcast media on. In addition, the study shall be guided by the following objectives.
- To determine the performance of the broadcast media in Nigeria
- To gauge the effects of liberalization on broadcast media on the society.
- To access the present challenges broadcast media face in this democratic dispensation.
- To discover ways to solve the challenges broadcast media face in this present democratic dispensation.
1.4 Research Questions
The following research questions guided the study.
- What is the performance of the broadcast media in Nigeria?
- What are the effects of liberalization on broadcast media on the society?
- What are the present challenges broadcast media face in this democratic dispensation?
- What are the ways to solve the challenges broadcast media face in the present dispensation?
1.5 Significance of the Study
The research is centered on the impact of liberalization of broadcast media on Nigeria. The findings shall ultimately provide answers to the issues raised in the objectives of the study as such provide workable knowledge to both broadcast media and the government for understanding the driving forces and challenges of broadcast media in this democratic dispensation. Specifically, the study shall benefits the media organization because it will help them to discover recent issues and ways to solve them in carrying out their journalistic functions to the society. Also, the study shall benefit the civil society because the essence of liberalization of the mass media is to serve the public interest in information source. The study will add to existing knowledge in the scope of the study. Finally, media policy makers such as National Broadcasting Commission ( NBC) will benefits from this study because the findings will provide them with current issues and the recommendations will be a guide as well.
1.6 Scope of the Study
The scope of the study is on the impact of liberalization of broadcast media in Nigeria. It shall focus on Delta State as sample for the study. The period of this study is for four years (4) years. The coverage is from 2015 to 2019.
1.7 Operational Definition of Terms
Liberalization: According to Chioma (2014), Liberalization is the freedom given to individual or group of individuals to own broadcast station in Nigerian.
Broadcast: Broadcast media are electronic media that include television and radio in the dissemination of information.
Television: Television according to Udomosor (2013), is a genre in broadcast media that disseminates information using audio and visual signal.
Radio: Radio according to Umeh (1989) is a broadcast media station that transmit message with the audio sign to listeners.
Democracy: According to Abraham Lincoln democracy is the government of the people by the people and by the people.
