Journalism and Politics in Nigeria

This book explores the legacy of colonial heritage on Nigerian political activities and journalistic practices. It asserts that journalism and multi-party politics were introduced into the country during British colonial rule, and, while they have become domesticated and indigenised, they still exhibit traces of their roots because they emerged in a different socio-cultural and political environment. Taking as its point of departure the view that, without the colonial intervention, the Nigerian state may not have come into being or survived in its present form, this book offers fresh insight into the impact of British colonial rule on contemporary journalistic practices and political activities more than 100 years after the ‘creation’ of Nigeria.

It draws attention to the enduring effect of colonial inheritance on Nigeria and how the ‘creation’ process of the country produced unintended consequences that remain problematic. Using press coverage of the politics of transition-to-civil-rule programmes during periods of military dictatorship as a case study, the book identifies trends and patterns of influence from the past that have been interlaced into the present.