Political Violence, National Security and the Mass Media
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Date
2008-08-20
Authors
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Department of Mass Communication, University of Lagos
Abstract
Since Nigeria became an independent country on October 1, 1960, conducting a violence-free election remains a goal yet to be attained. From the first federal election after independence in 1964 to that of 1983 and 2003, electioneering in Nigeria has been characterized by thuggery and political violence (Popoola,2004, p. 187). So brutal is Nigerian political contest that electoral process, at any level of governance, is always scary and laden with human and material loss, with grave consequence on the nation’s security. In effect, violence has assumed a commanding feature of politics in Nigeria. The deleterious consequences of violence affect virtually all sphere of the national life and task not only the security institutions, but the entire superstructure of the nation, thus commanding the supports of all. The intention of this paper is, therefore, not only to x-ray the implications of political violence on national security, but explicates the constitutional and ethical responsibility of the media in the creation of violence-free political sphere that will guarantee the security of the nation and provide an atmosphere for varying degree of development.
Description
This chapter x-rays the implications of political violence on national security, but explicates the constitutional and ethical responsibility of the media in the creation of violence-free political sphere that will guarantee the security of the nation and provide an atmosphere for varying degree of development.
Keywords
Political violence, national security and the media
Citation
Mustapha, L. K. (2008) Political violence, national security and the media. In Mass media and society: A multi-perspective approach Ralph A. Akinfeleye (ed.) 306-323. Lagos: Department of Mass Communication, University of Lagos.