Nigerian Media and Indigenous Cultures Transformation

mun om ica Simon RO and Ndoma BE, J Mass Communicat Journalism 2016, 6:7 C tio s n s a & J DOI: 10.4172/2165-7912.1000317 M o f u o r l Journal of n a a n l r i s u m o J ISSN: 2165-7912 Mass Communication & Journalism ReviewResearch Article Article Open Access Nigerian Media and Indigenous Cultures Transformation: The Journey So Far Robert Odey Simon1* and Besong Eric Ndoma2 1New Frontier Industries Ltd, Nigeria 2Department of Philosophy, Federal University, Nigeria Abstract The Nigerian mass media owe their Nigerian peoples the duty of transforming their diverse cultures respectively. Although the task seems thankless and complex, it is indeed rewarding, thankful, worthwhile, easy and simple if willing, committed and functional. The current worrisome state of our indigenous cultures is majorly because the media, that are suppose to duly rouse the peoples to their cultures and generally effect the transformation of these cultures, have simply abandoned their right roles in doing so for the otherwise. Rather, they have resorted to attrition and westernisation, dabbing them variously. This paper calls on Nigerian media to turn a new leave and take up active indigenous cultures transformation roles. Government, schools, parents (families), religious groups, corporate organisations and every individual must all actively join hands with the mass media in their new efforts and roles to transform our cultures. The paper basically draws from relevant library print sources, besides intuition and observation primary sources. The text content analysis, the descriptive method and qualitative comparative and analytical approaches ground the study. Keywords: Nigeria; Media; Indigenous cultures; Transformation developing our indigenous culture, arts, technology, enterprises and lot others, our media resort to their relegation for Western culture Introduction mimicry, dabbing ours as being barbaric, obsolete, local, native, An objective deep scholarly and professional introspection and traditional, fetish and what have you [2,5,6]. retrospection would simply prove to one the extent, outcome and reality Mass media also play several other vital functions, some of which of the journey the Nigerian media have had so far in the transformation are their core functions. Uyo articulates the various contributions of indigenous cultures. The journey is full of odds from these media of scholars on what constitute the functions of the mass media and to these cultures and their peoples. The media, on their part, have not arranged them into the acronym: PENNIES– persuasion, education, been having it lightly from the government and the hostile westernised news, information interpretation, selling and entertainment. In globalised new world, with its more overwhelming negative trends and explaining each of the functions, emphasis is placed particularly on effects. The journey seems not to be a bird of roses. It is characterised the primary mass media message (a newspaper articles, radio or TV with mixed adventures: the good, the bad and the ugly; positive programmes) [7], designed to achieve one aim or the other, since it is and negative; indigenous and western; smooth, rough and rugged; possible for a message to perform more than one or two functions at a upgrading and degenerating; constrained and free if willing; aided and time [8]. Persuasion describes the mass media messages that are designed unaided; and solely and massively. primarily to convince or convert the audience through valid convincing Ajala notes, the mass media encourage and ginger people to achieve debates. The education role describes the messages designed primarily the aims or goals of the society. These goals are promoted by the to instruct the audience, which involves educational broadcasting/ media, which then stimulate and foster the aspirations and activities of journalism, when the masses are kept abreast of happenings via such individuals and communities to achieve such goals [1]. messages and programmes designed to enrich the knowledge of the audience. Interpretation involves explaining salient issues, problems Chiakaan and Ahmad observe that national development and and matters of public concern by the media to the audience on already sustenance can only be realised where the media are positively effective known events. Selling involves marketing and advertisement roles in their operations. Where they are not, they can rather cause under- of the media that involve inducing or convincing their audience, the development in the society. This indeed is what they are currently masses, to buy a given product. And, the entertainment role of the causing in Nigeria, particularly in the rural societies, including failing media is that of amusement and leisure for the public. to rouse the attention to and interest of the people in indigenous arts and cultures. Chiakaan and Ahmad [2] further note that often, the activities of the mass media in a society, especially Nigeria, are never *Corresponding author: Simon OR, New Frontier Industries Ltd, 2nd Floor, Ashby perfect. They are characterised by sensationalism, violence, crime, Investment House, 7 New Bridge/Otukpo Road, Makurdi, Benue State; Bridge Gate Research Consult Ltd, Abraka, Delta, Port-Harcourt, Rivers, Nigeria, Tel: sectionalism, inaccurate presentation of issues, pollution of culture and +2348030410087; E-mail: [email protected] so on, which are highly anti-development [2]. Received October 26, 2016; Accepted November 07, 2016; Published November Sambe [3] refers to these roles of the press as narcotizing 14, 2016 dysfunctional roles. For example, the media expose both adults and Citation: Robert OS and Besong EN (2016) Nigerian Media and Indigenous children to violence on television screen and cause commotion with Cultures Transformation: The Journey So Far. J Mass Communicat Journalism 6: sensational and inaccurate broadcast reports and programmes. 317. doi: 10.4172/2165-7912.1000317 Research has proven that most children who are exposed to violence Copyright: © 2016 Simon RO, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits on television screen are more prone to violent or aggressive behaviour unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the when they grow into adult hood [2-4]. Instead of promoting and original author and source are credited. J Mass Communicat Journalism, an open access journal Volume 6 • Issue 7 • 1000317 ISSN: 2165-7912 Citation: Simon RO, Ndoma BE (2016) Nigerian Media and Indigenous Cultures Transformation: The Journey So Far. J Mass Communicat Journalism 6: 317. doi: 10.4172/2165-7912.1000317 Page 2 of 8 Lamenting on the gross abuse, negligence and relegation of misunderstand and misuse the positive globalisation trends and offers virtually all aspects of our African indigenous culture by ourselves too, with which they should ordinarily apply effectively to develop, rebrand which is basically because of the negative role played by our media, and transform their own cultures. They fail to blend their indigenous Prah observes, too often, culture is understood in Africa to mean old Nigerian/African culture with that of the West. practices, especially of the display-type like traditional dance, music and singing, arts and the like. Such attributes and artefacts are reified and The Journey of Nigerian Mass Media stylised recollections, which are said to typify African culture. In other Although from time immemorial, Nigeria with her diverse nations, words, African [Nigerian] cultures tend to be regarded as museum peoples or cultures has had various mass media, which are now often pieces, arrested and fossil in time. They invariably are displayed more described ‘traditional’, ‘local’ or ‘native’ mass media, the formal media in response to western taste for African exotica than a revival, renewal of western build came with colonialism. Then, drums, gongs, clappers, or reaffirmation of the African heritage [6]. For example, since Picasso whistles, artefacts, horns, stones tablets, scrolls, calabash, etc. were all and the Cubists historically decontextualised, African traditional art used for public/group information dissemination and reception. In has been regarded in Western circles as a revitalising stimulus for jaded Yoruba pre-colonial administration, for instance, a defaulting Oba was Western artistic genre. What is depressing about this is that some usually shown a calabash and thus rid of, dethroned. Isa in Yusuff lends African [Nigerian] artists latch on to such western fads as avant-garde credence to this fact when he says, ‘Within the old Yoruba, Benin and representations which should be automatic universal appeals. Igbo kingdoms, rulers, on many occasions had been overthrown by the The Concepts of Culture and Media collective actions of the people, mobilised by the drummers and town criers. In the Northern part of Nigeria, Arabic writing was in vogue Isa [9] in Yusuff notes that the concepts ‘culture’ and ‘the media’ before the advent of colonialism and it was a means of communication are interrelated. As culture is sustained through the media, so the latter or information that existed in various ethnic groups and kingdoms [9]. needs cultural atmosphere to fruitfully operate. He adds that the love of The formal mass media in Nigeria is traced to Rev. Henry Townsend one’s race and culture (i.e., patriotism) considered in itself, is good and in 1859, who first began the publication of the ‘Iwe Irohin’, published necessary for the survival of both race and its culture. By the foregoing, by missionaries whose main aim was to influence the traditional Isa’s view reflects the relationship between Nigerian media and cultures government they found in Egbaland, whose mode of operation did and points to the need for cultural patriotism by the media, which can not tally with their theocracy; and educate their Nigerians ‘converts’ widely spread to the entire Nigerian masses, their audience, who often by being taught how to read and write so as to spread, promote and tend to or are very willing to absorb anything given maximum attention assimilate the religious culture in contact.

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