SAU Journal of Management and Social Sciences www.sau.edu.ng/colmassjournal (ISSN: 2550-7302), Volume 5, Number 1, June 2020 Sustaining Cultural and Christian Values through Mass Media: A Self-Affirmative Discourse Seigha Jammy Guanah Department of Theatre Arts and Mass Communication University of Benin, Benin City, Nigeria [email protected]; +2348032133664 Erere Joy Anho, PhD Senior Lecturer, Department of Mass Communication Delta State Polytechnic, Ogwashi-Uku, Delta State, Nigeria. [email protected]; +2347069009788, Azubuike Nkala Department of Mass Communication Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University Igbariam Campus – Nigeria. Tel: 08186443669. Abstract The role of the media in the society also extends to the arenas of Christianity and culture. Therefore, the purpose of this paper was to analyse the role the media can play in blending the values of both for the benefit of the society. Library method, whereby materials already documented were consulted, was adopted for this study which was hinged on the cultural norms theory. From the reviewed literature, it became so glaring that African culture and Christianity have a lot of values that can contribute to the peace of the society if the media play the critical role of making the these values known to the public and explaining the grey aspects where people tend to be confused about their relationship. It was, therefore, concluded that the values will go a long way to make the society better if citizens adopt and abide by them. It was recommended that the media should take it as a special assignment to continue to enlighten the populace about these values. Keywords: Christianity, Culture, Media, Tradition, Values Introduction Nigeria is a multi-religious society where citizens are either Christians, Muslims, Traditionalists (devotees of the African Traditional Religion) or Free thinkers. Idowu (1978) gives credence to Nigerians‟ religiosity when he declares that “Africans are everything religious" (p.1). Adherents of each of these groups believe there are cherished values they profess that can make the society a better place for all humans. In one way or the other, they have something in common; hence, Bohannan & Curtin (1995) observe that “contacts with Christian and Islamic traditions have brought about transformations and syncretism in all three.... There is an amazingly close relationship between the basic ideas of Islam and Christianity and of the African religions. Neither Islam nor 186 SAU Journal of Management and Social Sciences www.sau.edu.ng/colmassjournal (ISSN: 2550-7302), Volume 5, Number 1, June 2020 Christianity is foreign in its essence to African religious ideas” (p.124). More so now that “many African writers have in recent years begun to show that most of the traditional values that were jettisoned and are still being condemned by the Christian Church were not actually in disagreement with Christian faith and morals” (Chavunduka in Omosor, 2019, p. 367). However, this paper only looked at some values associated with African culture alongside those of Christianity, and explores how the mass media can harness them for the peaceful co-existence and benefits of the society. Especially now that the Primate of the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion), Nicholas Okoh feels that our youths are being deceived by the international media with values that are at variance with our culture and the teachings of our religion (Afolayan, 2018). African cultural values are a potpourri of traditional elements that have existed for generations; some are beneficial to the society while others are not. Anwuluorah (2016) opines that African traditional religion is the oldest religion that existed in Nigeria, for it is as old as Nigerian man himself and that there is no precise date that can be traced to its beginning. Traditional African societies tend to have enjoyed more peaceful coexistence with their neighbours when their cultural values were adhered to hook, line and sinker. This is confirmed by Aseka (2011) when he admits that, “African communities are linked by shared moral values that are fundamental features of African identity and culture” (p. 5). African societies share fundamental values that guide day-to-day life. Some of the problems of conflict we face in Africa today can be attributed to the discountenance of cultural values. Also, Christian values are not only meant to make people better citizens, but to make them and their activities acceptable to God their creator having known the purpose of life (Warren, 2012). Some values that are common with both culture and Christianity are expressed via the marriage institution, respect for humanity and human dignity, justice, equality, respect for elders, morality, sense of respect for authority and elders, sense of community life, respect for legitimate authority, sense of good human relations, honesty, value for human life, dignity of labour and many others. If there is a strict adherence to these values, the society will be a better place for all humans to live in; since, according to Field (1991), the media provide opportunities for families to assert role models and values. Also, news editors, as gate-keepers and agenda-setters, are strategic to actualising any desired national orientation, depending on the type that will impact on the value system (Ayakoroma, 2018). It is expected that both cultural and Christian values should be harmonised for the benefits of all, but there tend to exist some misconceptions about both that are making that difficult. This paper, therefore, discussed the relationship between them, and identified the mass media as agents of communication to amplify the benefits for society‟s advancement. Theoretical Dependence This study is anchored on the cultural norms theory. According to Wikispaces (2009, p. 1), „„cultural norms are the shared, sanctioned and integrated systems of beliefs and practices that are passed down through generations and which characterise a cultural group.‟‟ Anaeto, Onabanjo & Osifeso (2008) say the cultural norms theory is also categorised under the socialisation theory. The basic tenet of this theory is that the media deliberately emphasise and reinforce certain cultural norms (beliefs, perceptions, behaviours and values) through messages aired to the audience. Adler, Rodman & 187 SAU Journal of Management and Social Sciences www.sau.edu.ng/colmassjournal (ISSN: 2550-7302), Volume 5, Number 1, June 2020 Sevigny (2008) report that while discussing the cultural norms theory in 1970, Melvin DeFleur, a professor and Scholar in the field of communications, suggests that the mass media selectively present and emphasise certain contemporary ideas or values and influence norms by reinforcing or changing them. According to Adeseye & Ibagere (1999), the mass media create the impression among their audience that such themes, ideas or values were part of the structure or clearly defined cultural norms of society and as a result of this media role, the “impressionable‟‟ members of the public tend to pattern their own behaviour along the lines of such media presentations (p. 57). Adler, Rodman & Sevigny (2008) assert that cultural norm theorists are said to argue “that television programmes presenting an active lifestyle for older people can change the attitudes of viewers in that direction” (p. 10). Fundamentally, the cultural norms theory opines that a person's behaviour is usually guided by the individual's perception of cultural norms while the mass media, through selective presentation and emphasis, establish audience impressions of such common cultural norms (Real in Igbinoba, 2009, p. 22). The fact is that cultural norms portrayed by certain media could encourage or discourage exposure. This tends to agree with the findings of Marghalini, Palmgreen & Boyd (1998, p. 4) that Saudis avoid foreign satellite television channels because such channels have strong Western flavour and values, beliefs and practices that clash with the tenets of Islam. Also, China has continued to close down websites and television stations that portray contents contrary to their culture. Chinese government is reported to have shutdown 1.3 million websites in 2010 ( www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific). The school of thought against the media role here is exemplified with the narrative presented by McLuhan (1965) thus, “in 1962, when Minneapolis had been for months without a newspaper, the chief of police said: “Sure, I miss the news, but so far as my job goes, I hope the papers do not come back. There is less crime around without a newspaper to pass around the ideas” (p. 205). This theory is germane to this study because the media can effectively portray and amplify the positive aspects of both the cultural and Christian values for the society to emulate and imbibe; doing this will make the society a better one for all and sundry to cohabit. Conceptual Review and Review of Literature Culture is a combination of the ideas, customs and social behaviour of a particular people or society (Weiner & Simpson, 2014). However, Bakare (1990) cites Malinowski as describing culture as “that complex whole which includes knowledge belief, art, law, morals, customs and all other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society” (p. 4). Ayakoroma (2011) orates that culture cuts across identities and boundaries; this is because of the historical relations between groups in terms of trade, inter-tribal marriages, and diplomacy, which lead to borrowing in terms of language, religion, arts, and dresses. It must be re-emphasised that the church is never against the culture of the people, this is evident in what transpired in the Lambeth conference of 1988 tagged “The Truth Shall Make You Free” where the Bishops of the Anglican Communion worldwide, including black Bishops met, showing that our culture cannot die, it cannot be inferior, and in fact it is our sustaining power. Although, African culture is quite accommodating, and it is concerned with the well-being of every member of the community, yet there are some aspects that 188 SAU Journal of Management and Social Sciences www.sau.edu.ng/colmassjournal (ISSN: 2550-7302), Volume 5, Number 1, June 2020 discriminate against others.