THE NIGERIAN PRESS AND ETHICS OF JOURNALISM PROFESSION
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- NGN 4000
Background of the study: Truth is either nailed to a bleeding cross, or it dons a variegated cloak. That is the nexus between the ‘brown envelope’ syndrome and the cancer of corruption. Siyan Oyeweso (2009). Journalism practice wields such enormous powers and calls for the highest standards of ethics and commitment to truth. Ethics and truth in journalism have assumed global concern as scholars recognize that their basic constituents of objectivity, accuracy, fairness and balance have merely assumed mythical qualities as journalists battle to assign credibility to their news stories.
Tuchman (1978: 2) describes objectivity as `facility’ (a mechanism which allows the journalists to hide even from themselves the `constructed’ and `partial’ nature of their stories). This view seems to have garnered force as increasingly, scholars suggest that news even when professionally `selected’ is guided more by organizational needs than by professionalism. The journalist thus becomes `a walking paradox’ (Nordenstreng 1995) as one cannot fail to see that journalism is so full of contradictions that “we have to question even the most fundamental dogma of the profession – truth seeking – because the way it has been conceived and practiced in journalism serves as a deceptive filtering device preventing as much as helping the truth being discovered” (Nordenstreng 1995:117). News commercialization practise in Nigeria media industries adds to this contradiction and deception, creating a continuous dilemma for ethics and objectivity in journalism practice in Nigeria. In the same manner, in our noble profession of journalism, when a journalist gets hooked on the ‘brown envelope’ malaise, or a media house engages in ‘cheque book journalism,’ professionalism and ethics get crucified. While the definitions are wide, within the media, they have precise applications as defined by the Nigerian Union of Journalists’ Code of Ethics Clause 4 of the Code says: “A journalist shall not accept bribes nor shall he/she allow other inducements to influence the performance of his/her professional duties.”
The Nigerian Guild of Editors concurs in Clause 7 of its Code of Ethics for Nigerian Journalists where it says emphatically that, “A journalist should neither solicit nor accept bribe, gratification or patronage to suppress or publish information.” It further states that “To determine payment for publication of news is inimical to the notion of news as fair, accurate, unbiased and factual report of an event.
TerjeS. Skjerdal of the Gimlekollen School of Journalism and Communication, Norway. In a research article titled, Research On Brown Envelope Journalism In The African Media, (African Communication Research Vol. 3, 2010) states: “The term ‘brown envelope journalism’ is applied to denote journalistic activity which involves transfer of various types of rewards from sources to the reporter” (p. 369).
He further identifies the “three characteristics” that are commonly involved in the disturbing phenomenon. One, it usually occurs at a very personal level; two, it involves a reasonable degree of confidentiality to succeed. Media are social institutions that expect to make a moral contribution to the society; therefore, there is need for the rules that will guide the journalism practice. Oso and Pate, (2011: 145) quoted Johnson saying media are potentially “great secular church” and a system of Evangelism for dispensing the darkness of ignorance, expelling error and establishing truth.” On the process of their duty journalists were criticized of been subjective and their role has been a topic of discussion. According to Briggs and Burke 2005 they said “journalists are not to be trusted” and they are “slanderous”. (Briggs and Burke, 2005). The reason behind this is that; the nature of ownership, the news media weather it is government owned media or private media, the employers are working under editorial control. Politicians who can afford to run a media house can dictate what goes into the pages of the newspaper (Dare, 2010: 2). Government owned media tries to protect the government interest where as private media protect the interest of owners, these leads to the violation of stipulated code of ethics. Like the saying goes „He who pays the piper dictates the tone‟. This research will examine the practice of the profession of journalism in Nigerian news media. Journalism is the trade technique or profession of reporting news for the public by various means. James Glen Stovall says “journalists meet many challenges in gathering, processing and distributing the news...” (Stovall, 2005: 18). Journalists are facing serious challenges in the process of their duty.Journalists are watchdog or gatekeepers of the society because they decide what news is and they make much important decision about what society says to itself. Been the gatekeepers of the society the profession is guided by journalism code of ethics to ensure journalists are doing their job within the context. Ethics in journalism, is the code of morals that journalist are supposed to uphold. These include a commitment to revealing the truth objectivity without being influenced by self-interest; maintaining the secrecy of sources and attributing what is said to the appropriate source (Ike, 2005: 74).Media has become as necessary as food and clothing. It has played significant role in strengthening the society. Media is considered as "mirror" of the modern society, in fact, it is the media which shapes our lives. Agenda setting describes a very powerful influence of the media, the ability to tell us what issues are important. McCombs and Shaw pointed out that; Agenda setting is the creation of public awareness and concern of salient issues by the news media. Two basis assumptions underlie most research on agenda-setting: first, the press and the media do not reflect reality; they filter and shape it. Second, media concentration on a few issues and subjects leads the public to perceive those issues as more important than other issues. (McCombs & Shaw, 1972: 176).Walter Lippmann in his 1922 classic, Public Opinion, he noted that:“The news media are a primary source of those pictures in our heads about the larger world of public affairs, a world that for most citizens is out of reach, out of sight, out of mind.” The purpose of the media is to inform people about current, new affairs and to tell about the latest gossip and fashion. It tells about the people who are geographically divided. In other words, Media can contribute a lot to a society. It can change opinions because they have access to people and this gives it a lot of strength. This strength can either be used constructively by educating the people or it can be used destructively by misleading the innocent people, the most important use of media is to educate the people about the basic human rights. Media is a bridge between the governing bodies and general public. Considering this vital role of the media in the society, there is need for ethical issues. This research focus on ethical issues on Nigerian news media, before discussing the ethical issues and theories the research will give brief background about Nigeria as a nation and Nigerian media structure, the research also discusses about Code of Ethics for Nigerian Journalist. That is, it is not usually done in the open. And three, it is an informal contract. This presupposes that there is a willing source who is ready to give ‘something’ to influence the processing of the information gathered by the reporter; and a reporter, willing or reluctant to take but who collects all the same for his/her personal use and the ‘deal’ is wrapped up in utmost confidentiality