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CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background to the Study

Development in all its ramifications is a product of peace. Society without unity, peace and understanding between and among its inhabitants cannot boast of development. Peace is integral and very central to the development of any nation. Development is simply an increase, improvement, and growth for the better. Development is a self-generating and self-sustaining phenomenon. Therefore, development is conceived in human term as the maximum satisfaction of basic human needs of adequate and decent food, water, electricity, shelter, education, modern social infrastructural facilities (Development administration, 1998, Yunusa & Okene, 2008). The word ‗media‘ comes from the plural of the Latin word medium and it is used as a collective noun to refer to television, radio, newspapers, magazines, films, the international networks (internet) etc. The media, in both specific and general terms (the Newspapers, Television, Magazine, radio, social media and the internet as a whole) has always played and is still playing very prominent role in national growth and development. Media helps to develop societies by gradually changing and making them to become more advance, greater, stronger, larger, successful and impressive entities.
Apparently, media exert a powerful influence on its audience, their actions and inactions; also exert same on the perceptions of the world around them. The role of the media is to report and disseminate authenticated and objective information. This information must be factual, accurate and balanced and fair representation of divergent views, to allow the audience or larger public to make well-informed choices (Coffman et. al, 2006) and judgment. The media plays a wide range of roles in our lives. Some of these roles are constructive and some are destructive.

Media is often described as a double-edged sword. When employed positively, media can become an instrument of conflict resolution and a catalyst for peaceful change. However, when employed as a means to propagate intolerance and hatred, and to incite violence, media becomes a negative force among efforts to foster peace (Coffman et. al, 2006). It has remained an indisputable fact that the mass media or media of mass communication are among, if not the most effective and powerful means of disseminating information all over the world. Countries that are seen to be powerful or developed are perceived as such, largely owing, among other things, to the powerful media they possess and control (Bello, 2005:177). Media owners and professionals decide what they think the public or some target audience want to see and hear. A common journalistic principle is: ―If it bleeds, it leads.‖ That means violent conflict will be headline news, not news of cross-cultural dialogue and understanding. The media mostly covers conflict, not peace building. This tendency to cover conflict and violence distorts reality and leads many people to think that conflict is pervasive and peace is abnormal. History has shown that the media can incite people toward violence. Hitler used the media to create an entire worldview of hatred for Jews, homosexuals, and other minority groups. Rwanda‘s radio RTLM urged listeners to pick up machetes and take to the streets to kill what they called ‗the cockroaches.‘ Broadcasters in the Balkans polarized local communities to the point where violence became an acceptable tool for addressing grievances. The media‘s impact on the escalation of conflict is more widely recognized than the media‘s impact on peace building (Bratic and Schirch, 2007).
Journalism does not need justification for its existence. Its service to society is justification in itself. Journalism can not only help to distribute information but also counter hate-speech and create an environment of balanced opinions, and information equilibrium. For the media it can be problematic to find a balance between preventing harm caused by speech and protecting individual expression. Being able to find this balance however is important especially in conflict situations.

Responsible journalism does not just re-publish press releases but is truly concerned with a truthful, balanced and fair account of events (Kuusik, 2010). In order to achieve this journalists have to stay clear of judgemental representations and describe reality without embellishment. If democracy is to work properly, society needs access to news and information; analysis of the status quo, debate, practical information and exchange as well as entertainment are needed and provided by the media (Kuusik, 2010). Experience has shown that mass media in Nigeria since independence have dissipated much of its energies in creating political dichotomy among diverse ethnic nationalities rather than building consensus, broadening policy dialogue, raising aspirations, setting agenda as well as widening the horizon of the membership of Nigeria society. The facts remains that, most media operators, proprietors and practitioners in Nigeria have not only grossly mislead, misdirected and misapplied media resources but have also failed to bring the good potentials offered by the mass media to bear on national development (Okoye, 2009:321).Whatever the society in which the media operates, certain basic factors are responsible in the way they influence changes and development. Every medium has a message, it has a target audience, it aims at influencing changes and decisions, and it also influences attitudes, perceptions and general behaviour.

A professional and vigorous media is a very central component for stable plural democracies. As the fourth-estate of the realm; the media acts as agenda setter, gatekeeper, peace promoter, watchdog, policy maker, diplomat and the guardian of interest. Revealing abuses of state authority and defending the democratic rights of citizens. In this regard, it is assumed that strong and well-grounded democracies are less prone or vulnerable to conflict (ISAI/ IMS, 2004:9). Thus, conflict is the source of a vigorous and dynamic society. A society without stress, internal tension, rivalries, disputes, or discords seems to be unimaginative, uncreative, and unproductive (Nwanko & Nzelibe, 1990:253). Conflict is an inescapable factor in human life. According to Imoh (2008:33) it is neither a positive nor a negative phenomenon. It exists in various forms and intensities between persons, groups, and nations. The complex and heterogeneous nature of individual attitudes, behaviours, and perceptions precipitates the human inability to coexist without conflict. Conflict may be either beneficial or destructive to the people and communities involved. But whatever the outcome of a conflict, the process assumes a dynamic path which, in retrospect, provides avenues to knowledge enrichment and experience acquisition for dealing with future events (Nwanko & Nzelibe, 1990:253). According to a recent finding, ―at least one fifth of humanity lives in countries experiencing significant violence, political conflict, insecurity and societal fragility. Such conditions form a major obstacle to development, with lasting implications for societal well-being. No country affected by violence or fragility has achieved a single MDG target. Countries with major violence have poverty rates more than 20 percentage points higher than the average‖ (Preis and Mustea, 2013:2).

Conflicts do occur at various levels and in various forms. According to Adeyanju (2004:70), these levels include intrapersonal, interpersonal, intra group, inter group, intra organizational, inter organizational. On the basis of their causes and effects, conflicts may be classified as communal, institutional, ethnic, family, gender, intergenerational, interpersonal, intra and inter group, labour, armed, environmental, technological and personality. Conflict can be seen as positive because it can lead to positive result, changes or decisions that lead to improved relationships between two conflicting entities or parties involve in the conflict. Many scholars and researchers agreed that conflict is a severe form of crisis (Gusau, 2005:17), and looking from the realist lens inter-group or intra- state, conflicts are inevitable. This is essentially because the state is made up of groups that are defined by, among other variables, ethnicity, religion, politics, class, socio-economic problems and aspirations. These groups, as in the case of this study are heterogeneous with competing and consequentially, conflicting interests and values. Besides, society is dynamic and changes -weather economic, political or social- all these are major sources of conflict (Gusau, 2005:17). It is therefore widely accepted today that conflict has the capability of being functional or dysfunctional, constructive or destructive depending on its nature and intensity (Imoh, 2008:33). Much would therefore depend on how we perceive and manage conflict in any group, Society or setting even within the individual. The more modern view of conflict is inevitable; we must learn to expect it anytime and to develop conflict management capacities that will help us to always benefit from positive and functional aspects of conflict and control to the negative or dysfunctional aspects of the phenomenon. Conflict can be violent or non-violent. A non-violent conflict is described as competition, and in common language, violence, or the lack of violence, differentiates conflict from competition. A conflict may move through different stages; from a non-violent conflict in its initial stage, into a violent conflict.

Elections involve a set of activities leading to the selection of one or more persons out of many to serve in positions of authority in a society. Political scientists and development theorists link free, fair and credible elections to democratic governance, peace and development. In brief, they argue that free, fair and credible elections provide the basis for the emergence of democratic, accountable and legitimate governments with the capacity to initiate and implement clearly articulated development programmes (Orji & Ozodi, 2012). Again, they claim that free, fair and credible elections empower the electorate to hold the government accountable and to demand strong credentials and feasible development agenda from prospective government officials. In other words, free, fair and credible elections bestow on governments the legitimate authority to, on one hand, initiate and implement policies; while on the other hand, they empower the citizens to hold governments accountable for their actions and/or inactions. Credible elections are, therefore, sine qua non for democratic governance, political stability and national development (Orji & Ozodi, 2012). Danladi and Mohammed (2012:144) expressed that post-election violence is increasingly becoming a trend in Africa, with deadly consequences. The deadly ethnic violence that erupted in Kenya in the aftermath of 2007 elections and the elections crisis that almost divided the already volatile Ivory Coast and the post-elections crisis in Guinea Conakry and of recent the post-election violence that rocked the northern parts of Nigeria left thousands dead and properties worth millions of dollars destroyed. Election rigging, lack of trust between the electorate and political leaders, the partiality of the judiciary and the law enforcement agencies, particularly the police, and above all, the role of the media before, during and after the elections are some of the identified factors that fuel the violence.

Since 1999, elections have become more regular in Nigeria. Between 1999 and 2011, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) conducted four consecutive general elections. Elections in Nigeria were characterized by both psychological and physical violence (Alemika, 2011). Generally, violence involves the threat or use of physical force with the intention of injuring, killing and intimidating another person. It also involves destruction of property with a view to inflicting emotional or psychological injury and economic loss on another person. One of the major benefits of democracy is that it inhibits collective violence by providing mechanisms for non-violent competition for power and resolution of conflicts. Observance of the rule of law and respect for the courts are, however, necessary if this benefit is to be realised. Where citizens and government officials ignore the rule of law or disobey court orders, anarchy and violence are precipitated (Alemika, 2011). According to Kukah, (2003), politics in Nigeria has been essential one of very keen competition among the elites of the various ethnic and regional grouping in Nigeria. And in our area of study, the situation has been made more complex due to some reasons. One of the reasons lies in the lack of cultural, religious or ethnic homogeneity in the regions, a fact which has affected the relations of the inter-ethnic elites in the regions. These among other reasons combined to make the North a hot bed for communal strife. Ethnicity and religion play an important role in politics in Nigeria, as in almost all other countries of the world, there is no actual empirical evidence from Nigerian elections, which justify the way Nigerian politics is misrepresented as being almost entirely a matter of ethnic and regional solidarity and conflicts.
This view is a misrepresentation of the political realities of Nigeria and serves as a basis for the campaign against the corporate existence of the country, and the chronic crippling of the social, political and economic development of its people (Usman, 2000:80). The negative and devastating impact of conflict in Kaduna and other northern states have been very enormous and cut across social, cultural, economic and political spheres. Those grouping around ethnic blocs to fight their battles with, in the contest for power and wealth within the Nigerian elite, are manipulating religion to use as a basis for a sort of non-ethnic ethnicity in which Muslims and Christians are reduced to ethnic identities. Unfortunately, none of these two religions preaches violence.

In the conflict of 2011 as soon as election results began to trickle in from the April 16, presidential election and early figures indicated that the PDP candidate Goodluck Ebele Jonathan was on his way to win the presidential election with a wide margin, riots broke out in several northern states. Worst affected were Kaduna, Kano, Bauchi, where many people were killed or injured: the houses of many top and middle level PDP chieftains were torched and many cars and offices were burnt. Other amazing aspect of the riots was the houses of some prominent traditional rulers were attacked in Kano and Kaduna. At some points the riots became inter-communal, with the burning of many churches in Kano, Funtua, Zaria and Kaduna, quickly followed by ‗reprisal‘ attacks in southern Kaduna state that led to the death of an estimated 500 people (Jega, 2011:10). This violence is being characterized by issues such as greed, ignorance, illiteracy, manipulation, poverty, selfishness, unemployment, etc. which if not properly checked will continue to endanger the political atmosphere of Nigeria.

Violence and carnages could be said not to be strange occurrences in the north for the last four decades, but the 2011 presidential election was very different as the first region-wide riot over a ―strictly‖ political matter. It was alleged that the ruling PDP rigged the ballots, that INEC collaborated with PDP, that computers rigged up some election figures, that some states returned outrageous results of voter turnout, etc. The bottom line according to Jega (2011:10) however, was that most far northerners voted in the presidential election, for the congress for progressive change (CPC) candidate General Mahammadu Buhari, who unfortunately was not declared winner of the election. The post election violence in some states particularly Kaduna State is a sad reminder of how intolerance can trigger off the web of violence. In that crisis alone, up to a thousand people were believed to have been killed, and properties worth millions destroyed. However, many of the women and children that survived the onslaught have been turn into refuges in their own country and abandoned in the state of hopelessness (Shehu, 2011:30). That incident reminded many of some of the memorable episode of violence that the North had witnessed in recent times. They included marginalize riots in the Kafanchan, the famous Zangon Kataf conflict, the Shariah riots, the miss world crises among others. Mass media are by themselves social structure or vehicle for conflict resolution. Inter and intra-ethnic conflicts are inevitable in Nigeria because of Nigeria‘s social structure, is inherently prone to generate conflict from diverse ethnic-cultural interest and goals and from the political and economic necessities of survival, as communication is at the heart of all social intercourse. As a result of their ability to reach and influence large numbers of people, the media carries immense power in shaping course of a conflict. Although many examples of media‘s negative contribution to the violent conflict exist, fair and acute journalism and media content that builds confidence and counteracts misperceptions may have a potential in both conflict prevention and transformation (Melone, 2004). Journalism can play a role in escalating conflicts, which also demonstrates the potential for positive purposes. The media have the power to defuse tensions before they even reach a critical point and keep a critical eye on government, opposition and society. Apart from international media covering conflicts, local media are a recognized part of society with the ability to accelerate and magnify fears or reduce them. By supplying credible information and reaching a large audience, the media help in managing conflicts and promoting democratic principles. In the aftermath of a conflict, reconciliation and societal development can be encouraged as well.

1.2 Statement of the Research Problem

Kaduna state is one of the 36 states of Nigeria, highly heterogeneous consisting of various tribal/ ethnic groups. The state has over the years come under the obstruction of ethno-religious crises. The nature of political disorders/competition in Nigeria has reached the stage of mass participation among the bulk of Nigerians who are not literate in the acquisition of education, but that does not mean they are by any means of no political weight. This frequent occurrence of ethno-religious crises has remained a source of concern to the government and the citizenry. According to Abah, Okwori, and Alubo (2009), Kaduna experienced 24 Muslim-Christian conflicts between 1977 and 2002. The conflicts of 2000 were particularly bitter, resulting from an attempt to introduce Sharia law as a governing principle in the state. Discussing the role of media in the Nigerian society, Usman (1999:131) laments that: Matters happening somewhere are instantly brought to people‟s knowledge; unfortunately, along with this achievement is the high degree of abuse of the media for propaganda purposes. It is quite expensive to own and run them. Many of the foreign media are set up primarily for purpose other than money making. It is not purely to inform, educate and entertain as we are often made to believe. The international have become the convenient vehicles for image projection and propagation of hidden agenda often coated in music and fine news delivery. To achieve their objectives the foreign media have to collaborate with their Nigerian counterparts who are not so refined and go about in a crude manner. They see nothing good in the country. They thrive on false alarm and character assassination. News presentation is laced with comments contrary to journalistic tradition. They have therefore, been rightly described as the junk or gutter press.
Nigeria is currently at the receiving end of the destructive activities of the international media channels and their domestic agents. In spite of everything, we take pride in the acclaiming of the Nigerian press as being the freest in Africa and indeed among the freest in the world. As in many countries the bottom line of romance with press freedom is national stability, we are not alone in this game Usman (1999:131) added. It is only a matter of sophistication in approach and degree of self censorship. The media has often been accused of being bias or taking sides in reporting sensitive issue like conflict (Bello, 2005; Antigha, 2005; CSW, 2004, 2008; IMS/ISAI, 2004; Kurawa, 2006; Kurfi, 2008; Jimoh, 2008; Okoye, 2009). Some even allege that the media is being recruited in conflict situations to blow trumpets, ignite or precipitate violence among peace loving people or communities and most times these types of accusations come from the conflict parties who think and expect the media to be their mouthpiece or instrument of propaganda. The accusations are always borne out of misperception as well as misconception of the role of the media in the society. There is also the lack of sufficient and accurate, independent and balanced coverage by the media in the society. The lack of professionalism in the media has seemingly fuelled rumours and misperception in conflict times with often disastrous consequences. This research seeks to identify the crucial role media can play in preventing or reducing conflict in our society. Religious leaders, conflict and peace mediators or managers have for too long neglected the role the media can play in society before, during and after any violent conflict by exposing to the society the risk of such conflicts which are often avoidable and their pains mitigate able. There is a serious need for re-awakening in Nigeria on insecurity due to careless, inconsiderate and insensitive role of media in our society.

1.3 Objectives of the study
The main objective of this study is to examine the perception of the audience on the possible role of the media in supporting peace process, building trust and harmony in conflict effected communities. The study is set to find out if the role of the media in conflict management is dependent on the independence, balance, fairness and ability of the media to effectively communicate objectively and professionally to both the Government and the general public. The specific objectives for this study are therefore:-
a. To find out the extent of audience exposure to media messages on conflict management and reconciliation.
b. To determine the perception of general audience on the role of media in conflict management and reconciliation.
c. To investigate the extent to which both local and foreign media of communication impact on conflict, peace and reconciliation.
d. To examine the perception of pressmen, religious leaders, peace and conflicts practitioners on the role of the media in conflict management and the implication of such conflicts to security and national development.
e. To provide recommendations on the best media practice(s) during any violent conflict.
1.4 Research Questions

The aim and objectives will be achieved through the use of the following research questions.
a. What is the extent of audience exposure to media messages on conflict management and reconciliation?
b. What has been the general audience perception of the role of media in conflict management and reconciliation?
c. What is the impact of local and foreign media of communication on conflict, peace and Reconciliation?
d. How do pressmen, religious leaders, peace and conflict practitioners perceive the role of the media during conflicts management and what could the implication of such conflict to security and national development?
1.5 Research Hypothesis

Ho1. There is no significant relationship between audience exposure to media messages and conflict management / reconciliation.

Ho2. There is no significant relationship between audience perception of media and conflict management and reconciliation.

Ho3. Media of communication play no significant role in conflict prevention, peace building and national development.

1.6 Significance of the Study

The study is significant because it exposes the value of communication on our social, economic and political life and provides information for managing conflicts in our societies. Media contents on conflicts management is hoped to influence positive social behaviour change in the interaction and attitude of individuals or groups in any given society by trying to influence positive societal values and development. The perception of the media and its content/ messages is a prerequisite to achieving peace and conflict reconciliation. This study examines the roles of the media, before, during and after the 2011 Presidential elections and is hoped to contribute to body of literature on audience, perception, communication, media, conflict study and conflict management, electoral process and also election violence because it explored the positive and negative roles of media in election process, democracy and national development.

One of the significance of this study is that it will provoke further researches or studies on communication, perception and media in the field of peace building, conflict resolution and reconciliation by exploring the underlying causes and effects of such conflict and at the same time serve as a reference point in terms of awareness of literature and theories that support genuine media and conflict management practice, its experiment and where we are presently. This Research also exposes the grave and negative implication of violent political, ethno-religious and socio-economic conflicts on security and national development. It will also add to the existing body of knowledge on perception of communication and their possible influences on attitudes and behaviour change.

1.7 Scope of the Study

Obviously, the topic is very wide in its scope; therefore, analysis was limited only to perception study of the audience on the role media in conflict management and reconciliation in the given area, Kaduna state. Media is a very broad term which cannot easily be discussed in any given research of this nature with limited time and scope. This study focuses on the perception of audience of mass media messages (readers, listeners and viewers of national and international Newspapers, Radio and Television stations) on conflict management and reconciliation as it relates to Nigeria in general and Kaduna State in particular.
The attempt by various media to report conflict in an objective, balanced and unbiased manner was examined. However, due to the limited time and resources only issues relating to the subject were discussed. This study focus primarily on the perception of the audience on the role of media of communication in conflict management and reconciliation, the types of messages communicated during conflicts, and the reaction of audience to such messages during and after the 2011 post elections in Kaduna State.

The survey was carried out in about six months and was limited only to Kaduna State and covers only Three (3) cosmopolitan and one (1) semi urban local governments of the state. They include Kaduna North, Kaduna South, Sabon Gari, and Kachia Local Governments Areas, one from each of the three senatorial districts while in Kaduna central senatorial district two were selected because it is the centre and at the same a flashpoint of all conflicts in the state. Both primary and secondary data are used for the study. The data are both qualitative and quantitative, based on questionnaires and structured in depth interview with media practitioners, peace and conflict mediators, religious and community leaders. The study is supported by empirical sources and statistics of studies conducted by different people in different places and at different times.

1.8 Justification for the Study

The world has shrunk and no doubt we are in the global village as was earlier predicted by Marshall McLuhan in the 1960s. It is interesting to note that beyond the ordinary value of information, democracy cannot thrive without free and independent media of communication to provide checks and balances to institutions and governments at all levels. Likewise, the media cannot be effective in maintaining peace and preventing conflict if they are not responsible by being free from all sorts of sensationalism, propaganda and biases in their coverage of events or situations. In post conflict situations and peace building, reconciliation is a key component, a key element in preventing the recurrence of violent conflict. Recognizing the importance of the emerging conflict prevention paradigm, this study examines the utility of reconciliation processes in areas of latent or potential conflict for preventing conflict manifestation.

Since independence in 1960, Nigeria has witnessed several ethnic and religious disturbances, which are so devastating and have resulted in colossal loss of lives and massive destruction of property. Recently, after 2011 general elections some states were terribly affected by political cum religious violence. These have ravaged the societal wellbeing of Nigeria and the study was necessitated, as it focus more on finding and suggesting long-term and feasible solutions for conflict management and reconciliation. 1.9 Definitions of Terms Audience: Audience includes all those who are actually reached by particular media content or media ‗channels‘. Audience can be defined according to the relevant media and content or in terms of their social composition, location or time. The audience can exist as an imagined ‘target’ or intended group of receivers. Media audiences are not fixed entities and may only be known after the event as statistical abstractions (e.g. ‘the rating’), with a known probability of recurrence. Conflict management: this refers to intervention or efforts towards preventing the escalation and negative effects, especially violent ones, of on-going conflicts. These conflicts will then are reduced, curtailed, downgraded, coped with, especially since conflict are hardly completely resolved. Conflict: Spanler and Burgess (2005:1) States that conflict” involve deep- rooted moral or value differences, high-stake distributional questions, such as who dominate whom, fundamental human psychological needs for identity, security and recognition are often an issue as well, adding that “people will not compromise fundamental values”. Media effect: is the consequences or outcomes of the working of, or exposure to mass media, weather with intention or not. They can be sought at different level of social analysis. There are many types of effect, but it is usual to distinguish at least between effects that are behavioral, attitudinal (or affective) and cognitive.

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