THE USE OF BROADCAST NEWS COMMENTARIES AS A STRATEGY FOR SOCIAL CHANGE

THE USE OF BROADCAST NEWS COMMENTARIES AS A STRATEGY FOR SOCIAL CHANGE

(A study of Broadcasting Corporation of Abia (BCA) Umuahia)

ABSTRACT

This research work is necessitated by my personal interest to identify how far the broadcast news commentaries have contributed to the social change programmes in our society. In other words, to ascertain whether the social change activities are making any impact on the life’s of the masses. This study is aimed at examining the news commentaries fall in between features and editorials in a print media. In some instance, the commentary is a news analysis; here the commentaries attempts to provide a closer look at a major news story. However a broadcast commentary is a philosophical piece, as print columns often are as well as personal essay on a physical or social issue in the news.

CHAPTER ONE

1.1   BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

Broadcast news commentaries are aimed at instructing and refining the society. Some members of the society are not highly sociable and might readily misunderstand certain societal norms and values and therefore require some enlightenment.

News commentaries can be seen as a set of note or critic remarks or a continuous flow or a remark on an event based on one’s opinion. Commentaries can be seen in Radio, TV, where as in a newspaper it is called feature commentaries, it can also be referred to as editorials in a print media. It can be used to disseminate a state or federal government policy that can bring about social change in the society.

In broadcasting, news commentaries must be relevant to the domestic and foreign policy of the nation. In other words, the commentary is not expected to be intimidating and defamatory to any individual rather, it should be remark and an explanation on particular issue of important. The content of a news commentary cut across all aspects of human endeavors like, politics, Economics, agriculture, Environmental sanitations etc. For earned a broadcast news commentary carried by BCA entitled ‘the need to clean our environment through sanitation” points out that most people in the state, Irrespective of their degree of education and sophistical on urinate, defecate and throw away refuse with careless abandon. The commentary further added that clean up precede such events as national day celebrations ad a visit by foreign or local dignitary.

News commentaries, have been said to be an instrument for social change not only by reporting on changes in the environment but also by creating or shaping the impressions of various aspects of the environment through selective presentation and through reemphasizing certain things, in the words of Allen (1971:32). He called this “the cultural norms”, the role these cultural norms is on enforcing the societal norms, the mass media may initiate actions by exposing condition which are not at various places with public moralities.

Wilbur Schram (1979:24) in his book mass media and national developments, shows the mass media as agents of social change”. He says that the populace must first become aware of a need which is not satisfied by present customers and must subsequently invest or borrow behavior closer to meeting the need.

Writing on the uses of broadcasting and news commentaries, Aspihau (1998:10) says that “broadcasting can persuade and effectively influence large audience, thereby contributing to the dal wellbeing and substantially, to the thinking of the nation”

Nweunel (1999) in his book called “Mass Communication in Nigeria” research on the relationship between various media of Mass Communication and said, that it is now a general his book called ‘Mass and after decades of between various media of socio-economic variables belief among development.

Communication on scholars that broadcasting radio in particularly could be the most effective media for disseminating information on various social change programme from the government and other institutions to the masses living in the developing nations of the world. He went further to say that, the information available from the survey of the literature on the dissemination by the use of radio broadcasting for development and other social change programme in Nigeria, suggests that radio is presently utilized as an effective means of inducing social change in our society. In other words, it will be logical that the mass media generally have much impact on a developing society. On this premise schema and. Roberts write when we turn to development, it is clear that without broadcasting, the course of change will be slow indeed.

Since, broadcasting and news commentaries are transmitted through the radio, it shows that the programme has been effecting change on the attitudes of the people.

1.2   STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Conceptually, the mass media is established by the federal Government, state government of Nigeria, and it is expected that they will create ‘awareness to the public about issues through the use of broadcast news commentaries and at the same time educate them on how to go about it. The need therefore arises to determine whether they are playing the necessary role in effecting social change through broadcast news commentaries Therefore, the problem is to know whether news commentaries from BCA brings about social change and shaping the people’s behaviour

1.3   OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

This study is designed to achieve the following objectives:

1. To see how broadcast news commentaries brings about social change.
2. To compare BCA commentaries with other media ho us s
3. To establish the relevance of news commentary in our society.
4. To ensure the effectiveness of broadcasting corporation of Abia in its increment, of social change.
5. To see how news commentaries could be used as a means of social change.
6. To look into the problem and difficulties encountered by the Broadcasting Corporation of Abia BCA as a media house, and how they can be solved.
7. To find out whether broadcasting services and news commentaries as disseminated by BCA act as a means of social change.

1.4   RESEARCH QUESTIONS

To act as a springboard to elicit solutions to the research problem; the formulation of some research questions becomes necessary. And for this reason, a number of research questions are hereby given below;

1. How new commentary as a vital programme of any station does bring social change?
2. Has BCA through its programme been assisting both state and the federal government in their crusading function, to restore sanity in our lives?
3. Have the broadcast news commentaries programme encouraged you to embark on any industrial project?

1.5   SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

This study, Broadcast news commentary as a strategy for social change is to ascertain which of the two main broadcast media “Radio and Television” is more effective in persuading and influencing social change.

1. It is also to find out which of the two is more demanding by the public and other social agent. People stand a better chance to gain from this study as they would always need the best satisfaction from any one of the media they may be exposed to.
2. The researcher as a final year student will gain a lot from this study also when she joins the media to demonstrate what she has learnt.
3. Finally, this research study is for the benefit of the entire public whose task is to pay attention to the broadcast news commentary for a better change.  

1.6   SCOPE OF THE STUDY

It deals with how news commentaries from BCA can cause a change on the society either positively or negatively and how it can effect a social change.

It equally covers all the areas within the sphere of BCA coverage and its environs, because everybody within Aba State is a witness to how news commentaries influence people’s behaviour.

1.7   AREA OF STUDY

Umuahia is chosen as the area of study because it is where BCA is situated. Umuahia is the capital city of Abia state in southeastern Nigeria.

Umuahia has a population of 359, 230 ACCORDING TO THE 2006 Nigerian census. Umuahia indigenes ethnic group are the Igbo.   

1.8   DEFINITION OF TERMS

Broadcasting: The distribution of audio and video content and/or video content to a dispersed audience via any electronic mass communication medium.

Broadcasting service: This means sending out services, or it is a method of transmitting radio, or internet or television signals to a number of recipients (listeners or viewers. Ike (2005:25)

News Commentary: Collection of comments on recent happenings or a set of note or a remark on an event be on opinion.

Strategy: a carefully devised plan of action to achieve a goal, or the art of developing or carrying out such a plan.

Social change: This refer to an alteration in the social order of a society.