The Media and Violent Conflict In Nigeria

Paul Andrew Gawza, Government of Nigeria, Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution, has published The Role of the Media in De-Escalating Violent Conflicts in Nigeria. Here is the abstract.

This paper examines the role of the media within the context of the very impulsive violent conflict dynamics in Nigeria. The paper constructs these dynamics from the backdrop of the country’s history in colonialism, which has shaped the contemporary narratives of the diverse socio-cultural nationalities as they relate with the state and among themselves. The paper employs the interdisciplinary methodology to review authoritative secondary literature to interpret primary sources on the evolution, character and manifestation of the media as it engages the Nigerian society. The paper finds that though the media is the product of the society, in this case the Nigerian society, it is evolving into a more responsive agent of social reengineering in line with global standard. Thus, the role of Nigerian media must not be viewed in isolation because of increasing acceleration of the forces of globalisation in permeating and penetrating the hitherto iron walls of national sovereignty and territorial integrity. Indeed, the Tower of Babel is here with us.

Download the article from SSRN at the link.