THE SIGNIFICANCE OF MEDIA IN POLITICAL ARENA

INTRODUCTION

Media are platforms through which communication are passed from one person to another, or

from one place to another. Communication is the transfer of message, data, information or event

from one person to another, or from one place to another place for the purpose of informing,

awaking, creating awareness, cause change in attitude, stimulation, improve productivities,

defending, etc. Media is an aspect of marketing management. Media platforms include

Newspapers, Television, Radio, Hand-bills, Beam-board, and Pamphlet. Mass media is focus on

reaching out to large numbers of people at the same time at different locations.

The history of mass media emanated from man struggle for liberty and freedom, which include

freedom of expression, freedom to write and express oneself. This struggle was given

consideration in 1700. Since then enriched Elite politicians invest greatly in setting up media

industry, in order in order to reach-out to their various target audience across the globe. This

instrumental tool has both merits and demerits. Some used it develop their countries, while

others used it to pulled down their political opponents and black listed them with all kinds of

values aberrations. All organs of government-such as Executive, Legislature and Judiciary-

turned public broadcast to an avenue to propagate their political agenda and dissemination of

their parties interests.

Politics is the capacity for power acquisition and its application for governance of the state and

influence the allocation of its both human and physical resources in the interest of state

development. Power is with people, consequently, how much prepared are you or your capacity
to project viable programed to solve the masses’ problems and crises; this will make them to

release such power. This is usually through democratic and electoral process. The electorates

determine who represent them, and at what capacity, in political and democratic setting.

The importance of media is enormous for politics at different levels of its activities. It stimulates

citizen engagement in politics; these include political parties’ membership registration, voters’

registration, elections and electoral campaigns, electorates’ management, are among the major

political activities. Journalists perform a duty in ensuring that masses are well informed about the

truth state of issues in governance.

There are four major types of media, namely; traditional media, print media, electronic media

and social media. Traditional media of passing information and communication is an approach

based on the use of traditional devices, such as talking drums, flutes, town criers, etc. to deliver

information and communicate among the people of a particular locality. The print media are

approach of dissemination of information and communication through hard-wares like;

newspaper, hand-bills, beam-board, pamphlet, books, magazines, journals, newsletters, novel,

etc., while electronic media are methods of disseminating information and communication

through electronic devices, such as television, radio, computers, microphone, megaphone, etc.

from one person to another person, or from one place to another place. Social media is the

newest approach in dissemination of information and communication through electronic social

platform that make use of searching engine like internet, Twitter, You-tube, Google-Chrome,

Whatsapp, Facebook, Instagram, etc.

Personal communication through media brings politicians and parties closer to their potential

voters. It makes parties management more effective and efficient. It enhances politicians
communication and information collation faster and easier, and reach citizens in a more targeted

manner and vice versa, without the needs of intermediate, like mass media. Reactions, feedback,

political campaign, conversations and debates are generated online as well as support and

participation for offline events. Information and messages are posted to personal networks are

multiplied when shared, which allow new audiences to be reached.

The major challenge of media is that it lacks the principles of objective, fairness and impartial

report. It also positively influence organizations and the political terrace and at best provide

relatively biased coverage or at worse act like virtual propaganda machines for a particular

political party. Certainly, some issues are subjective, hence there can be no universal line of

thought, and requiring all news organizations to passively report only what they see and not

include an analytical perspective, would to a certain degree, defeat the purpose of having a free

press.

Further, the presence of media is rapidly spreading and the pattern used are changing, online

political engagement is largely gaining ground, people are employed to host and manage

websites for political activities for some politicians. The latter are restricted to people already

active in politics and skillful in handling the Internet. Other audiences are less responsive. For

example, television news together with print and online newspapers are still the most important

sources of political information. It has re-engineered the structures and methods of contemporary

political communication by influencing the way politicians interact with citizens and each other.

However, the role of this phenomenon in increasing political awareness, engagement and

electoral participation is incomparable.

have concentrated large amounts of media assets and use influence political activities. Thus,

these individuals, from whichever point of the political sphere, can deliver a powerful political

message on behalf or against a political establishment through their respective media empires.

This is especially damaging if parts of the general public are more exposed to one particular

media empire either due to its high popularity or the lack of alternative media sources.

Moreover the media provides platform for check and balance for governance. Due to rapid

development in mass media in the past, such as radio, TV, satellite and Internet services, helps in

development in political dispensation. This case ensures that political activities are embraced by

wider audience. The boom in media services has also allowed various organizations from all

over the political sphere to effectively reach their target audiences.

The Journalism Acts stressed stated that the independent media is a responsibility of the

government for a liberal democracy to strife. This entailed that the government must be able to

control all the information regarding its own actions and be accountable to the masses.

Consequently, the importance of a free press cannot be under-estimated. In a liberal democracy,

the aim of a free press is to continually scrutinize the government and provide people with

accurate and impartial information so that they can act on it accordingly.

Besides, the impact of the media through application of information and communication

technology, especially internet on electioneering campaign is rapidly gaining ground. The

possibility to communicate directly with electorates via social media is groundbreaking and

essential for the development of citizens-initiated campaigning.

The media impacts started as dated back as pre-independent era in Nigeria. It is an aspect of

marketing management. The history of mass media emanated from man struggle for liberty and

freedom. Politics is the capacity for power acquisition and its application for governance of the

state and influence the allocation of its both human and physical resources in the interest of state

development. Media stimulates citizen engagement in politics.

It can be concluded that the importance of media in politics is very enormous; beneficial to all

with developmental impacts on politics.

REFERENCE

1. Paul, Kegan, (2015), "Journal of Politics". Cambridge Library.

2. Clark, William Roberts, Matt Golder, and Sona N. Golder. (2013), “Power and politics:

insig from an exit, voice, and loyalty game.”

3. Activist Impulses: Campus Radicalism in the 1930s (Cohen)

4. Dey, Eric L., (1997), Undergraduate Political Attitudes: Peer Influence in Changing

Social Contexts, Journal of Higher Education, Vol. 68,