Nigerian journalists have a duty to perform in the interest of the society and the country at large. The major duty is to act as a watch dog of the society.
This research harps that development journalism is the only panacea to rural development in Nigeria. In it, the researcher unravels, that development journalism cannot be possible where there is no freedom of information.
Although, it is often said that the press in Nigeria is free, but in chains. It is to this end that journalist instead of carrying out objective and balanced report of an event especially about development projects embarked upon by the government, resort to re-echoing government statements, whether true or false. The situation has made the rural populace to look down of the press and pose a question, when the phrase, watch dog of the society is looked at more critically.
A responsible journalism is that which is poised at exposing the skeletons in the cupboards of the government and its agencies. But how can this be when the journalist is placed in a tight corner.
As development journalism is a new form of investigative reporting. One cannot just report stories simply because one knows it to be true. No, government has to say so first. Such is the situation in Nigeria. In most cases, some true stories are rejected by the government and adopt false ones. A development agent here becomes helpless since he cannot afford to pay the penalty for disobeying the government.
Hence, the advocacy for the government to sign the freedom of information bill into Law. It is only when this is done that development journalism can actually take its true shape in Nigeria.
According to Aggarwala as quoted by Udeze (2005:38) “Development Journalism is a new form of investigative reporting. It is that type of journalism in which the reporter’s duty at his beat is critical to examine, evaluate and report the relevance of a development project to national and local needs, the difference between a planned scheme and its implementation, and the difference between import on the people as claimed by government officials and as it actually is.
The above explanation by Aggarwala, suggests that there is enough press freedom for the development journalism to say precisely what he/she observed without any restriction from government. The concept pre-supposes that when government say they have built bore-holes, stepped down electricity, given scholarship to indigent students, constructed roads, equip hospitals etc., the development journalist should verify the authenticity or otherwise of the claim and report it as it is.
This is not so in Nigeria, as those who try to do so have at times been murdered by the government dark goggle agents. Hence, the diversion to developmental or praise singing journalism by media practitioners in Nigeria, particularly those who work in government owned media. This bastardized version of development journalism expects the reporters to re-echo the statements of the government officials whether true or false.
No wander Dilip Mukejee, an Indian journalist stated that.
“Our need is urgent and acute; we belong to societies which are in the process of restructuring and reshaping themselves.
In our environment, there is, and will be for a long time to come, much that is ugly. Normally, we will be playing up only these dark spots, and thus helping unwittingly to erode faith and confidence without which growth and development are impossible.”
The media no doubt affects the attitudes and values of people. Thus, I put it that Nigeria needs encouragement from its citizens to achieve rural development. This development which is defined as not only transition from poverty to material prosperity, but also more human dignity, security, justice and equality. Or as Walter Rodney (1976:6) said development at the individual level implies increased skill and capacity, greater freedom, creativity, self discipline, responsibility and material well-being cannot be achieved through this from of journalism of adopting the elephant posture of see, hear and say nothing when government commits atrocities like embezzlement, murder and total abuse of power.
Development journalism can abet the stabilization of obviously unjust structures of rule, if manipulation of information is legitimized under the pretext of the common good.
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