Introduction

Media is the form and technology used to communicate information from one person
to another, groups and to impact knowledge to the general public (Webopedia, 2016). The
role of media is very crucial in transmission of information, educate, act as check on the
government, and give room to air out voice of the voiceless. The media also serve as the
public watchdog against the misusage of government and its functionaries in
administration. In Nigeria, the media beams its searchlight on the executive, the judiciary and
the legislature. In parliamentary parlance, the media exercise its responsibilities on the
executive, legislature and judiciary (Mark, 2012). For this reason, the role of the media is
important in ensuring good governance. Good governance is mainly concerned with the
delivery of sound economic and developmental policies in an effective way to the people.
The sound policies that are meant to secure justice, empowerment, employment, efficient
delivery of services, eradication of poverty and making a healthy social setup are essential
components that would be implemented through good governance, (Dunu, 2013).
There are several means through which information is gotten or accessed but the
citizens of any country basically rely on the media to provide them with meaningful
information and verified facts. (UNESCO, 2005). In many situations, media has contributed
immensely to transparent administration, created a better understanding of peoples needs and
aspirations, voicing their deepest concerns, demanding accountability and eventually building
meaningful partnerships between the government or development agencies and the people.
Therefore, the role of the media in good governance cannot be negated. The 1999 Nigerian
constitution in section 16 (1) a, b, c, and d, and Section 16 (2) entrenched some of the
principles of good governance as a possible criteria for governance in the country. Therefore,
in section 22, it charged the media with an important role to institute good governance, (FGN,
1999). The media is assumed to play an important role by serving as a mediator between the

government and the governed, by providing information for the citizens with which those in
authority can be held accountable. And also the media serve as a means through which
citizens voice can be articulated and presented to the government for use in policy formation.
Based on this premise, this paper tries to examine the significant roles that the media
has played in the society. Equally this paper presents the major roles media could play in
good governance with reference to the Nigerian experience.
The paper is structured into four parts which includes: the concept of media, the
concept of good governance, measures and aspects of good governance, and the role of media
in promotion of good governance.
Concept of Media
Wikipedia (2016) on its part defines media as the collective outlets or tools that are
used to store and deliver information. Etymologically, media is the plural form of medium
which refers to a means or instrument used for sending, storing or communicating
information. The term media refers to public institutions that report the news such as
newspapers, magazines, radio, and television collectively (thefreedictionary.com). Similarly,
media can be defined as the form and technology used to communicate information which
could be print, social or electronic in nature. In general terms, it can be called mass media.
In the context of this paper, media will be put into three types as applicable to this
paper
Print Media: This refers to paper publications irrespective of size or colour in the form of
physical edition of books, magazines, newsletters, etc.
Electronic Media: These are media that use electronics or electromechanical energy for the
end user to access them. It also includes the equipment used in the process of electronic
communication process e.g. radio, television, etc.

Social Media: These are computer mediated tools that allow people or group of people to
create, share or exchange information ,ideas or anything that could be shared electronically
i.e. in soft form. This includes Facebook, Twitter, Yahoo messenger, Blackberry messenger,
Whatsapp, etc. Social media has become a threat to the ethics of media practice and good
governance because of its accessibility and absolute freedom (Mark, 2012)
Concept of Good Governance
Good governance is an ambiguous concept with no exact meaning, it has defied
consensus definitions among the various scholars.

To understand the concept of good

governance, the term governance has to be explicitly defined. Governance is the provision of
the political, social, and economic goods that any citizen has the right to expect from his or
her state and that any state has the responsibility to deliver to its citizens (The M.O Ibrahim
foundation, 2010). World Bank in Anurag (2015), defines governance is the manner in which
power is exercised in the management of a countrys economic and social resources for
development. Wikitionary (2016) in its own part defines governance as the process of
governing.
Anurag (2015) noted that in the 1990s, it was realized that neither good policies nor
good investments are likely to emerge in an environment with dysfunctional institutions and
poor governance. The concept of good governance emerged as a model to compare
ineffective economies and political bodies. This centers on the responsibility of the
government to meet the needs of the masses as instead of some selected groups in the society,
(Anurag, 2015)
The concept of good in good governance is an appendage of the word governance as it
is seen as the process and institutions by which authority is exercised in a country (World
Bank 2004). Ekpe as cited in Gberevbie, Olayemi and Nchekwube (2014) argues that the
purpose of good governance is to create a conducive climate for political and socio-economic

development, to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of development programmes in a

society. He pointed out that the concept of good governance is used to characterize the
interplay of the best practices in the administration of a state or nation for sustainable
development.
Good governance is also characterized by democratization, maintenance of law and
order, accountability and transparency, competence, due process, separation and devolution of
power, a free press and a virile civil society arena, competition for power and the existence of
a credible opposition. All these characteristics assure that corruption is minimized, the views
of minorities are taken into account and that the voices of the most vulnerable in society are
heard in decision-making. Good governance helps to diffuse tensions and remove problems
as they evolve. Decision makers take the right decisions as and when due. However, in
today's Nigeria, political office holders have a wrong and misplaced concept of governance.
It is obvious that what drives most people to seek elective post is the "spoils" of the office.
Public office holders are interested more on how much money or state wealth they can amass
for themselves at the expense of the people who elected them into that office. The pillar of
good governance is probity, transparency and accountability. Sadly, these three are largely
absent in the nation's life. This explains why an average Nigerian is so skeptical of public
functionaries, (Dunu, 2015). The media is the unseen arm of government that upholds these
pillars of good governance through their activities.
Measures and Aspects of Good Governance
These are the criteria, measures, characteristics or elements of good governance.
Various organizations and individuals have come up with their own measures or aspects of
good governance but only a few will be mentioned in this paper. They includes
The Ibrahim Index of African Governance

The Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG) was launched in 2007 by the M.O Ibrahim
Foundation. The Ibrahim index of African government uses four main categories/criteria to
access African countries. They are
i.

Safety and Rule of law: This is further divided into sub-categories which are rule

ii.

of law, accountability, personal safety, national security.

Participation And human right: This is divided into sub categories which are

iii.

participation, rights and gender

Sustainable economic opportunity: This is divided into sub categories which

iv.

includes public management, business environment, infrastructure, rural sector.

Human development: This is divided into sub categories which includes welfare,
education and health.

The Ibrahim Index of African Governance is used to measure the extent to which
countries in Africa satisfy the overall governance.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
The organization for economic cooperation and development (OECD)

programme

on public management and governance, listed six aspects of governance which include:
technical and managerial competence ,capacity, reliability, participation, accountability,
transparency and open information systems.
United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
Publication on Media and Governance
UNESCO (2005) publication on media and governance also listed some the elements of good
governance to include: participation, rule of law, transparency, responsiveness, consensus
oriented, equity and inclusiveness, effectiveness and efficiency and accountability.
Role of Media in the Promotion of Good Governance in Nigeria

All aspects of Good Governance are facilitated by the existence of a strong, pluralistic and
independent media within the society (UNESCO, 2005). These aspects of good governance
listed by OECD are similar to the criteria/categories of good governance listed by Ibrahim
Index and UNESCO (2005). The role of media in promotion of good governance in Nigeria
will be discussed using the UNESCO (2005) elements of good governance.
i. Participation: This is an element of good governance refers to the involvement of citizens in
decision making and governance irrespective of their social status, (Okolo, 2014). The
greater the access to media, the more active the participation of the citizens would be in
influencing the activities of the government, (Chikara, 2015). When the media provides
information to the public, it enables them to make choices regarding their participation in
the state, market and societal activities. Sufficient information helps the people to decide
rationally and take the right course of action beneficial to them. An example is the
Nigerian elections, the media serve as a means of publicizing the contestants and even
show their live debates. In 2013, an online newspaper, Premium Times, reported that the
federal government awarded a $40 million Internet surveillance contract to Elbit Systems
an Israeli company, to monitor computer, Internet communication by Nigerians. This
raised a lot of debate around the freedom of expression. The Nigerian media have made
relentless campaign and provided various platforms for debate and discussions on
prevalent issues in the society. This not only ensured public participation in this important
national issue but it equally affected the outcome. The advent of the use of social media in
Nigeria to debate issues around government policies has increased participation.
ii. Rule of law: The rule of law is the bedrock of good governance. For good governance to be
achieved, there should be legal frameworks that will be enforced impartially. The rule of
law can be understood both as a set of practices which allow the law to perform a
mediating role between various stake holders in society and as a normative standard

invoked by members of society that demonstrate their assent to this principle (UNESCO,
2005). In the enforcement of the rule of law the media again plays a crucial role as the
sector of the society most able to promote vigilance towards the rule of law, through
fostering investigative journalism, promoting the openness of all the institutions that are
relevant in ensuring that the rule of law is respected in the society. The rule of law is
usually disrespected by the military government and corrupt democratic leaders. The
media serve the purpose of keeping officials of government within expected
(constitutional) bounds and the rule of law, (Okolo, 2014). A very effective means of
reaching the government about new policies, rules and regulations is through the media
which could print media, electronic media and social media.
iii. Transparency: This is often regarded as the openness of institutions, that is, the degree to
wish outsiders can monitor and evaluate the actions of insiders, (Dunu, 2013).
Transparency is also defined as official business conducted in such a way that substantive
and procedural information is available to and broadly understandable by, people and
groups in society, subject to reasonable limits protecting security and privacy (Okolo,
2014). The media also facilitate transparency in governance by serving as guard dog, as
well as providing a civic forum for multiple voices in public debate, and highlighting
social problems to inform the policy agenda. The media is a major tool for information
transfer to the citizens of Nigeria especially the electronic media. Television stations such
as channels, AIT are known to have hosted programmes to explain government and
actions; what had been done, how and why the certain decision was taken, the persons
involved, standards that guide their decision. Through this means government activity or
inactivity in public issues are opened up to the glare of the citizenry. Many corrupt
practices of government officials have been blown open by the media. Omoera cited in
Dunu, (2015) appraises this role of the media as whistle blowing or accountability.

iv. Responsiveness: This is the defined as a quality of a person or people, it involves responding
with emotion to people and events. Good governance requires that institutions and
processes try to serve all stakeholders within a reasonable timeframe, by responding to the
grievances, needs and aspirations of the citizens, (Mark, 2012). The involvement of the
media in public concerns easily draws the attention of the government to address such
issues. An example of this is Ojutaye a programme on Radio Lagos that provide a
platform for the residents of Lagos to present issues in their environment that require
government attention. Therefore, the media improves government responsiveness by
acting as a voice to the voiceless or the vulnerable.
v. Consensus Oriented: This is defined by Word Web (2016), as an Agreement in the judgment
or opinion reached by a group as a whole. Good Governance requires mediation of the
different interests in society to reach a broad consensus in society on what is in the best
interest of the whole community and how this can be achieved, (Dunu, 2015). The media
plays a vital role as consensus builder. The role of the media in mobilizing Nigerians for
the elections is a good reference of their role as a consensus builder. The intensive
coverage given during the period preceding the 2015 elections in part led to the
unprecedented huge turnout of electorates. It can be inferred that the media has served as a
vanguard for championing development programmes of government to the extent that the
citizens will be convinced to participate.
vi. Equity and Inclusiveness: The well-being of a society depends largely on its capacity to
ensure that all its members see themselves as stakeholders in it and are not excluded from
the other parts of the society. In the past times the Nigerian media have been accused of
prejudice in reporting issues that are of public concern. The role of the media is very
simple provided they will give balanced and fair coverage to all issues in a manner that
diverse voices and opinions will be represented,(Okolo 2014). Hence the media should be
free from government control. Although this may not be practicable in some cases. It was

observed in past times that Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) and the Radio Nigeria in
any state, will never broadcast anything that will not present the federal government well
to the citizenry of Nigeria. This also applies to state owned media houses thereby leaving
some of the very important broadcast to private media houses. As a result of this
credibility problem, foreign broadcast stations like the BBC, VOA, Aljazeera, CNN, etc.,
are more highly regarded by the Nigerian population as providers of credible information
on governance and related issues. As a result, these foreign stations tend to enjoy high
audience among Nigerian citizens.
vii. Effectiveness and Efficiency: This means that state institutions are functioning optimally
according to the rule of law, thus tremendously enhancing the overall effectiveness of
government, (Okolo, 2014). Although the media cannot itself ensure effectiveness and
efficiency of all the institution in the society. However, the media can help keep the
different institutions and administrators on their toes by readily and regularly reporting
cases of inefficiency and other related vices in the system. The media through
development of media campaigns, documentaries, editorial comments and other platforms
of criticism can spotlight institutions and practices that are inefficient and unproductive,
(Mark, 2012). The ultimate goal of media is to serve the public interest. The public interest
is defined as representing a plurality of voices both through a greater number of outlets
and through the diversity of views and voices reflected within one outlet.
viii. Accountability: This refers to being responsible to a person for some activity/resources.
Henshaw in Gberevbie et al (2014), argues that accountability entails that public officials
who manage public organizations are made accountable to the public - both in policies and
actions. Accountability is very important at all level of government such that without it, a
nation will never be developed. Not only governmental institutions but also the private
sector and civil society organizations must be accountable to the public and to their
institutional stakeholders. Generally, the government is accountable to the society it

governs. Accountability includes subjection and submission to various kinds of internal

and external examination. The media represent one of the major mechanisms of
accountability. Holding government accountable therefore is a constitutional requirement
of the Nigerian media. Access to information is the cornerstone of accountability. It is only
when the public are provided with the relevant and adequate information can they hold
those in authority accountable for their actions and inactions. As the main purveyor of
information the media owe a sacred duty to the public to provide them with truthful and
regular information. The Freedom of Information (FOI) bill passed into law gives full
access to the media and other individuals to access concealed information which normally
would not be made available to the public in the past. Accountability relies solely on
information as it is almost impossible without information. By publicizing information the
media also make public services more accountable to the people. There are social media
platforms also allow the citizenry to report incident of bribes, e.g. BribeNigeria.com,
IPaidABribeNaija.com, and Egunje.info, which is crowd-sourcing platform for
tracking corruption.

Challenges of Media in Nigeria

i.

The Nigerian media is greatly influenced by public office holders especially the
state owned media organizations. This limits their role in checkmating the
government.

ii.

Lack of protection for journalists in the discharge of their duty. In 2005, about
seventy journalists and media workers are killed, (UNESCO, 2005).

iii.

Lack of trained journalists in peace journalism. The media at times through what
they broadcast could lead to conflict escalation.

iv.

Restrain by government in media access to secret information.

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v.

Lack of credibility of Nigerian media, causing the citizenry to trust information

from international media organizations like CNN, Aljazeera, Sahara reporters,
BBC, etc.

Recommendations
i.

The state owned media organizations should be governed by a board of directors or

trustees that are free from influence of public office holders.

ii.

Adequate protection should be provided for journalists especially in the discharge of

their constitutional duties.

iii.

Journalists should be trained in peace journalism to prevent them from broadcasting

news that could lead to war or cause riots.

iv.

The government in accordance to the FOI bill should release information to the media
or individuals on request.

v.

The government should give room for media organizations to air their view without
interference as guided by laws as it is obtainable in developed countries like UK and
journalists should be trained in investigative journalism so that information they will
broadcast will be credible and reliable.

Conclusion
The Nigerian media in the past have been known to be functional in its role as the
vanguard for the promotion and sustenance of good governance, by speaking the concerns of
the citizenry. Even the struggle for independence was initiated and campaigned for by the
Nigerian media. Good governance is attainable in Nigeria and can be sustained provided the
media performs its role. The duty is left to the government and citizenry to make good use of
the different types of media at their disposal. Efforts should be made to make government

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owned media organizations independent to further aid them in delivering their constitutional
duties. This paper has examined the roles of media in promotion of the elements of good
governance, which cumulatively make up good governance, identified challenges faced by
the Nigerian media. This paper suggests that for the media in Nigeria to further contribute to
good governance, it should be free from internal and external influences.
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