The media in Nigeria is the only professional group given specific role by the constitution to serve as society’s watchdog. It has a role to play in governance by virtue of section 6.6.c and section 22 of the 1999 Constitution; It saddles it with the responsibility of monitoring governance and holding government accountable to the people.

There however have been complaints of limitations in the same constitution that gave enormous responsibility to the media without making the provision in the constitution actionable. To this extent, while the constitution specifically states that the media shall hold the government accountable to the people, same constitution does not give the media the power anywhere to effect this, as the section 22 is not actionable.

CONFLICT-SENSITIVE JOURNALISM AND MEDIA RESPONSIBILITY IN NIGERIA by Hameed Agberemi

On 14 July 2006, the International Press Centre commissioned me to carry out within a three-week period, an assessment of the state of journalism education, conflict-sensitive reporting and media responsibility in Nigeria in relation to print-media coverage of recent religion-related conflicts

This report is the outcome of my inquiry into the state of conflict-sensitive journalism and media responsibility in relation to print-media coverage of religion-related conflicts in Nigeria. This report details my findings, conclusions and recommendations. A separate report contains my findings on the extent of conflict-appreciation and conflict awareness in currently available journalism education in Nigeria.

Strengthening media capacity through advocacy and training for effective coverage of campaign against Traffic In Persons (TIP)

This project is designed to strengthen the capacity of the Nigerian media to adequately report and play stronger role in the advocacy against Traffic In Persons (TIP). It is apparent that the Nigerian media needs assistance to improve its watchdog role in monitoring and reporting continuing violation of the rights of citizens. In particular, the Nigerian media needs to report in greater detail the increasingly rampant cases of Traffic In Persons (TIP) and its social, cultural, psychological and economic implications for the citizenry and the nation. According to Section 22 of the operating constitution, the Nigerian media has the responsibility of making government accountable and ensuring that governance is in accordance with Schedule 11 of the constitution. That schedule says that the main purpose of government shall be the security and welfare of the citizens. To the extent that human trafficking does not take place without individual and state security being breached and without the welfare of the victims being compromised, strengthening the coverage of TIP thus becomes a constitutional mandate for the Nigerian media.

Anti-corruption, monitoring/advocacy and enhanced media perception/coverage of corruption

In two-year 2005, the International Press Centre, Lagos leading other partners in the Media for Democracy Group, applied for and got support from the European Commission in Nigeria to conduct some Media Monitoring Activities on anti-corruption monitoring and media advocacy project through a grant support of N15 Million Naira (88, 382: 00 Euro) by the European Commission.

It is expected that the project would add value to anti-corruption campaign and strengthen media capacity to engage in anti-corruption advocacy in Nigeria through such methodologies as:

In the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks in the United States, IPC held a media round-table that reviewed media coverage of the incident nationally and internationally. Of concern to some of the participants was the lopsided nature of the reportage such that sections of the third world media merely repeated or parroted the foreign media. In the process prejudices of some of these international media crept into reports by the third world media, one of the most noticeable being the tendency thereafter to label religion related protests, especially by adherents of  Islam, as acts of terrorism.