edition-dw-akademie-in-the-service-of-the-public-functions-and-transformation-of-media-in-developing-countries-pdf

Part III Nigeria: Freedom Radio, an African Private Public Service RadioNigeria: Freedom Radio, an African Private Public Service RadioFreedom Radio is a privately-owned commercial radio station based in the northern Nigerian city of Kano. It is an example ofhow private media can take over some functions of public service media in an environment in which only state-run and privatemedia exist. It shows some of the features of community radio – involving local audiences, giving a voice to local issues andconcerns – but goes beyond that. Freedom Radio has clear ambitions to fulfill the primary tenets of public service media whileremaining a private enterprise. It strives both to create a public sphere, a forum for the discussion of political and social issues,and to support the education, empowerment, integration, and entertainment of its audiences. The context within which it operates,however, remains a difficult one. The outlet is – by its own admission – strongly reliant on international partners to delivercertain values, including journalism training and sector-specific management training. Another main challenge is the extremelydifficult environment that journalists have to work in. Freedom Radio has gained the loyalty and support of a broad segment ofthe population, a circumstance which allows it to wield an impressive amount of power. So this case shows that privately-ownedpublic service media represent a model with advantages and challenges. The most important reforms that need to be made applyto the media sector itself, so as to generate a climate more supportive of initiatives and outfits, like Freedom Radio, that canmake a valuable contribution to a media landscape in Nigeria that focuses on serving the public.For more than half a century, since some time before independence,broadcasting in Nigeria has been well ensconced instate hands. Not until 1992 was a move made to break the governmentmonopoly in audio-visual media, and since then theprivate sector has grown enormously. State-run media howeverremains largely that – state run; community media are nonexistent,so for a measure of independence in broadcasting,one must look to the private sector. In the following, we take alook at one of the leading private broadcasters in the north ofthe country, Kano-based Freedom Radio, and examine to whatextent it fulfils public service functions.Nigeria – A Brief OverviewSince gaining independence from Britain in 1960, Nigeria –the ‘Giant of Africa’ – has had a checkered history, with militarydictatorships following in rapid succession, interspersedwith attempts to establish civilian rule.The First Republic, established shortly after independencein 1960 and imbued with the sense of huge optimism thatswept the continent at the time as one country after anothergained their independence, only lasted until 1966. The Nigeriangovernment was from the start an uneasy coalition of twoof the three main ethnic groups which formed the larger bodyof Nigerian society: these three groups, the mainly MuslimHausa/Fulani, 1 the Igbo (from eastern Nigeria) and the Yoruba(mainly based in the south west) were divided by marked culturaland political differences. 2In January 1966, the first of several military coups tookplace and in 1967 the Igbo in the eastern region of the country,who had been a prominent target of violence in the mostrecent coup, voted to declare independence as the Republic ofBiafra. A nearly three-year ruinous civil war followed, resultingin the deaths of between one and three million people inthe region.During the oil boom of the early seventies, the countrybegan to profit more from its mineral wealth, although thegeneral standard of living for most people did not improve,nor did the infrastructure. In 1979, the Second Republic wasestablished when then military leader Olusegun Obasanjohanded over power to a civilian government. This brief returnto democracy, however, proved short lived, and theincompetence and corruption of the civilian regime meantthat people viewed the military coup of January 1984 as practicallyunavoidable:“Many Nigerians initially saw the army as the most effectivebody to control the country, but with the understandingthat military rule was an interim measure and that plans mustgo forward for the transition to democratic government.” 3That transition, however, took a further 15 years to effect.There was another failed attempt to elect a civilian presidentin 1993 under General Ibrahim Babangida. The grip of the militarytightened. When finally, in 1999, elections were held andformer military leader Olusegun Obasanjo was elected President,these elections, though deeply flawed, were nonethelessgreeted with relief, both nationally and internationally. It waswidely felt that the military had had their day.Following elections, in 2003 and 2007, were far from satisfactory:“EU observers witnessed many examples of fraud, includingballot box stuffing, multiple voting, intimidation of voters,alteration of official result forms, stealing of sensitive pollingmaterials, vote buying and under-age voting.” 41The Hausa and Fulani aregenerally grouped together asthe Hausa-speaking, largelyMuslim ethnic group predominantin the north of the country.2Altogether there are an estimated250 to 400 ethnic groups inNigeria, depending on sourceand method of definition, andaround 400 different languages.Hausa and Fulani make uparound 29% of the population,Yoruba 21% and Igbo 18%.See IREX 2012.3Mother Earth Travel.4European Union Election ObservationMission to Nigeria 2007, 2.Edition DW Akademie In the Service of the Public 185