Anti-corruption Promises and Print Media: The Case of Nigeria

Abstract

Assertions are held widely that the mass media play an important role in ensuring that an elected government fulfills its campaign promises. This paper examines the reaction of the Nigerian government headed by Goodluck Jonathan to corrupt practices and media’s response to that reaction. Newspaper reports of the alleged corrupt purchase of two bullet proof vehicles by a senior government official are used as a test case of the Jonathan’s promise to stamp out corruption. Content analysis was adopted to generate data for the study. Results show that government’s promise was not fulfilled, as public office holders emphasized the mundane aspect of corruption as a strategy to distract citizens’ attention from the real issue of corruption eradication. The citizens’ hope that the government would prosecute suspected corrupt officials, as reported by the media, was short-lived

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