Deciphering Ethnic Bias in Conflict Reporting in Nigeria: The Cases of Boko Haram and Niger Delta Militancy

Abstract

Nigeria’s march toward the establishment of a modern industrial/bureaucratic economy, the uneven place of development, the widening chasm between the rich and the poor as well as many forms of political, social and cultural disparities have caused a paroxysm of disputes, conflicts, and crises sometimes violent. These national realities have led analysts and scholars to postulate that the Nigerian press mimics Nigeria’s ethnic coloration. Thus, it is said to have Hausa/Fulani press, Yoruba press, Igbo press, etc. To what extent does this impinge on conflict reporting in Nigeria? This paper content analyzes four newspapers in their reportage of the Boko Haram crisis and the Niger Delta militancy. Boko Haram took the form of widespread destruction security structures of by Moslem fundamentalists alleged to be against Western values. The Niger Delta militancy involved oil theft, hostage taking, and violent destruction of oil/gas infrastructure due to perceived marginalization of the region. The discourse is predicated on Habermas’ (1989) ideas of rational, undistorted communication and Westerstahl’s (1983) concept of objectivity. The conclusion of the paper is that in spite of the characterization of the Nigerian press as ethnic, ethnic biases in news reportage are subdued.

LWATI: A Journal of Contemporary Research, 8(1), 223-231, 2011