MULTIPARTY DEMOCRACY AND CAMPAIGN COVERAGE OF NIGERIA’S 2023 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

A STUDY OF DAILY TRUST AND VANGUARD NEWSPAPERS

Abstract

Multiparty democracy thrives on competitive political engagement and access to a diverse range of choices for the electorate. In Nigeria, the news media, particularly newspapers, play a central role in shaping public understanding of electoral campaigns. This study examines how two prominent Nigerian newspapers, Daily Trust and Vanguard, covered the 2023 presidential election campaigns. Drawing on agenda-setting theory, the study explores the extent to which campaign promises, candidate character, and policy direction were emphasised in media coverage. Using quantitative content analysis, 298 editions published between 28 September 2022 and 23 February 2023 were analysed. A structured coding sheet was developed, and inter-coder reliability was assessed using Cohen’s Kappa, yielding kappa coefficients ranging from 0.78 to 0.84 across categories. The findings reveal that both newspapers disproportionately covered specific candidates. Daily Trust emphasised Atiku Abubakar's promises and Bola Ahmed Tinubu's character and policies, whereas Vanguard presented a more balanced coverage of the major contenders. The analysis shows that political coverage was shaped not only by issue salience but also by regional media affiliations, reinforcing Nigeria’s longstanding electoral fault lines. The study concludes that newspapers, while central to political communication, may inadvertently contribute to uneven visibility and electoral perception in a fragile multiparty democracy.