CRITICAL ASSESSMENT OF THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE NIGERIAN MASS MEDIA AS THE FOURTH ESTATE OF THE REALM

Abstract

Democratic theory states that the mass media are considered as the Fourth Estate of the Realm, expecting them to function as a watchdog who watches the three arms of government: Legislature, Executive and Judiciary. Concerns, however, persist as to whether the Nigerian mass media are effective in performing this accountability role since the country reeks in corruption, insecurity and all manner of abuses of public offices. This paper performed a critical assessment of the effectiveness of the Nigerian mass media as the fourth estate of the realm, evaluating the structural as well as the institutional influences that bedevil the watchdog responsibility. The researcher adopted a qualitative analytical method, relying on analyzing existing literature, policy documents, frameworks and scholarships that were relevant to the social responsibility of the media and democratic accountability in Nigeria. Findings revealed that while media houses and sister institutions play important roles in checkmating public office holders and other investigative journalism efforts, they are greatly challenged putting on the fourth estate of the realm toga due to constraints from Nigerian politicians, ownership structure, dependency on advertising for survival and ultimately weak institutions, among other limiting factors hindering their exposé from translating into accountability. The researcher, thereafter, concluded that a rethink or reconceptualization of the fourth estate of the realm model into a collaborative accountability framework (since the Nigerian realities have proven that a singular institution lacks the capacity), will strengthen the accountability ecosystem in Nigeria, earnestly.