Mediatization in Nigeria: Examining coverage of the 2019 presidential election

Abstract There has been an increased discussion and literature on the mediatization of politics since the 1960s following the role that the media plays in the 21st century, especially in democratic states. Using content analysis, this study analyzes mediatization of politics in Nigeria with emphasis on the 2019 Presidential election. This is with the objective of examining how news content was framed and the extent to which news coverage was driven by media logic rather than politicallogic. Data for the study is derived from reports of four randomly selected newspapers in the southern and northern regions of the country published two weeks before the 2019 Presidential election. The newspapers include Thisday, Vanguard, Daily Trust and Blueprint. The study concludes that the 2019 Presidential election coverage was characterized by media logic given that news reports during the election were cast more as a strategic game or horse race. This implies that the news coverage centered on analyzing the performance of politicians, the political institutions, strategies employed by political parties prior to and during the election. Results also indicate that news reportage during the period under review was far more descriptive than interpretive. Key Words: Mediatization, Political Communication, Media Logic, Political Logic, Nigeria, 2019 Presidential Election. JCMR Journal of Communication and Media Research, Vol. 14, No. 1, April 2022, pp. 1-14 © Association of Media and Communication Researchers of Nigeria (AMCRON). About the authors * Laura Cervi, Ph.D., is a Serra Húnter Professor at the Department of Journalism and Communication Sciences of the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB) Cerdanyola, Spain. She is also a Member of the Communication and Education research group of the Autonomous University of Barcelona. ** Santiago Tejedor, Ph.D., is Director and Associate Professor at the Department of Journalism and Communication Sciences of the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB), Cerdanyola, Spain. He is also General Coordinator of the Communication and Education Office research group of the Autonomous University of Barcelona and a Visiting researcher at the Bolivarian Pontifical University of Medellin (Colombia), Latin University of San José (Costa Rica) and Central-American University of Managua (Nicaragua). *** Chiogo Constance Ikokwu is a doctorate student in Political Communication at Autonomous University of Barcelona and a faculty member at the Institute for American Universities in Barcelona, Spain. She is also the Editorial Lead for the African Press Club (TAPC), a professional organization for African and African Diaspora journalists, writers, storytellers and others in the business of news. Article Citation Cervi, L., Tejedor, S. & Ikokwu, C. C. (2022). Mediatization in Nigeria: Examining coverage of the 2019 presidential election. Journal of Communication and Media Research, 14 (1): 1 – 14. Full Article Words: 8,941 Pages: 14 To access full article, click on download.