Global News Agencies: Economic, Political and Socio-Cultural Implications of Their Negative Reportage of Developing Nations like Nigeria (Published)
Global news agencies have played vital roles in the growth and development of mass communication, they provided on -the spot reports of events from around the globe, in-depth investigations and analysis of events that have shaped the world. But the imbalance of their reportage has not gone down well with developing countries who have alleged that their part of the world is been under reported and unfairly treated in terms of content. According to studies, this negative reportage has led to some implications on the economic, political and socio-cultural aspects of their lives. These allegations were x-rayed to verify its authenticity. Having realized the implications and examined it, some recommendations were made and they include: The stereotypes on Nigeria, Africa and other developing countries caused by the negative reports by the global news agencies especially Western media must be deconstructed using scientific and educational tools. The media’s approach towards Africa must be revised and their informative strategies realigned to consider the trends, contexts and positive events occurring in the continent. Sensitization and educational programmes involving the Western public are required at various levels to promote the desire to have better in-depth and qualified information on the African reality. Gate keeping theory of mass communication served as the theoretical framework for this research while the internet served as source of data collection.
Keywords: Developing Nations, Economic, Nigeria, Political, global news agencies, negative reportage, socio-cultural implications