Impact of Social Media on Modern Journalism in Nigeria
ABSTRACT
The research studies the Impact of Social Media in Modern Journalism in Yenegoa. At moment, the majority of Journalists in Yenegoa prefer facebook and Twitter as their networking tools. A great number of Journalists in Yenegoa have access to the internet and are exposed to social media networking tools. The researcher studied a population of 400 people whereby she used purpose sampling technique was accurately used to select sample size of 150 which a total of 110 were retrieved.
It is also true that Some Journalists in Yenegoa Metropolis require basic computer training to be relevant in the modern Journalism practice and to explore the various opportunities that internet and social media have to offer. It was recommended that; Press men should research the available social media networking tools to verify which one of them is more trust working and reliable to ensure the credibility of source.
Secondly, that, media organizations, press bodies and government should provide facilities for training and retraining of Journalists on the new information and communication technology (ICT) to ensure professionalism and quality services to modern and sophisticated media consumers. Media organizations should organize seminars and workshops to sensitize and educate Journalists on the impact of social media tools so that they can embrace social media and use social networking tools to improve their skills and professionalism in Yenegoa city.
Impact of Social Media on Modern Journalism in Nigeria
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study
A century and a half ago communication between countries involved physical presence. With the advent of digital technology, the role of journalism became indispensable. The beginning of information communication technology such as the internet has made it possible to find out about events without actually being there. Journalists report news across the world over the internet. Throughout history, developments in technology and communication have been going hand in hand, and the latest technological developments such as the internet have resulted in the advancement of the science of communication and taken journalism to the next level.
This process of human communication has evolved over the years, with many path-breaking interventions and discoveries. The first written communication in the ancient world brought about written communication. The intervention which is of paper, wax, and papyrus culminating in the 13th century made it possible for the transfer of documents from one place to another uniformity of languages over long distances.
Social media have been boosting electronic communication. It is therefore worthy of emphasis that it is the interactive and collaborative nature of these internet-based tools that attracted the word “social”.. This truism underscores Nwodu (2007:7) position revolutions taking place in communication technologies have further reduced Mcluhan’s global village level to ‘’ a tiny global family’’ which is the lowest level of social groupings. Nwabueze (2010) notes that social media platforms lay emphasis and dialogue or two-way active contribution by both sender and receiver in message development.
This underscore why for social media we have user unlike the mainstream where we characteristically have access to new media technologies with internet connectivity, you can only qualify as a user because of its interactive nature whereby you can post comments online and interact with others who are as well connected irrespective of geographical locations. This underscores the populating of user-generated content as users generate content for online interaction. Social media is thus credited with the following characteristic.
- They are interactive Web 1.0 internet–based applications.
- They operate on user-generated content such as text, posts or comments, digital photos or comments or videos and online generated.
- They provide basic for users to create services specific profiles for the website or App that are designed and maintained by the social media organization.
- They facilitate the development of social networking by connecting as user’s profile with those of others individuals or groups (Obar and Build man 2015)
Social media is therefore what it is because of the advent of the internet. Without the Internet, therefore, perhaps there would have been nothing like social media since all social media platforms function via Internet access. This underscores Kaplan and Hamenlin’s (2010) definition of social media as a media that use web-based technologies to transform and broadcast media monologue into social media dialogue.
On his part, Keitzman and Kristopher (2011) explain social media as “computer-mediated technologies that facilitate the creation and showing of information, ideas carrier interest and other forms of expression, via vital communities and network. Social media via therefore differ from traditional mass media like newspapers magazines, radio, television, and film given its web- base. One outstanding difference is that social media platforms like Facebook, twitter, 2go, Instagram, and others make maximal interaction between people irrespective of geographical barriers.
Journalism, on the other hand, is the deliberate and conscious efforts to gather information, collate and analyzing data for the purpose of informing, entertaining and educating the people with a view of making an appropriate decision (Casimn Akimrefi, 2002). Journalism is also an investigation and reporting of events, issues, and trends to a large audience. Though there are many variations of journalism, the ideal is to inform the intended audience about topics ranging from government and business organizations to cultural aspects of society such as arts and entertainers. The field of journalism includes editing, photojournalism, and documentary. The work is posed to assess the impact of social media on modern journalism in Yenegoa city.
Impact of Social Media on Modern Journalism in Nigeria
1.2 Statement of the problem
The impact of social media in today’s world of communication cannot be overlooked. Since its arrival social media have positively changed the way journalists work, and how stories are developed and disseminated. Social media have had a positive impact without a doubt, but there are also concerns about their impact: productivity and the disruption it could have on journalists working patterns. Social media have created a dependency among those working in the media and many are unable to do without them.
Social media have become journalists’ lexicon and it seems sourcing information has overtaken self-promotion as a primarily social activity. While journalists are growing more sophisticated in their use of social media and are, for instance, using a great variety of sources for news, some journalistic activities, their engagement with their audience, their products and the quality of their works. Based on these contrasting views, the question. This research seen to unearth how social media affected the journalists in Yenegoa metropolis concerning their journalistic duties
1.3 Objectives of the Study
- To ascertain the type of social media tools which journalists in Yenegoa metropolis prefer.
- To know if journalists in Yenegoa metropolis are exposed to social media networking tools.
- To determine whether social media have enhanced the productivity of journalists in Yenegoa metropolis.
1.4 Research Question
- What type of social media tool do Journalists in Yenegoa metropolis prefer?.
- To what extent are Journalists in Yenegoa metropolis Exposed to social media networking tools?
- What are social media productivity of Journalists in Yenegoa metropolis
1.5 Scope of the study
This study is to focus on journalists in Yenegoa metropolis and is not conducive for Journalists in other parts of Nigeria. Since journalists, where common characteristics and skills, data generated from this study and the result obtained thereof, can be applied to all journalists.
1.6 Significance of the Study
This study will be incalculable to Journalists, media organizations, news agencies, editors, lecturers and students in the field of Journalism and mass communication of well as other researchers who will want to embark on the same study as this. This study will help Journalists to source useful information using social media networking tools as well as provide them with guilds and write online stories. It will also help journalists to interact with the audience and identify their information needs. It also help journalists who have rarely social media to do so to increase their productivity.
1.7 Limitations of the Study
In the course of an investigation, the researcher encountered some challenges that confront him are summarily stated be; limited time for submission, financial constraints, insufficient materials on the related subject matter, and the stress of combining research for this work with normal lectures hence the work was conducted when the researcher was preparing for her final year examination. However, the researcher ruggedly took up the challenges and worked assiduously to overcome them.
- 8. Operational definition of significant terms.
- Medias: This implies Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and other social media networking tools which journalists use to disseminate information in Yenegoa City to a large heterogeneous audience.
- Social Media: The term social media refers to the internet–based social networking website developed to especially help people share their views and say in touch with their friends, relatives, and well washers.
- Journalism: This is the practice of writing editing and disseminating information to the public.
- Modern Journalism: this is a term used to describe the new era in journalism where the internet and computer are used.
Impact of Social Media on Modern Journalism in Nigeria
Impact of Social Media on Modern Journalism in Nigeria
Impact of Social Media on Modern Journalism in Nigeria
Impact of Social Media on Modern Journalism in Nigeria
Impact of Social Media on Modern Journalism in Nigeria
Impact of Social Media on Modern Journalism in Nigeria
Impact of Social Media on Modern Journalism in Nigeria
Impact of Social Media on Modern Journalism in Nigeria
Impact of Social Media on Modern Journalism in Nigeria
Impact of Social Media on Modern Journalism in Nigeria
Impact of Social Media on Modern Journalism in Nigeria
Impact of Social Media on Modern Journalism in Nigeria
Impact of Social Media on Modern Journalism in Nigeria
Impact of Social Media on Modern Journalism in Nigeria
Impact of Social Media on Modern Journalism in Nigeria
Impact of Social Media on Modern Journalism in Nigeria
