TELEVISION INFLUENCE AND POLITICAL PARTICIPATION OF NIGERIA’S UNSEEN MINORITY
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Newcastle, United Kingdom: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
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Active political participation is an important factor in a healthy democracy. From the mundane monitoring of electioneering campaigns on television to voting and contesting during elections, citizens get involved to register their presence as a matter of right and obligation. But in the emerging democracy of Nigeria, political participation has significant ramification that is shaped substantially by the media. This study sought to determine the extent of involvement of the residents in Ado-Odo/Ota, a semi-urban area in Ogun State - one of the country‟s 36 political subdivisions, sequel to exposure to the broadcasts of the 2007 presidential election. Positive and statistically significant relationships were found between citizens‟ exposure to television broadcasts and their political participation. The broadcasts encouraged them to seek out more information about political parties and election candidates. However, it turned out that the influences of television on participation of the residents were affected by their own inadequacies – illiteracy and rural location of voters, among others.
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H Social Sciences (General), PE English