photography and new media in conflict reporting
TRANSCRIPT
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Photography and New Media in Conflict Reporting
ABSRTACT
In Many violent conflicts if the past, the media in general have executed a destructive role and apparently contributed to hatred and incited violence (e.g in Rwanda, the former Yugoslavia). Consequently, media development has gained major attention in conflict situations, particularly because its potential for playing a much more constructive role. Unlike the old media, new media led to the emergence of Multi-‐User Virtual Environment (MUVEs) in the 21st century, a development which has influenced conflict reporting thereby making it easier for people to follow the trend of globalization. According to ISOC-‐Nigeria (1999) electronic networks now make it possible for people to interact, coordinate action, and access and exchange information from mere desktop or laptop Computers. The networks provide numerous services including the electronic mail, the Web World Web, information retrieval, electronic commerce, news groups, intranet, games and gossips. the most important thing is that people of all ages, colours, creeds and countries freely share ideas, stories, data, opinions and products. To a great extent, new media and photography facilitate conflict reporting in several occasions in most parts of the world including Nigeria. A vital question that often comes to mind in any discourse on photography and conflict reporting is what is the relationship between photography and new media? Apart from chatting and information dissemination. It is photos and video generates contents that actually make new media what it is today? The overall aim of the study is to critically examine the role of photography and new medias it concern conflict reporting. The specific objectives of the project are; to examine how conflict is reported with the use of photography and new media, and to access the relevance of photography to conflict reporting. The research design of this study was informed by the very nature of the study-‐ new media and photography in conflict reporting. Inclusively, participant and non-‐participant observation on social media platforms and selected social media networks were used to get the needed information on photography and new media in conflict reports. The participant observation was carried out both on Hope for Nigeria Media and I Love Nigeria, while others involved non-‐participant observation including tech Talk Africa, blogs and I-‐reports which are veritable sources of news on conflicts. A Nigerian blog is a site written by or Nigerians, which is updated at least once in three months and is publicly accessible.
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With New media, digital cameras makes it possible for reporters from any part of the country to double as photographer, and camera phones give them and other witnesses the ability to record and distribute video. Photographic images are used for identification on passports, drivers license etc. Using photography as proof depends on photo being an accurate recording of reality, because of photography is capable of affecting the credibility of new media reports negatively or positively especially in conflict situation. It is important that people especially users are mindful of the photography they upload with unprecedented ease. It is recommended that the motive or rationale behind reportage should be inform and not to exacerbate controversy or increase the public sense if insecurity. If not properly handled, the new nature of the identity conflict on the new media (some of which are exacerbated by conflicts reported0 could lead to social disintegration in Nigerian cities.
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CHAPTER ONE Introduction 1.1. Background of the study Since late 1990s, new media has been a means of engaging different groups of people in
various activities including conflict reporting. New media has become critical to conflict
discourse in contemporary society. On the other hand, the role of photography in
conflict reporting gives it an admirable position in adding value to the creation and
growth of social media. The revolution in conflict reporting has been intensified by new
media industry with the help of digital photography which makes it faster to make
pictures available within seconds when needed. The network proliferation associated
with social media sets it apart and makes it unique from other forms of media, like the
old media especially in terms of coverage and wider reach of audience.
Development agencies have shown a great deal of interest recently in using the media
as a technique for addressing conflicts. From the media practitioners themselves, one
sometimes gets the impression that they believe their activities can have all kinds of
beneficial impacts almost anywhere if only they could be expanded through more
resources. But in the enthusiasm to apply this form of influence to conflicts, questions
concerning whether and how the various forms of media can be most effective, and in
what contexts, have not been examined in any systematic way (Berne, 2002).
In many violent conflicts of the past, the media in general have executed a destructive
role and apparently contributed to hatred and inciting violence (Rwanda, the former
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Yugoslavia, etc). As a consequence, the media development has gained major attention
in conflict situations, particularly its potential for playing a much more constructive role.
Therefore, in international efforts to prevent violent conflicts and stress peacebuilding,
the media are seen as an important tool in contributing to achieve these goals (KOFF,
2002). Unlike the old media, new media creates interactive platforms between users
and followers in different parts of the world who do not necessarily need to know each
other or meet face to face. One salient feature of new media is that it allows people to
create communities based on identities or interests. For instance, people create groups
on different social networks with specific objectives, either to advance culture,
education, youth empowerment or advocacy, relationship, religious inspiration,
business ideas and success tips, enlightenment on safety tips and healthy behaviours
etc.
New media led to the emergence of Multi-‐User Virtual Environments (MUVEs) in the
21st century which has influenced conflict reporting thereby making it easier for people
to follow the trend of globalisation. According to ISOC-‐Nigeria (1999) electronic
networks now make it possible for people to interact, co-‐ordinate action/ and access
and exchange information from mere desktop computers. The networks provide
numerous services including the electronic mail, the World Wide Web, information
retrieval, electronic commerce, news groups, Intranets, games and gossips. The most
interesting thing is that people of all ages, colours, creeds, and countries freely share
ideas, stories, data, opinions and products.
One thing that is worthy of note is that both photography and social media shape
conflict situations especially when it takes religious or identity-‐based dimension. Either
way, the way they are used could exacerbate conflict being reported as some people
express displeasure over irritating pictures.
Recent events in Arab Africa, euphemistically known as ‘the Arab Spring’, bear witness
to the weaponisation of mobile telephony and the internet in bids to oust entrenched
political and socio-‐economic orders. In this role, the mobile phone is a tool of subversion
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and a tool of surveillance. It is a tool of organised resistance and social activism.
Recently, the perception of mobile telephony as more than just a tool of sociality and
economic development has been complicated and enhanced by the emerging view that
it is the very sine qua non for democratic change from autocratic rule and dictatorship
(Zegeye and Muponde, 2012). It played out in conflict reporting even as people used
their phones as medium of picture upload and reportage.
To a great extent, new media and photography facilitate conflict reporting in several
occasions in most parts of the world including Nigeria. A vital question that often comes
to mind in any discourse on photography and conflict reporting is what is the
relationship between photography and new media? Apart from chatting and
information dissemination, it is photos and videos generated contents that actually
make new media what it is today. There is hardly any account or user on social media
that does not have a photograph or pictures attached to usernames or blogs. Most new
media platforms contain daily news updates, viewpoints, feature articles and essays on
Nigeria, Africa and the world at large from different perspectives. Nigeria Infonet for
example, is a site on the Internet that provides a listing of numerous news and media
sources available to anyone interested in either niche or general interest publications.
An example of international media outlets providing news analysis on Nigeria’s political
situation can be found on the websites of both American and British media outlets. The
British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) and Cable News Network (CNN) both maintain
special websites on events and personalities related to electoral process. Most of them
have their websites linked to most new media sites for updates and news alerts.
In contemporary Nigerian society for instance, it has become a particular concern over
the forms of media that are most likely to make the most difference in reducing conflicts
and strengthening peace. There are arguments on the impact of new media on conflict
situations even as photography and new media platforms play significant roles in
making conflicts public. Photography and new media are significant in all forms of
conflict such as inter-‐sate conflicts, intra-‐state conflicts, inter-‐personal conflicts,
communal conflicts including armed conflicts which often take violent dimension.
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The main focus for media activities has been intra-‐state conflicts that have broken out
into widespread violence or the use of militarized force (Berne, 2002).
It is a fact that journalists are the tools of truth and photojournalism is expected to
1.2. Statement of the Problem There is no gain saying that photo journalists have become endangered species in most
parts of the world including Nigeria. Their safety is hardly guaranteed as they are
continually targeted and victimised. They often become victims in the process of trying
to cover or report conflicts as they are attacked by any of the parties to the conflict.
Objectivity in conflict reporting becomes problematic especially when new media is
involved. Principles of conflict reporting and investigative reporting are often
undermined in the process. People who have little or no experience in journalism have
also emerged in the scene with the emergence of new digital media technologies which
now aid communication especially networking with multi-‐users simultaneously. The
difficulty of censoring the type of photographs and updates by different people who use
social media has complicates conflict reportage especially when it involves.
On several occasions the photography and new media could cause identity conflict
when irritating photos are uploaded on any new media platform to the extent that
some users would question the moral integrity of the person involved or the
administrator of the forum where such picture is generated.
The level of abuse is high due to rampant availability of new media technologies as
people now stay in their rooms and access any social network and upload pictures
without considering the far reaching implications associated with their actions. The level
of accountability to public sphere on new media is low and this could have negative
effects in terms of perceptions. Again, most times, some materials uploaded on the
internet cannot be removed and can even stay there for many years except the
administrator decides to remove them. The use of photography and new media in
conflict reporting does not come without challenges. The worst case scenario is found in
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areas of intense conflicts especially in most African countries where legitimate
governments are struggling to suppress rebellion.
1.3. Aim and objectives of the study The overall aim of this study is to critically examine the role of photography and new
media as it concerns conflict reporting.
The specific objectives of the project are as follows:
1. To examine how conflict is reported with the use of photography and new
media;
2. To assess the relevance of photography in conflict reporting;
3. To examine the nexus between digital photography, photo journalism,
components of new media, peace journalism and conflict reporting.
4. To identify the challenges associated with photography and new media.
1. 4. Research Question
1. How conflict is reported using photography and new media?
2. What is the relevance of photography in conflict reporting?
3. What are the linkages between digital photography, photo journalism,
components of new media, peace journalism and conflict reporting?
4. What are the challenges associated with photography and new media in conflict
reporting?
1.5. Justification of the Study The role that photography and new media play in conflict reporting cannot be
underplayed. This study is highly significant considering the nexus between photography
and new media as it is difficult to enhance objectivity without effective combination of
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both. Most studies on media issues have not given scholarly discourse on how
photography and new media are integrated to facilitate report of most internecine
conflicts in different countries especially Africa.
This study will bring to fore the relevance and components of new media as they
concern conflict reporting and photography. Most scholars have not explored the
inextricable linkage between photography and new media in conflict reporting. The gap
is timely and be relevant for discourse on conflict studies. It will contribute to
knowledge and assist researchers in this area of interest.
1.6. Scope of study
This study is an attempt to examine the extent photography and new media can go in
facilitating conflict reporting with the aim of assessing their impacts. The depth of the
work is that it will draw up examples from contemporary society where photography
and new media either contributed to conflict escalation or de-‐escalation, with emphasis
on selected incidents and the outcome of photography – new media usage. Nigeria will
be put into proper perspective.
1.7. Methodology The methodology employed for this study is a combination of primary and secondary
sources of data to establish the background to the role of photography and new media
in conflict reporting.
The design employed to carry out this study is the descriptive research with particular
reference to the case study method. It adopts a descriptive analysis both content and
context of photography and new media. Key informant interviews sources Interviews
involving users of new media that often upload photos will be utilised to gauge the
opinions and perceptions of key stakeholders on the topic of investigation including
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people’s everyday engagements with new media in informal settings. It will also include
participant observations with use of some social networking sites to get information on
how conflicts are reported on new media with photographs. Apart from observation,
there will be content analyses of selected media sites, profiles, videos, and other
materials.
1.8. Conceptual Discourse Photography According to Oxford advanced learner’s dictionary, photography is the art, process of
taking photographs or filming, while a photograph is a picture that is made by using a
camera that has a film sensitive to light inside it.
The Media consist of the institutions and techniques by which specialised social groups
employ technological devices such as typographic, photographic and electronic system
for simultaneous and impersonal dissemination of symbolic content or messages to
large and dispersed audiences (Oloko, 1996:11).
New Media According to Osazee-‐Odia (2008:347) “New Media refers to computer mediated systems
which are enhanced by the internet and satellite technology. Their applications to
communication, facilitated by transmission hardware are very significant to information
sharing and circulation.” According to Ito et al (2008), the term “New Media” is used to
describe a media ecology where more traditional media, such as books, television, and
radio, are “converging” with digital media, specifically interactive media and media for
social communication. In contrast to work that attempts to isolate the specific
affordances of digital production tools or online networks, we refer to the media
ecology that youth inhabit today. It is believed that current media ecologies often rely
on a convergence of digital and online media with print, analog, and non-‐interactive
media types.
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Examples of new media technologies include digital satellite television, global satellite
telephones, internet websites, mobile telephony, short message service facilities,
multimedia equipments such as video, audio and pod casts facilities, among others.
Some of these products consist of user-‐generated contents while others depend on
service providers.
Social Media According to Kaplan and Haenlein (2009) Social Media refers to ‘a group of Internet-‐
based applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web
2.0, and that allow the creation and exchange of User Generated Content’(cited in
Barrons, 2012). Some examples include Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, MySpace.
Social networks are sites that allow people to create communities on the internet
around shared relationships, interests and activities. Social media sites now provide the
fastest means to interact with other users on the internet.
Conflict
Lewis Coser describes conflict as a “struggle over values, claims to status, power and
scarce resources in which the aims of the ‘opposing’ parties are not only to gain the
desired values but also to neutralise, injure, or eliminate rivals” (1956:10).
Galtung sees conflict as a situation where parties have incompatible goals, stand in each
others way, they presume things they think are incompatible. The goals may be
economic, political, social, cultural, military, or religious; and it is when these goals are
incompatible that the problem comes. Conflict could take a violent or non-‐violent
dimension. Conflict is said to have escalated when it takes more intense or destructive
form.
Conflict reporting It is the process of giving detailed account of conflict situations to through messages
texts, or photographs.
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References Arthur, C. 2011. Google and Twitter launch service enabling Egyptians to tweet by
Phone. The Guardian, 1 February. Available from: http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2011/feb/01/google-‐twitter-‐egypt/ Accessed 20 May 2012.
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Berne, C. S. 2002. “Media and Peacebuilding: Concepts, Actors and Challenges -‐
Summary of report.” K O F F Media and Peacebuilding -‐ Workshop Report Berne, 25th June.
Coser, L. (1956). The Functions of Social Conflict, Glencoe: Free Press.
Galtung, J. (1996). Peace by Peaceful Means. London: Sage.
Ito et al 2008. Living and Learning with New Media: Summary of Findings from the
Digital Youth Project. The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Reports on Digital Media and Learning.
K O F F – Center for Peacebuilding. 2002. Media and Peacebuilding -‐ Workshop Report
Berne, 25th June. Oloko, B. A. 1996. Culture and the Media. In Odejide, A. ed. Women and the Media in
Nigeria. Ibadan: Bookcraft Ltd. Zegeye, A. and Muponde, R. 2012. “The social lives of mobile telephony in Africa:
towards a research agenda.” African Identities Vol. 10, No. 2, May 2012, 123–128 CHAPTER TWO 2.0 Theoretical Framework and Literature Review
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2.1. Theoretical Framework Significant critical and theoretical attention has been paid to how new media allow the
text to break traditional power relations and boundaries. The passive reader becomes
an active participant choosing his own path and assembling not just his own
interpretation of the text (level of the signified), but also his own text (level of the
signifier). Texts no longer have a beginning or an ending, being a web of interlinked
nodes. The decentered nature of electronic text empowers and invites the reader to
take part in the literary process. Post-‐structuralist theorists predicted a total liberation
of textual restrictions imposed by the medium of print. However, while these are
culturally significant claims, little attention has been paid to their realiation (Baetens
and Looy, 2003).
It should be added that recent events in the world portrayed their realization to great extent. 2.1.1. Media Dependency Theory
Ball-‐Rockeach and DeFleur (1976), in formulating the media dependency theory,
explains that the more dependent individuals are on the communication media for
having their needs fulfilled, the more important the media will be to them. When
individuals are exposed to the media constantly over time, they tend to depend heavily
for their information needs on the mass media as a result of confidence built over time
in the ability of the media to meet such needs. Such needs could range from information
requirements, entertainment, para-‐social, vocational and other needs which could
enhance their lives and livelihoods. In essence, the theory assumes that people make
use of media to achieve certain goals and to satisfy significant needs which also includes
information and communication. Ball-‐Rockeach and DeFleur further maintain that
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audience dependency on media information resources is key interactive condition for
alteration of audience beliefs, behaviour, or feelings as a result of mass communicated
information. In this context, audience dependency is said to be high in societies in which
the media serve many central information functions and in periods of rapid social
change or even pervasive social conflict. The fact that audiences are active part of the
communication process make the peculiarity of the theory apt in contemporary society
where communication is dominated by new media, photography and conflict reporting.
James (1996:96) describes communication as an act of message sharing in human
environments. Akibu (2010:106) considers communication as covering just about any
interaction with another person, which involves sharing of information, feelings and
ideas. The connection between photography and new media is significant because
photographs communicate meanings and send messages just the way new media also
communicates information.
Mass communication on the other hand means a process in which professional
communicators use technology to messages over great distances to influence large
audiences (Wilson & Wilson, 1998).
Events in contemporary society shows that mass media especially the new media will
over time have more influence and power over the attitudes and behaviours of
individuals or groups that are constantly exposed to it. Presently, new media and
photography have been playing significant roles in conflict reporting to the extent that
people depend on them to glimpse of new incidents.
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2. 1. 2. Framing Framing is a process by which media elites or communication services such as news or
political organisations define and construct issues or events (Gamson, 1992) cited in
Anyadike. The thrust of this theory is based on the assumption that how an issue is
characterised in news report can have an influence on how it is understood (Schenfele
and Tewksbury 2007:9). Framing involves selecting some aspects of perceived reality
and making them more salient in such a way as to promote a particular problem
definition, causal interpretation and moral evaluation (Entman, 1993).
According to (Eti, 2009) it is pertinent to frame the issues involved in conflict in such a
way that they become more susceptible to management. The way to achieve this is to
undertake a wholistic approach to conflict discourse and not just scanty reportage of
conflict behaviours exhibited by the parties involved. A wholist approach will include
origin, dynamics, and options for resolution. Such an approach will be more beneficial to
the course of resolving the conflict situation.
Dietramn and Tewsbury (2007:9) maintain that by extension, the mass media can also
shape the consideration that people take into account when making judgments about
conflict issues (cited in Anyadike 2009). Hence, this makes it even pertinent for media
practitioners, users of new media and photojournalists to be objective even as they
farme and take account of events with the mindset that they are serving the public
sphere.
2.1.3 Agenda-‐Setting Theory
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Agenda-‐setting refers to a situation where the media pays attention to certain topics,
they determine, or set the agenda, for what topics are discussed by individuals and
society (Campbell, 1998).
Agenda – setting theory according to Anyadike (2009) is linked to the landmark work of
Lippman (1922) who says that the media help to “put pictures in our heads”
The role of media in conflict cannot be underplayed.
Most of the events recorded in society usually become part of the news both on old and
new media. Some of the stories are also found on the front pages of national dailies and
blogs with photographs or pictures. Those same stories were issues of the moment on
the national, and local, radio and television newscasts. The idea behind the agenda-‐
setting theory is that the media are good at telling us what to think about. The media
set the agenda by the choices the gatekeepers made (journalists, reporters etc.). An
interesting aspect of the agenda-‐setting function is that editors (gatekeepers) are all
making independent decisions all over the country every day.
2.2. Literature Review 2.2. 1. Objectivity in Conflict Reporting Most times mass media are attracted to conflict situations.
Principles of Journalism
The news media’s traditional role is often said to be to serve the public interest by being
a reliable information provider, a forum for free speech and a watchdog of government
(Puddephatt, 2007).
Some of the principles are: it must serve as an independent monitor of power; its
practitioners must maintain an independence from those they cover (independence is
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an underlying requirement of journalism); its essence is discipline of verification; its first
loyalty is the citizens; journalism’s obligation is to pursue truth in practical sense; it must
provide a forum for public criticism and compromise; it must strive to make the
significant interesting and relevant, by balancing what readers/listeners know they want
with what they cannot anticipate but need; it must keep the news comprehensive and
proportional, and not leaving important things out; its practitioners must be allowed to
exercise their conscience. These principles when observed would promote peace
journalism.
Conflict is also hard to talk about without engaging the emotions of the discussants. This
is due largely to the humanitarian implications, especially when conflict gets violent.
Presenting an objective and balanced report therefore becomes a tortuous, almost
impossible task. “The principles of reporting are put to sever test when your nation goes
to war” (Kate Adie as cited by Allan & Zelizer, 2004:3).
Bruhn (2003) argues that Journalists are not only persons who tell us stories, and that
they are natural narrators in crisis situations who also have to analyse, investigate, give
opinions and propose solutions on a reality that may be very complex and difficult.
In this context, it is believed that for them to be able to contribute to a fair development
in a crisis, knowing that the media alone probably will not prevent a conflict, it is crucial
that national and international journalists have good knowledge and understanding
about the country’s historic and current situation, the good or bad relations between
different actors and possible external interests in the crisis. Often, journalism is in a fix,
caught between staying true to the principles of reporting and responding adequately to
the urgent realities of conflict or war. As Allan and Zelizer (2004:3) have aptly stated:
“confronted with the often horrific realities of conflict, any
belief that the journalist can remain distant, remote, or
unaffected by what is happening ‘tends to go out the window’
in a hurry”.
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Conflict reporting according to International Press Centre (2006:44) is not a daily affair
for the media and when such conflicts break out, reporting them becomes a pervading
assignment for journalists. By its very constitution, proprietorship, mode of operation
and sustenance, this section of the Nigerian press is akin to being a little sensational,
gossipy, and manipulative in the treatment of stories, if only to stay in the market. This
is evidenced by their screaming headlines, scandal and gossip stories, and in some cases,
pedestrian use of language. Since it is unfashionable in the journalistic turf to report
events and issues in such a manner as may be seen to be expressly biased, there is the
need to develop measures by which to raise the credibility of the Press and, define a
mode of operation for her and position her to effectively articulate the issues
appropriately.
Among the roles of the mass media in society – surveillance, interpretation, linkage,
transmission of values and entertainment (Dominick, 2002: 34), the first two are critical
to conflict reporting in any conflict zone.
In its surveillance function, the press plays the role of an observer, which is
“a necessary component for enforcing economic, political, cultural and even moral
stability” in the polity (Mu’azu, 2002:47). In this role, the media highlight aspects of
society – events, people and issues – which they gather as information and report as
news. The position of media as having immense power in shaping the course of a
conflict is occasioned by their ability to reach and influence large numbers of people
both simultaneously and at different periods of time. Although many examples of the
media’s negative contribution to the escalation of violent conflicts exist, fair and
accurate journalism and media content that builds confidence and counteracts
misperceptions may have a potential in both conflict prevention and transformation.
Contemporary societies, especially those in the developing countries, cannot downplay
the significance of the mass media in creating social cohesion in the polity.
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In the words of Manoff (1997:2), “It is clear that, taken together, mass media
technologies, institutions, professionals, norms and practices constitute one of the
fundamental forces now shaping the lives of individuals and the fate of peoples and
nations. To be sure, media influence is not evenly distributed in space or time and varies
with circumstance. But, overall, media influence is significant, and increasingly so, and s
a result the media constitute a major human resource whose potential to help prevent
and moderate social violence begs to be discussed, evaluated, and, where appropriate,
mobilized.”
The above assertion offers insight into the present realities especially when it involves
entire aspects of media both old and new. Media should not be ruled out in being
source of conflict sometimes in the society.
McCormick (2004: 5) notes that it is the responsibility of the media to avoid the risk of
oversimplification of conflict by classifying opposing views into the two extremes of
good or bad, inferior or superior. This is apt considering the impact of media reports on
social integration and public opinion.
Therefore, the mass media needs to approach conflict discourse with the understanding
that there are far more than two sides to every conflict story.
Again, McCormick (2004: 7) further warns against representing “the image of conflict as
a two-‐sided tug of war,” but instead as the image of a “prism with many facets that are
at once interconnected and distinct and also change with the angle of light and the
angle of the viewer.”
Moeller (2004) offers insight into a graphic example of oversimplification as seen in the
handling manner of the American war declared on terrorism, that it rather turned out
be a dangerous decision the Bush administration took in assuming that the appropriate
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response to the threat of terrorism was to unleash maximum military might in the very
homeland of the terrorist. Obviously, the American government did not anticipate the
huge cost it has incurred – the lives lost, and the foreign policy crisis it has suffered as a
result of the war.
Frohardt and Temin (2003:3) have noted that a multitude of media outlets all espousing
similar messages do not constitute plurality. Hence the press should have a challenger,
another press system with an alternative voice. Here the national press system and
international media organizations have a significant role to play.
Apart from providing a variety of resources for local media workers, external media
networks are in good stead to serve as umpire when internal stakeholders are
embroiled in conflict. More so, international networks are there to stand in solidarity
with local journalists who are working under repressive regimes, calling global attention
to their plight and helping to attract relief for them (Frohardt and Temin, 2003: 11).
Meanwhile, the grassroots media, as the Niger Delta Press may be classified, has a
critical role to play in sustaining the peace in a community by simply being a ‘voice’ for
the ‘voiceless’. The local media function as rallying points for the people. They help in
creating a sense of community, a sense of espirit-‐de-‐corps, a sense of shared identity
(especially in suffering), a sense of shared purpose and shared destiny. McQuail
(2005:439) explains this as affiliation, a concept that refers to the dynamics of social
relations in which people want to be socially close to people with whom they share the
same physical space. This is equally applicable to people who share the same cultural,
political and economic circumstance.
As Bajraktari and Parajon (2007:3) put it:
the local media plays a different role in conflict prevention. Often, local media
can contribute to peace merely by restoring levels of trust and self-‐worth in a
population on the brink of or emerging from violence…Where the media can
occupy space in the grassroots of civil society there is potential for healing and
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community building. Such activity not only rebuilds societies after conflict, but
also prevents against future resurgence of violence.
Old media happens to be the form of media that is more positioned to make the most
difference in reducing conflicts and strengthening peace. This could be likely as a result
of censorship or monitoring associated with the traditional media, unlike the new media
which gives anybody the opportunity to report any item or post any picture or
information through some social networking sites.
2.2.2 Effectiveness of Photography and New Media in conflict Reporting It is pertinent to review some studies that have been carried out on photography and
new media especially as it concerns conflict reporting.
There is ample evidence by many scholars which shows the effectiveness of
photography and new media. According to Johnson, (2006) photography’s evolution
into an electronic medium has a long history, unknown to most of us. Some of the
earliest devices for recording and transmitting electronically based images date well
back into the mid–19th Century. Technologies for document reproduction, spy cameras
and satellites, space imagery and publishing were all the precursors of today’s dramatic
transition into digital photography. This dynamic and compelling evolution began
considerably earlier and was more advanced than is generally understood. Aerial
Photography is one of the most common, versatile and economical forms of remote
sensing. It is a means of fixing time within the framework of space (de Latil , 1961).
Aerial photography was the first method of remote sensing and even used today in the
era of satellite and electronic scanners. Aerial photographs will still remain the most
widely used type of remote sensing data. It is known to provide a stereoscopic view of
the Earth s surface and make it possible to take measurements horizontally and
vertically a characteristic that is lacking for the majority of remotely sensed data. :
Earth’s -‐
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The word ‘digital’ can be traced directly to a Latin term (‘digitalis’) that means ‘of or
belonging to a finger’, from which comes the first definition given by the OED : ‘of or
pertaining to a finger, or to the fingers or digits”. When ‘digital’ is specifically ‘applied to
a computer which operates on data in the form of digits or similar discrete elements’,
we must note that the term ‘digit’ also has an arithmetical meaning derived from the
fact that humans have ten fingers. Analog image is taken using a RC-‐30 film camera. The
digital image has more color and better contrast to it than the analog image while the
lines in the sidewalk are more defined in the digital image.
The age of computers has brought with it new methods of producing, storing, and
receiving media. The information age has brought with it the digital revolution, of which
digital media is a part. This idea of a “digital” medium necessitates an opposite notion of
“analog” media, which didn’t exist as a discrete class until it was named. Theorists have
tried to separate (or unify, depending on one’s perspective) the two (Lunenfeld, 2000;
Manovich, 2002), yet McLuhan had it correct first when he noted that “the ‘content’ of
any medium is always another medium” (1994:8). The analog and digital are co-‐
dependent; they couldn’t exist without each other. However, to see how the digital and
analog are inseparable, we must first see how they are unique.
The photograph is Goodman’s paradigm of an analog medium (Photography) He
equates the contrast between analog and digital systems to his distinction between
“density” and “differentiation”. This he exemplifies with the contrast between an
ungraduated and a graduated thermometer: one reads the graduated thermometer as a
series of sequential points, but the reading of an ungraduated thermometer is always
relational and approximate – finite differentiation is impossible in a dense (or “super-‐
dense”) medium (cited in Mitchell, 1986:67).
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Thomas Edison made the first recording on a tin-‐foil cylinder phonograph in late 1877
and received a patent early the following year. Phonograph/gramophone recording
technology works by directly translating sound waves into continuous physical grooves,
either on a disc or cylinder. Electrically-‐recorded discs (previous machines were
mechanical, with the earliest ones requiring a hand-‐crank) were sold in 1925, bringing
with them the possibility for recording large performing groups and synchronizing sound
with film. Magnetic tape recording, which simulates the physical grooves of a
phonograph record via continuous magnetically alterable particles, was first
demonstrated by BASF/AEG in 1935 (Schoenherr), although this development did not
reach the United States until the Allied forces captured Radio Luxembourg in 1944,
discovering “a new Magnetophone of extraordinary capabilities” (Kittler, 1999:106).
The emergence of the media as a force to reckon with globally in times of peace and
war dates back to the regime of United States’ President William McKinley (1897-‐1901)
when he recognised the press as a power that surpasses the Ruler’s power; while
President Theodore Roosevelt (1901-‐1909) went a step further by keeping a small press
room in the white house to enable him have direct access to the Pressmen as the need
might arise (IPC, 2006).
The pace of change around the world is quite rapid with the help of technology and
globalisation (Adimefe, 2012). The nature of conflict reporting has apparently changed
over the years especially from year 2000. This trend was inspired by digital revolution
which helped in making new media devices readily available to people. Media as a
whole (old and new) are expected to extensively engage in articulating conflict
behaviours in all sectors of the economy. The media could act as a warning agent, in
preventing the escalation of violence (Firmo-‐Fontan, 2003). This was not the case in
Iraq as there were conflicting media reports during the war between Iraq and Coalition
troops. According to Fontan (2003) a free-‐lance journalist lamented “they only want to
hear of mass graves back in Paris, the resistance is mounting, but they are not
interested.
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Since the Web is a core instance or application of what are today familiarly and
collectively referred to as new media, the truism that all media were once new as well
as the assumption is obvious., widely shared by others, that looking into the novelty
years, transitional states, and identity crises of different media stands to tell us much,
both about the course of media history and about the broad conditions by which media
and communication are and have been shaped (Gitelman, 2006). According to Ghannam
(2012) in his study, social media is a social change agent that empowers people to
actively pursue civic engagement, political accountability, and the eradication of
corruption, free and fair elections, as well as free, independent, and pluralistic media in
a rapidly changing media environment.
Areas where conflict could ensue and would need to be reported are: elections, football
matches, social activities, businesses, communities, families, etc.
Politically, the potency of new media cannot be overemphasised especially when it
involves the public opinion and social integration. Through new media, people have
been able to create forums groups based on specific interests.
Even Shirky (2011) opines that since the rise of the Internet in the early 1990s, the
world's networked population has grown from the low millions to the low billions, and
over the same period, new media have become a fact of life for civil society worldwide,
involving many actors – regular citizens, activists, nongovernmental organizations,
telecommunications firms, software providers, governments. As the communications
landscape gets denser, more complex, and more participatory, the networked
population is gaining greater access to information, more opportunities to engage in
public speech, and an enhanced ability to undertake collective action. It was also noted
by Nohrstedt (2009) that the 2003 Iraq war saw Internet’s great breakthrough in war
journalism with the, at first anonymous, icon Salam Pax belonging to the first generation
of war bloggers. A new world order (that did not turn out as hoped in 1989), new wars,
25
and new media. In essence, the media often become a battleground, and journalists are
drawn into the conflict, either voluntarily or under orders, or even unawares.
On the other hand, social media constructivists argue also that technology is grounded
in and constituted by socially operative forces (Wessels, 2007:30).
In a rare but significant assessment of new media, Neuman (1991) suggests that whilst
the ‘new media’ have technical capabilities to pull in one direction, economic and social
forces pull back in the opposite direction. Neuman asserts that “we are witnessing the
evolution of a universal interconnected network of audio, video and electronic text
communications that will blur the distinction between interpersonal and mass
communication and between public and private communication” (cited in Croteau and
Hoynes, 2003:322).
Andrew L. Shapiro (1999) argues that the “emergence of new digital technologies signals
a potentially radical shift of who is in control of information, experience and resources”
(cited in Croteau and Hoynes, 2003:322). According to Diamond (2010, p. 71) new
media technologies are merely tools ‘open to both noble and nefarious purposes’. The
25 January 2011 Egyptian revolution was a revolution that used Twitter, Facebook, and
YouTube to coordinate and communicate.
Lets take Facebook for instance, which currently has over 300 million active users who
often return to the site at least every 30 days. Since 2004 when Facebook was founded
by a Harvard undergraduate student and was initially created for college students only,
from where it became a global site to the extent that parents, teachers and other
professionals began to register and create their profiles. The Facebook site which is a
social networking platform was also adopted by companies and organisations to
promote their products and services by means of Facebook profile. There has been an
increased dependency on social the social networking site as it grows. According to
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administrators of Facebook Inc., the average Facebook user has 130 friends on the site
and more than 8 billion minutes are spent on Facebook each day, with more than 45
million status updates. Notifications, messages and invites reward people with an
unpredictable high. The addictive nature of Facebook and other networking sites like
twitter is describe as dangerous by causing media systems dependency. Most people
also depend on new media especially social networks for their information needs and
situation reports even in conflict situations unlike the old media which usually delay
news reports.
Presently, people stay on Facebook longer than intended and sometimes to escape
problems or tasks. The dependence is high to the extent that many just think about
Facebook when they are offline.
The strength and ubiquity of the new media has created a powerful platform for social
networking among people across the world from which the term “Social media” has
emerged. The social media has made real time sharing of information and ideas possible
irrespective of location and distance across the globe. Social media encourage the
creation of relationships among people, many of whom do not know each other. It has
made possible the building of solidarity across social, ethnic, colour and other divides
which was hitherto impossible in a world of diversity. The social media has also given
voices to the voiceless and has broken down artificial barriers created by economic and
political differences which have sustained the gulf between the affluent and the
impoverished societies in an unequal global geopolitical arrangement. An example of
the influence of the social media on global geopolitical arrangement is the current Arab
Spring revolution taking place in the Middle East and North Africa, where popular
revolts are taking place against dictators in several Arab countries, aided by the new
media. Some have referred to the revolution as ‘Facebook, Youtube, LinkedIn and
Twitter’ revolution because of the role the social media facilities have played in the
political revolution.
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Atrocities committed are also reported on new media with the use of photography.
Ghannam (2012) there is a race in social media now, among the activists and the
political opposition to get more followers on Twitter or to be heard more on Facebook
or to send information about what they are doing,” said Alwadi, who is now based in
Washington, DC. “People actually care about that. There is a race for the top retweet,
and there are campaigns for that.
Significance of Photography and new media Most recent studies on new media have not actually examined principles of conflict
reporting and new media especially scholarly debate on photography and new media. In
recent years, the ability to produce images has been democratised, and it is now easier
than ever to produce photographs to the standard necessary for reproduction.
It has been observed in various literatures that one of the most dramatic advances in
communication potential-‐ data communications-‐ is found in the field of computer
technology through which new media operates. According to Ogunsola (2005)
computers are available in many formats for use in industries, businesses, hospitals,
schools, universities, transport networks and individual homes. Small or large, a
computer network exists to provide computer users with the means of communicating
and transferring information electronically. The use of Internet has revolutionised
access to information for the business world, libraries, education and individuals.
The revolution that has already taken place in the area of photography and conflict
reporting is significant. Recent uprisings recorded in Arab world which the global media
dubbed ‘Arab Spring’ gives credit to new media as many describe it as social media
revolution. It is on record that people sent updates through Facebook and also
mobilised protesters via new media platforms.
Virtual environments provide a new way of collaboration, cooperation, and
communication. With its graphical, three dimensional design, there is a higher level of
interaction, complexity, and potential value over other social networks such as the two
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dimensional networks of Facebook, Twitter, and MySpace. MUVEs impact the way
people communicate, interact, and share information.
The following social networks have enhanced the tradition of virtual communication and
creation of communities: Twitter, MySpace, Linkedin, CliqueIt, Kontain, ForecastforAn,
Seydo, Bebo, Friendster, Free Calls, Liveshare, Fring, AppFriends, IMobile Market,
textPlus, FringSocial Networki, Facebook (all Web 2.0) and Gnaija.
Online image banks such as Flickr are populated with photographs taken by amateur
photographers. Microstock – the selling of royalty-‐free stock photography at very low
rates – has transformed the market areas previously dominated by giant agencies and
professional vlibraries. The ability to provide news images is no longer restricted to
professional photojournalists. The emergence of these “citizen journalists” (amateur
photographers who submit their images to professional news outlets) and “crowd
sourcing” (when publishers invite images to be submitted from members of the public
for commercial use) form a formidable challenge to the position of the professional
photojournalist (McClairley, 2009).
Jean-‐Paul (2003) notes that the horrendous brutalities and political manipulation of
imagined ethnic identities have merged with the immediacy of live television coverage
and on-‐line news to exacerbate either the need “to do something” or the temptation to
zap away from these distant horrors. If the new media scene has increased the capacity
to denounce and to mobilise, it has also put immense pressure on human rights
organisations and even distorted carefully planned priorities.
Control of texts and updates via new media has always been a source of worry not only
to individuals but also governments. It has been discovered that popular social
networks/websites like Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, Flickr, Blogspot, and Xanga make
29
it easy to build a web of friends and acquaintances, and share with them photos,
whereabouts, contact information and interests (Augoye, 2012:7).
Apart from reportage, they are used as instruments of coordinating information and
sharing of photos. Others also upload pictures that could be irritating.
Notably, media and journalists have gained an increasingly central position due to
developments in media technology such as satellite TV channels broadcasting 24/7 news
so rapidly that it is possible to report live from a combat zone. The visual media’s unique
power of influence increases the propaganda pressure on journalists, and makes them,
from a military point of view, into either a fourth branch of service or a fifth column.
Warring parties are making ever greater efforts to influence, steer, and control the
reporting distributed via international media, and this is especially true in the case of
visual materials such as photographs and videos (Nohrstedt, 2009).
Among the most spectacular features of the media reporting was CNN’s breakthrough
as a transnational news channel with around-‐the-‐clock broadcasts and access to leaders
on both sides of the 1990-‐1991 Gulf War.
The Danish Cartoon
It should be kept in mind that photography and new media have played varying roles in
various intra and inter state conflicts especially in Nigeria and entire Africa. The identity
conflict exacerbated by the Danish cartoon in most parts of the world including Nigeria
is worthy of mentioning.
On February 5, 2006, at the height of the tension following the Danish
newspaper Jyllands-‐Posten's publication of cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad,
Muslim protesters torched Denmark's embassies in Beirut and Damascus. While many in
the West looked on with bewilderment, protests spread across the Muslim world, and
30
stores in Muslim areas removed Danish products from their shelves. Even as the cartoon
crisis captured headlines around the world, most people outside Denmark remain
unfamiliar with the forces propelling it (Ammitzbøll and Vidino, 2007).
While the story was top news in Denmark, outside reaction was muted. On October 17,
2005, the Egyptian newspaper Al-‐Fajr published the cartoons to illustrate that the
depictions were in poor taste (BBC News, Feb 19 2006) as did the widely read
Indonesian news website Rakyat Merdeka.
The impact of photography and new media manifested in the controversy over Danish
Cartoon through which Muslim Brotherhood and other Islamist groups used the
controversy to prove their claim that the West hates Islam.
News of the Danish controversy spread throughout the Muslim world. The same
cartoons that had not sparked reaction in October caused outrage three months later.
At the end of January and the beginning of February, the West watched as the cartoon
controversy peaked. In Denmark, a country where even top politicians normally go
around on bicycles, security guards were assigned to various Jyllands-‐Posten editors,
and bomb threats were called in almost daily to various newspapers. Danish websites
were hacked, and Islamists posted on-‐line threats of attacks against the country
The internationalization of the Danish cartoon controversy shows the power of
photography and new media
In some cases, as people reacted towards the situation, the boycott backfired: Egypt
saw a 30 percent drop in Scandinavian tourism, and Danish papers reported that the
Egyptian tourism attaché in Denmark was flooded with phone calls and e-‐mails from
Egyptian hotel owners begging him to bring back Danish tourists (Politiken, Copenhagen,
March 9 2006).
New York Times contributor Nicholas Kristof weighed in on the virtual feeding frenzy
that has resulted from Invisible Children’s “Kony2012” video. Kristof attempted to take a
31
neutral stance on the video, but was clearly disdainful of its critics, saying, “I don’t know
if this initiative will make a difference. But if I were a Congolese villager, I would
welcome these uncertain efforts over the sneering scorn of do-‐nothing armchair cynics”
(Locke, 2012).
Locke (2012) responds thus:
“The Kony2012 video also strives to express frustration, but not through the voices of
the place itself, and because of this, it falls short of being representative. Nor is the
intended audience a central African one, but rather a US and Western one, feeding into
a sense that solutions to African problems are to be found externally rather than within
the people, skills, capacities, and ingenuity of the place itself. As the world continues to
harness the power of social media, it will be important to consider the means through
which communication takes place, who owns it, whose voice is being amplified, and
whose voices are perhaps being muted by it.”
Some people are often criticised for being simplistic and uploading misleading pictures
on new media. For instance, some critics of Kony 2012 video have gone as far as to say
that it depicts a sort of neo-‐colonial attitude of white saviors rescuing voiceless Africans.
Those criticisms according to Locke (2012) prompted defenders of the video to argue in
favor of increased awareness, even if done in simplified ways. While one could hardly
categorize all the criticism of the video–including that coming from Ugandans
themselves–as simply sneering scorn, Kristoff’s point raises an interesting question
regarding the role that such advocacy efforts play in today’s hyper-‐communicative
world, and the incredibly important issue of ownership.
Today’s communication networks allow for large quantities of people to rally around
issues rapidly. Many have also noted the incredible impact that new media and
communication technology had in organising and sustaining the revolutions in Egypt and
elsewhere (Locke, 2012). But there is one major difference between the utilisation of
social networks and media technology in, for example, Egypt, and Invisible Children’s
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impressive dissemination efforts. Namely that the messages used in Egypt, the
individuals communicating, and the groups organising, were indigenous Egyptians. It
was not an external effort, but born from and spread through internal networks,
representing internal frustration through the words of the people who live there.
2.2.3. Photography, Social Dynamics and Peace Journalism
Media reports portray a mirror of social trends (Opoku, 2007).
According to Mick et al, social dynamics is the ability of a group of people, be it a
society, a culture, an organisation, a family or a team (at work), to successfully adapt to
the nature of change in their system of function, purpose and governance. Social
dynamics also involves the study of social processes especially social change.
The controversy generated by the photograph taken in 1993, by South African
photojournalist Kevin Carter who won the Pulitzer prize in 1994 for his disturbing
photograph of a Sudanese child being stalked by a vulture while covering the famine
occurring in Sudan.
The photo was published in The New York Times on 26 March, 1993, and sparked a wide
reaction. People wanted to know what happened the child, and if Carter had assisted
her. Though the Times issued a statement saying that the girl made it to the food
station, but what happened to her beyond that was unclear.
The description of the photojournalist as a child even by his own daughter and the
entire world as vulture is another form of perception formed around photography as
Carter was bombarded with questions about why he did not help the girl, and only used
her to take a photograph. Others also described it as one of the most powerful and
33
most tragic pictures they ever came across. Some critics said that a photographer
adjusting their lens to capture just the right image of the dying girl may just as well be
the vulture. Others believed the starving child symbolized Africa’s anguish, while the
vulture symbolized all those who just sit back and watch, waiting; not doing anything to
help (Cinders 2009).
Unfortunately, Cater often expressed regret that he had not done anything to help the
girl even before committing suicide.
Many argue that Carter was notorious for sticking to the journalistic principle of being
an observer and not getting involved as he left after taking his photo (Boody-‐Evans,
2006).
Boddy-‐Evans, A. 2006. The Journalist, the Vulture and the Child. About.com
Herman Cohen, a former assistant secretary for African affairs, called the issue in Sudan,
“one of the world’s darkest humanitarian nightmares . . . a chaotic territory where civil
war, disease, homelessness and hunger form a tapestry of tragedy for millions of
Sudanese” (Struck 1993).
The photo sparked such a large reaction that the paper actually ran an editor’s note
saying that the girl made it to the food station but apart from that her condition is
unknown. The photo was reproduced in many other newspapers and quickly became
the image of Africa’s devastating conditions (Cinders 2009).
In April of 1994, Carter won a Pulitzer Prize for the photo. Unfortunately this was not
enough to erase all the tragic events he had witnessed and photographed in his short
life from his mind, and he took his own life that July (MacLeod). Pieces of his suicide
letter read, “the pain of life overrides the joy to the point that joy does not exist … I am
haunted by the vivid memories of killings and corpses and anger and pain … of starving
or wounded children, of trigger happy madmen” (Cinders 2009).
34
Höijer (2004) posits that there is also no doubt that the visual form of representation
has been especially important in efforts to document the “true face of war”; it is by
means of photos of dead bodies and close-‐ups of suffering and grieving human beings
that journalists depict how civilian populations are afflicted by the war (cited in
Nohrstedt, 2009). Such images bring about a call for compassion and strengthen anti-‐
war opinion, which can be difficult to manage from a war-‐propaganda point of view.
The term ‘peace journalism’ was coined by Johan Galtung the professor of peace
research. Lynch (2006) states that peace journalism has emerged, since the mid-‐1990s,
as a new, trans-‐disciplinary field, of interest to professional journalists, in both
developed and developing countries, and to civil society activists, university researchers
and others interested in the conflict-‐media nexus. It offers both a set of practical plans
and options for editors and reporters, and a basis for developing evaluative criteria for
the critical analysis of war reporting – all derived from, or at least attentive to,
propositions about conflict, violence and peace from Peace and Conflict Studies
It should be pointed out that advocacy for peace journalism is an attempt to bring
journalism and Peace and Conflict Studies to bear upon one another
The very concept of peace journalism effectively problematises mainstream reporting as
‘war journalism’, this further gives the impression that conflict-‐oriented journalism
exists hence the need to reexamine areas and patterns of involvement; as noted by
Becker (1982) that communication is, in general, an agent of peace: better jaw-‐jaw, as
Churchill said, than war-‐war and this is where conflict reporting comes in.
According to Becker (1982: 227) the representation of violence in the mass media is part
of the universal violence of the media themselves.
Such propositions draw resistance from many journalists because they feel at odds with
founding assumptions of their professional practice; assumptions that retain their
power precisely by remaining unarticulated.
35
Peace journalism therefore, can emerge as a rallying point for change by causing them
to be articulated, and simultaneously calling for improvements that can be presented as
feasible and reachable for professional editors and reporters. It does not always help to
introduce it, at the outset, by name. When professional join critical discussion about
reporting different conflicts, with input from those with visions for peace, and some
who work on the ground to mitigate, alleviate and transform the conflict in question, it
becomes a realistic exercise because its impact would be positive.
When professional journalists come up with different views of their role and
responsibilities in reporting conflict, peace journalism would be more accessible. One
prominent reporter who took part in peace journalism training in Indonesia, Maria
Hartiningsih, from the country’s biggest newspaper, Kompas, sounded a keynote:
“To report is to choose, and the journalist must take responsibility
for those choices … ‘Every journalist has the ideology in here (tapping her chest), and me too’, she said. ‘My ideology is to contribute something for peace, to contribute something for justice’” (in Lynch and McGoldrick, 2001). The discourse on peace journalism brings the issue of Yellow journalism, which refers to
biased opinion that masquerade as objective fact. Moreover, the practice of yellow
journalism involved sensationalism, distorted stories, and misleading images for the sole
purpose of boosting newspaper sales and exciting public opinion. It was particularly
indicative of two papers founded and popularized in the late 19th century-‐ The New
York World, run by Joseph Pulitzer and The New York Journal, run by William Randolph
Hearst. It all started, some historians believe, with the onset of the rapid
industrialization that was happening all around the world. The Industrial Revolution
eventually affected the newspaper industry, allowing newspapers access to machines
that could easily print thousands of papers in a single night. This is believed to have
brought into play one of the most important characteristics of yellow journalism -‐ the
36
endless drive for circulation. And unfortunately, the publisher's greed was very often
put before ethics.
Although the actual practice of what would later become known as yellow journalism
came into being during a more extended time period (between 1880-‐1890), the term
was first coined based on a series of occurrences in and following the year of 1895. This
was the year in which Hearst purchased the New York Journal, quickly becoming a key
rival of Pulitzer's. The term was derived, through a series of peculiar circumstances,
from a cartoon by the famous 19th century cartoonist, Robert Outcault called “The
Yellow Kid” The cartoon was first published in The World, until Hearst hired him away to
produce the strip in his newspaper. Pulitzer then hired another artist to produce the
same strip in his newspaper. This comic strip happened to use a new special, non-‐smear
yellow ink, and because of the significance of the comic strip, the term "yellow
journalism" was coined by critics.
Sadly though, this period of sensationalist news delivery (where the so-‐called yellow
press routinely outsold the more honest, truthful, unbiased newspapers) does stand out
as a particularly dark era in journalistic history. The demand of the United States people
for absolutely free press allowed such aforementioned newspapers, which often
appealed to the shorter attention spans and interests of the lower class, to print
whatever they so desired. This means that they could easily steal a headline and story
directly from another paper, or simply fabricate a story to fit their particular agenda.
One of the more disturbing features involved with the former practice of yellow
journalism, and the period in which it was most active in is that there is no definite line
between this period of yellow journalism and the period afterwards. The modernly
present newspaper appearances of catchy headlines, humorous comic strips, special
interest sections, intrusive investigative reporting, et cetera serve as a constant
reminder that one must always stay skeptical when examining our news sources.
37
News producers also know that whatever story they are covering cannot be accorded
any status of being absolutely important to the exclusion of everything else (indeed,
even if a story is the most important thing that has happened today and even if all news
broadcasts are dedicated to it, there is no reason to assume that it will be that
significant tomorrow), and they also know that the pressures of time mean that their
report will have to draw on a repertoire of stock images and linguistic devices if it is
going to be able to make any sense to the audience (Tester, 2001).
On several occasions, Journalists have been criticised for their “tendency to merely
juxtapose two competing claims without making any effort to look for the truth behind
the claims” (Lee, et al., 2004: 7). Providing insight into the concept of truth, McQuail
(2005:200) has noted that although truth and its value vary according the issue and
context mentioned, people are unanimous in their interest to have information that can
be depended on from trusted sources. He therefore presents truth as that quality or
value ascribed to information because it “matches the reality of experience” (cited in
Eti, 2009). The remedy to yellow journalism is given as simply double-‐ and triple-‐
checking one's sources and reading between the lines. If one disregards the obvious
marketing that is used to hook readers, newspapers may actually prove to be reliable
sources of information. Example of Yellow Journalism: Vice Presidential candidate Sen.
John Edwards was caught visiting his mistress and secret love child at 2:40 this morning
in a Los Angeles hotel by the National Enquirer.
The role of the media in socio-‐political change cannot be overemphasised. In fact in
Asia, specifically in Indonesia, the media was a driving force in bringing to the public
domain the deep seated corrupt activities Suharto and his coterie of supporters. A
media simply interested in getting to the very bottom of issues in Nigeria as different
from what obtains now wherein sensational stories are news worthy. Moru (2007)
maintains that media practitioners must seek to focus on issues – if it is about
corruption then it should be corruption without regard to whose ass is gored; and that
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for this to be achieved development partners must seek to work with/build capacity of
development journalists, some select few, whose mandate is to raise issues for
knowledge creation.
In Nigeria for instance, the religion – related conflicts precipitated by the Miss World
beauty contest and the Danish cartoons in 2002 and 2006 respectively can be said to
have been ignited by the media. The immediate causes of the conflict were said to be
certain publications the media (IPC, 2006). The question of whether objectivity was
undermined gives an impression that media contributes to peace and conflicts as the
case may be.
Another issue relevant to this study is the media coverage of the ‘War on Terror’ which
has generated different frameworks of understanding that have been shaped by
meanings and images that emerged after September 11, 2001. These frameworks of
meanings as earlier noted by Ette (2012) are routinely used to structure and
contextualise news stories and events associated with terrorism globally.
Again, the newspapers’ interpretation of the aborted act of terrorism by Umar Farouk
Abdulmutallab, a 23-‐year-‐old Nigerian man in December 2009, which resulted in the
United States categorising Nigeria as a ‘country of interest in the context of terrorism’
portrays the dynamics of framing in media reportage.
Ette (2012) maintains that the constructed accounts of the foiled attack were framed
and structured to create a distance between Abdulmutallab and his country and that
the news frames the newspapers used narrowed public understanding of the
significance of Abdulmutallab’s radicalization and its possible implications for Nigeria.
In Kenya, while most studies on media and terrorism have focused mainly on the
traditional media of television and the mainstream print media, editorial cartoons reveal
that the legitimacy of the War on Terror was still a coveted attribute, as is the case in
other media (Omanga, 2012).
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Christian and Muslim Attitudes to Imagery
The perspectives of Christians and Muslims over imagery largely differ as they have
different attitudes toward pictures or photographs. Christians for instance do not
respond to pictures violently which often make reference to their religion or Jesus Christ
who they worship. This is not the same thing with Muslims who react violently to any
attempt to make mockery of Prophet Mohammed or tend to portray him in any
manner.
The issue of framing was raised when some media practitioners were accused of not
being conflict sensitive even as crises escalated due to reports received from various
media. It is the responsibility of the media to ventilate the atmosphere for peace but
also to prevent any outbreak of conflicts.
Media play an increasingly important role in today’s society. The freedom of expression
and freedom of the press is having a clear bearing on development, democracy and
dialogue. The free flow of information should not be hindered; on the contrary the
media should have all the necessary space to contribute to disseminate information and
knowledge with the objective of developing inclusive knowledge societies. The media in
conflict-‐ridden countries often play a significant role in creating and furthering both
facilitating factors and triggering factors, for example by utilising ‘oppositional
metaphors’ (‘us’ vs. ‘them’) linked to internal and external issues or ‘threats’ facing the
nation (see Jager & Link 1993; Van Dijk 1997).
It is argued that instead of reflecting pluralism in the social and political structures and
thereby contributing to the creation of an informed critical citizenry within a country,
the media often act as a mouthpiece for ethnic power circles. Thus a deliberate
distortion of news coverage for particular interests easily exacerbates the tension
between opposed factions and becomes a main trigger of violent conflict (Terzis 2000).
Conversely, the goal of conflict discourse in the media should be to provide early
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warning signs, especially when conflict is at latent stage. Galadima (2002:62) avers that
where there is violence already, the media should help to deescalate rather than
increase the risk potential of the situation. The success of media approaches to dealing
with conflict in a positive way may depend on the partnerships which can be developed
between members of the media and peace practitioners, non-‐governmental
organsations (NGOs), funding organisations and the community.
Irrespective of the fact that while media often contribute to the escalation of tensions
and conflicts, it does not mean that they cannot play a positive role as well. In fact,
through the media, people get first hand information especially in dangerous conflict
situations.
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