The Media, Development Communication, and Governance in Nigeria: The Press for National Integration

This paper analyzes the role of communication media/news sources towards sustainable governance in an emerging democracy. It specifically examines and discusses the relationship between the press and governance, and the contributions of the press in political development and national integration in Nigeria. The methodology used was a hybrid approach consisting of analytical technique of historical/critical descriptive and content analysis of selected past and current literature on development and political issues. Agenda-setting theory guided the analysis of the relationship of news sources with governments as well as the role of the press in national unity and development. It was determined that the increasing proliferation of news sources in the country does not translate into objective and independent coverage of political issues and events. The study then concludes that development initiatives in a pluralistic and culturally-diverse country should be holistic and situation-realistic. A conceptual-theoretical framework of Press Participation-Based Integrative Model (PPBIM) for sustainable development governance in Nigeria was recommended.