Role of Print Media in Campaign Against Drug Abuse (A Study of Vanguard and Punch Newspaper)
Chapter One
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The objectives of the study are:
- To examine the issue of drugs abuse in Nigeria.
- To ascertain the extent to which the print media has carried out campaign against drugs abuse in Nigeria.
- To examine the challenges facing the print media in the campaign against drugs abuse in Nigeria.
- To proffer a lasting solution to the issues of drugs abuse in Nigeria.
CHAPTER TWO
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
THE REVIEW OF STUDIES
United Nations secretary General Kofi Annan observes “Drugs are tearing apart our societies, spawning crime, spreading diseases such as AALDS and killing our youth and our future. Today there are estimates 190 million drugs were around the world. No country is immune. And alone, no country can hope to stem the drug trade within its borders. The globalization of the drug trade requires an international response”. To make matters worse, in recent years designers drugs (a drug with a slightly attired chemical structure, often produced to evade restrictions on illegal narcotics or hallucinogens) have entered the scene. These synthetic chemical are designed to give the consumer a high or a euphoric feeling. Since designer drugs can be manufactured cheaply almost anywhere, police forces are practically powerless to control them. In 1977 the United nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs warned that in many countries these synthetic drugs have become part of “mainstream consumers culture” and that they must be viewed as a “formidable” threat to international society in the next century. The newer drugs are no less potent than their predecessors. Crack cocaine is even more addictive than cocaine. New strains of canneries have greater hallucinogenic effects and a new designer drug called “ICE” may be among the most destructive of all.
With good reason, at a United Nations Conference Nasser Bin Hamad Al-khalifa, from Qatar warned that “the global village is about to become a communal tomb for millions of human beings as a result of the illicit drugs trade” Like the dry not the eats away the wooden beams of a house, drugs can corrode the whole structure of society. For human society to function properly, it must have stable families, healthy workers, trustworthy government, honest police and law abiding citizens. Drugs corrupt every one of these fundamental elements. One reason government have banned non-medicaldrug use it eh damage that it does to the health of their citizens. Every years thousands for drug addicts die of an overdose. Many more die of AIDS. Indeed some 22 percent the world HIV positive population are drug users who injected themselves with infected needles.
Although drug users may be in the minority, their numbers are sufficient to grant immense power to the drug barons, the men who Organize the production and distribution of drugs. These unscrupulous individuals run a racket that has become the most lucrative and practically the biggest business on earth. Drug deals may now account for about 8 percent of all international trade. As drug money moves around the world, it enriches gangsters, corrupts police forces, greases palms of politicians and even finance terrorism.
The United Nations International Drug control Programme reports “revenues from illicit drugs fund some of the worlds’ fiercest religious and ethnic conflicts.” Most carriers of drugs are backed up by certain barons who are using the youths. My research revealed that Nigeria is a transit camp for drug peddling but however a wider population is engaged in drug abuse, which initially are not done with intension of abusing the drug but on self medication to which temporarily relief is gotten but leads to a wider or continued use of some to a point it becomes a habit and invariably an abuse.
Over the past years, an enormous amount of information concerning the drug phenomenon has been transmitted to the general public. The assumption behind this explosion has been that information education training programme dispensing information about drugs will cause youths not to take these substances, or to stop if they already do so. As in other crisis, there has been a tendency to over-react.
Littered in the dailies are information about drug related offences. There is no week posed that drug matters such as abuses as well as trafficking are not included in the news, articles in the magazines etc. Media report shows that it is estimated that about five million gallons of alcoholic beverages are produced yearly. To which about 30 to35 million consumers are paying approximately four billion naria.
National and general concern has lately been focused on casual drug taking involving an increasing and rather youthful population which is mainly male. The drugs that cause the most intense public concern are usually drugs which cause severe states of dependency or addiction.
The World Health Organization defines dependence as “ a state, psychic and sometimes physical resulting in the interaction between a living Organism and a drug characterized by behavioural and other responses which will always include a compulsion to the drug on a continuous or periodic basis in order to experience its psychic effects and sometimes to avoid the discomfort of its absence.”
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
INTRODUCTION
In this chapter, we described the research procedure for this study. A research methodology is a research process adopted or employed to systematically and scientifically present the results of a study to the research audience viz. a vis, the study beneficiaries.
RESEARCH DESIGN
Research designs are perceived to be an overall strategy adopted by the researcher whereby different components of the study are integrated in a logical manner to effectively address a research problem. In this study, the researcher employed the survey research design. This is due to the nature of the study whereby the opinion and views of people are sampled. According to Singleton & Straits, (2009), Survey research can use quantitative research strategies (e.g., using questionnaires with numerically rated items), qualitative research strategies (e.g., using open-ended questions), or both strategies (i.e., mixed methods). As it is often used to describe and explore human behaviour, surveys are therefore frequently used in social and psychological research.
POPULATION OF THE STUDY
According to Udoyen (2019), a study population is a group of elements or individuals as the case may be, who share similar characteristics. These similar features can include location, gender, age, sex or specific interest. The emphasis on study population is that it constitutes of individuals or elements that are homogeneous in description.
This study was carried to examine role of print Media in campaign against drug abuse. Vanguard and Punch newspaper form the population of the study.
CHAPTER FOUR
DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS
INTRODUCTION
This chapter presents the analysis of data derived through the questionnaire and key informant interview administered on the respondents in the study area. The analysis and interpretation were derived from the findings of the study. The data analysis depicts the simple frequency and percentage of the respondents as well as interpretation of the information gathered. A total of eighty (80) questionnaires were administered to respondents of which only seventy-seven (77) were returned and validated. This was due to irregular, incomplete and inappropriate responses to some questionnaire. For this study a total of 77 was validated for the analysis.
CHAPTER FIVE
SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
Introduction
It is important to ascertain that the objective of this study was to ascertain role of print Media in campaign against drug abuse (A study of vanguard and Punch newspaper). In the preceding chapter, the relevant data collected for this study were presented, critically analyzed and appropriate interpretation given. In this chapter, certain recommendations made which in the opinion of the researcher will be of benefits in addressing the challenges of role of print Media in campaign against drug abuse
Summary
This study was on role of print Media in campaign against drug abuse (A study of vanguard and Punch newspaper). Five objectives were raised which included: To examine the issue of drugs abuse in Nigeria, to ascertain the extent to which the print media has carried out campaign against drugs abuse in Nigeria, to examine the challenges facing the print media in the campaign against drugs abuse in Nigeria and to proffer a lasting solution to the issues of drugs abuse in Nigeria. A total of 77 responses were received and validated from the enrolled participants where all respondents were drawn from vanguard and Punch newspaper. Hypothesis was tested using Chi-Square statistical tool (SPSS).
Conclusion
The finding revealed that some of the articles published especially advertisements looked very attractive and they are packaged well and such can entice people to use drugs especially alcohol. The study also found out that the main subjects focused on in the articles published varied. If it was a news item, it was brief and most of the time the public was just told that some people were caught with a certain amount of bhang or any other drug and were charged in court and the story ends there. This does not give proper details especially what happened to the drugs found. However, when drug articles were written in the health column especially in the standard newspaper, a lot of information was given like they gave the meaning of the drugs and their side effects. Others were just advertisements which were in form of photos.
Recommendation
In the light of the findings, the following recommendations were made; firstly, drug abuse articles should be given more prominence by sometimes being covered as headlines because this will attract attention of many people as compared to when they are covered as news briefs because so many people do not take their time to read them. Secondly, the daily nation newspaper should also create a column on health like the standard and through this they will be able to educate many people on various drugs and their effects to the readers’ health just like how the standard newspaper has done. This will give drug abuse prominence and many people will get educated on various drugs and their effects. Thirdly, the two types of newspapers should try and cover more stories on drug abuse and this they can by having a target. For example coming up with the number of articles they can cover in a week or may be a month and they should ensure that it is done according to their timetable or schedule. This will help in sensitization and education of the public hence people will be informed.
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