Newspapers published in Nigeria have a strong tradition of the principle of "publish and be damned" that dates back to the colonial era when founding fathers of the Nigerian press such as Nnamdi Azikiwe, Ernest Ikoli, Obafemi Awolowo and Lateef Jakande used their papers to fight for independence.[1]
Until the 1990s, most publications were government-owned, but private papers such as the Daily Trust, Nigerian Tribune, The Punch, Vanguard,
Ndokwa Vanguard, and the Guardian continued to expose public and private scandals despite government attempts at suppression.[1]
Laws related to the media, including newspapers, are scattered across various pieces of legislation. There are few good sources of discussion and analysis of these laws.[2]
Some Newspapers depend heavily on advertisements that may be placed by companies owned by powerful people. In some cases, this makes the papers cautious in reporting details of crimes or suspected crimes, and sometimes they carry articles that paint clearly corrupt individuals in a favourable light.[3] An analysis of newspapers shows a strong bias towards coverage of males, reflecting prevalent cultural biases. Few articles discuss women and there are few photographs of women outside the fashion sections.[4] Although earnings have declined since the late 1980s the number of publications has steadily grown.
As of 2008 there were over 100 national, regional or local newspapers.[1]
Online newspapers have become popular since the rise of internet accessibility in Nigeria; more than ten percent of the top fifty websites in the country are devoted to online newspapers. Due to improved mobile penetration and the growth of smartphones, Nigerians have begun to rely on the internet for news. Online newspapers have also been able to bypass government restrictions because content can be shared without the need for any physical infrastructure. The result has been a disruption of the traditional sources of news which have dominated the media industry. Recent online newspapers include Sahara Reporters, Ripples Nigeria and Premium Times.[5]
List of newspapers
This is a list of newspapers in Nigeria. The list includes print and online newspapers currently published in Nigeria that have national circulation or that are major local newspapers.[6]
| Newspaper | Location | First issued | Publisher | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daily Times of Nigeria | Lagos | 9 June 1925 | Folio Communications | |
| Tribune | Ibadan | 1949 | African Newspapers of Nigeria Ltd | |
| Observer | Benin City | 1968 | Bendel Newspapers Company Limited | |
| Punch | Lagos | 1971 | Ajibola Ogunsola | |
| The Tide | Port Harcourt | 1971 | Rivers State Newspaper Corporation | |
| The Standard | Jos | 1972 | Benue-Plateau Printing Publication Cooperation | |
| Triumph | Kano | 1980 | Triumph Publishing | |
| Guardian | Lagos | 1983 | Felix Ibru | |
| Newswatch | Lagos | 28 January 1985 | Global Media Mirror Limited | |
| Tell Magazine | Lagos | 1991 | TELL Communications Limited | |
| TheNEWS magazine | Lagos | 1992 | Independent Communication Limited | |
| P.M. News | Lagos | 1994 | Independent Communications Network Limited | |
| Thisday | Lagos | 1995 | Leaders & Company | |
| Complete Sports | Lagos | 1995 | Sunny Obazu-Ojeagbase | |
| Daily Trust | Abuja | 1998 | Media Trust Ltd | |
| The Voice Newspaper | Benue | 2000 | The Voice Newspaper | |
| Sun | Lagos | 2001 | The Sun Publishing Ltd | |
| Independent Nigeria (Lagos newspaper) | Lagos | 2001 | Independent Newspaper Limited | |
| Independent | Lagos | 2001 | Independent Newspapers Limited | |
| National Network | Port Harcourt | 2004 | Network Printing and Publishing Company | |
| Next | Lagos | 2004 | Timbuktu Media group | |
| Leadership | Abuja | 1 October 2004 | Leadership Group Ltd | |
| Business Day | Lagos | 2005 | Frank Aigbogun | |
| Mirror | 2006 | Global Media Mirror Limited | ||
| Nation | Lagos | 2006 | Vintage Press Limited | |
| Ndokwa Vanguard | Delta | 2006 | Alaska Ekele/Annantram Peculiar | |
| Uhuru Times | Ogun | 2007 | Journal Communication Limited | |
| Peoples Daily | Abuja | 30 November 2008 | Peoples Media Ltd | |
| Newsdiary online | Abuja | 2009 | NewsDiary Communicatin Limited | |
| Nigerian Entertainment Today | Lagos | 23 November 2009 | Adekunle Ayeni | |
| TheCable | Lagos | 2011 | Cable Newspaper Ltd. | |
| Premium Times | Abuja | 2011 | Premium Times Services Limited | |
| Blueprint Newspaper | Abuja | May 2011 | ||
| Entertainment Express | July 2011 | |||
| Daylight Nigeria | Lagos | January 2014 | ||
| New Telegraph | Lagos | 3 February 2014 | The Telegraph Publishing Company | |
| The Authority (newspaper) | Abuja | 2015 | The Authority Media & Publications Limited | |
| Ripples Nigeria | Lagos | 2015 | Richmond Hill Media Limited | |
| Stears Business | Lagos | 2015 | Stears News Limited | |
| 9News Nigeria | Lagos | 2016 | Obinna S. Ejianya | |
| The Informant247 | Kwara | 2016 | The Informant247 Ltd | |
| Politics Nigeria | Lagos | 2016 | Dumebi Emmanuel | |
| Daily Nigerian | Abuja | 6 June 2016 | Penlight Media Limited | |
| Sahara Reporters | Lagos | Omoyele Sowore | ||
| Business Hallmark | Lagos | Prince Emeka Obasi | ||
| Daily Champion | Lagos | Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu | ||
| Daily Post | Lagos | James Bamisaye | ||
| Osun Defender | Osun | Moremi Publishing House Ltd. |
See also
- Brown envelope journalism, Nigeria
- Media of Nigeria
- List of radio stations in Nigeria
- List of television stations in Nigeria
- Telecommunications in Nigeria
References
- ^ a b c Sriramesh & Verčič 2009, pp. 324.
- ^ Mwalimu 2005, pp. 656.
- ^ Okurounmu 2010, pp. 107.
- ^ Poindexter & Meraz 2008, pp. 220ff.
- ^ "Nigeria: Smartphone Penetration Hits 30 Percent in Nigeria". AllAfrica.com. 8 July 2016. Archived from the original on 9 July 2016. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
- ^ "Countries:Nigeria:News". Stanford University. Archived from the original on 4 November 2010. Retrieved 11 May 2011.
Sources
- Poindexter, Paula Maurie; Meraz, Sharon (2008). Women, men, and news: divided and disconnected in the news media landscape. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-0-8058-6102-0.
- Mwalimu, Charles (2005). The Nigerian legal system. Peter Lang. ISBN 0-8204-7126-7.
- Okurounmu, Femi (2010). Leadership Failure and Nigeria's Fading Hopes: Being Excerpts from Patriotic Punches a Weekly Column in the Nigerian Tribune from 2004 - 2009. AuthorHouse. ISBN 978-1-4490-8409-7.
- Sriramesh, Krishnamurthy; Verčič, Dejan (2009). The global public relations handbook: theory, research, and practice. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-0-415-99514-6.
- Olumuyiwa Ayodele (1988). "African Print Media Misuse of the English Definite Article 'The': A Content Analysis of Seven Nigerian Newspapers' Lead Items". Africa Media Review. 2 (3) – via Michigan State University Libraries, African e-Journals Project.
- "Nigeria: Directory: the Press". Africa South of the Sahara 2004. Regional Surveys of the World. Europa Publications. 2004. p. 847. ISBN 1857431839.
- Derek Peterson; et al., eds. (2016). African Print Cultures: Newspapers and Their Publics in the Twentieth Century. University of Michigan Press. ISBN 978-0-472-05317-9. (Includes articles about Nigerian newspapers)
External links
- "Nigeria: News and Media". Open Directory Project.
- "Nigeria Newspapers". WorldCat. USA: Online Computer Library Center.
- "Nigeria". Electronic Newspapers of Africa. Virtual Libraries: African Studies. New York, USA: Columbia University Libraries.
- Karen Fung, African Studies Association (ed.). "News (by country): Nigeria". Africa South of the Sahara. USA – via Stanford University.
Annotated directory
- "Newspapers Held in Microform: Nigeria" (PDF). Cooperative Africana Materials Project. United States: Center for Research Libraries. 2012.