THE INFLUENCE OF MEDIA CAMPAIGN IN THE ERADICATION OF FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION PRACTICE IN SELECTED COMMUNITIES OF SOUTH- SOUTH NIGERIA

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Abstract

The use of mass media to crusade and mobilize support against certain crude and inhuman cultural practices has remained an essential focus on the social responsibility function of the media. Hence, this study beyond opinionated conjectures, empirically studied the influence of media campaigns in the eradication of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) practice in selected communities  of  south  south  Nigeria.  The  survey  research  design  was  used  to  study  a representative sample size of the target population. A sample size of three hundred and eighty three was selected  and administered  a  twenty  one item questionnaire.  Research  findings revealed  that  the  media  mix  approach  for  the  said  campaigns,  meaningfully  helped  at influencing the attitude of the south south rural women against the FGM practice. The study concluded  that  media  campaigns  against  FGM  have  paid  off  and  recommended  that sensitization  programmes  like  seminars  etc.  should  be  organized  for  traditional  rulers, religious  leaders  and   other   opinion  leaders  to  enable  them  use  other  rural  media communication   channels  to  further  sensitize  and  mobilize  the  rural  women  so  as  to consolidate the gains of the campaign and ensure total eradication of the FGM practice.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1      Background to the Study

Every media content obviously aims at influencing the attitude and behaviour of its target  audience.   To  achieve  this,  therefore,  media  practitioners   must   understand   the psychographic  and  demographic  realities  of  the  target  audience.  Ipso  facto,  they  must appreciate the prevailing culture of the people and the most useful and persuasive approach to use in order to influence attitude.

It, therefore, suffices that a strong relationship exists between mass communication and culture.  Hence, Baran (2002:6) definition of mass communication  as “the process of creating  shared  learning  between  the  mass  media  and  their  audiences”.  In  line  with  its informative,  educative and socialization  functions among  others, the media socializes  the people into accepted norms and values as well as  necessitates a change in cultural pattern where necessary, since human behaviour as well as culture is dynamic.

Also,  in  line  with  the  responsibility  of  the  mass  media,  various  campaigns  are mounted to educate, inform, enlighten, warn, persuade and even dissuade the heterogeneous, critical and sophisticated audience. In this light, the mass media have been vocal and visible in recent times, as in time past, in the campaign against societal ills and harmful traditional practices.  One  of  such  harmful  traditional  practices,  the  mass  media  have  repeatedly campaigned against is the issue of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). To this end, the mass media, arguably, have repeatedly given coverage to all efforts aimed at fighting against FGM.

What then is Female Genital Mutilation (FGM)? FGM involves the partial or  total removal of genitalia which the United  Nations  (UN) and the World Health  Organization (WHO), say is a flagrant violation of the girls and women’s rights. Experts say the practice has no medical benefits, but can lead to serious injury, infection and death. It can take away

sexual pleasure for women and cause complications  in child birth. “It reflects deep-rooted inequality  between  the  sexes,  and  constitutes  an extreme  form  of  discrimination  against women” says the World Health Organization (WHO).

Female  Genital  Mutilation  (FGM)  is  a  cultural  practice  that  started  in  Africa approximately 2000 years ago. It is primarily a cultural practice not a religious practice. In order to eliminate the practice, one must eliminate the belief that a girl will not become a woman without this procedure.

According to Nigeria Demographic  and Health survey 2008, 30% of females  have suffered  from  one  form  or  the  other  of  FGM  in  almost  all  states  of  the  federation. Interestingly, this practice has continued to attract local and global attention and criticism. Hence, the media has within the dictate of its social responsibilities,  continued to air and publish contents critical to the obnoxious cultural practice.

However, there seems to be a dearth of empirical research evidence on whether these media campaigns have actually succeeded in yielding desired dividends that is  influencing the attitude of women against FGM. This situation, obviously account for this study which seeks  to  measure  the  degree  of  influence  of  these  anti  FGM  media  campaign  in  the elimination of the practice.

There have been divergent opinions  on whether the mass media campaign  against FGM, is succeeding in influencing the attitude of Nigerians. On their part,  Omenugha and Ekwugha (2008:12), argue that “despite the wide spread information against FGM, it is still waxing strong in some parts of the country”. This issue,  therefore, is not on whether the media engage in persuasive campaign at sensitizing the society on the dangers of this cultural practice, but on the actual effect of such on behaviour.

This, therefore, brings to the fore, such issues as whether the language use of such media  campaign  is  understandable  to  the  target  audience,  or  whether  indeed  the  target

audience do  have genuine access to such media campaign. These variables would be studied in this research.

For the radio, the issue of FGM intermittently qualifies as the issue of discussion in Radio Nigeria Network programme titled “Health Watch”. This programme  comes  on air every Monday by 5:30pm. For instance, on September 20, 2010 and October 18, 2010, FGM was the topic of discussion in the said programme. One interesting part of this programme, is that it usually features professionals as resource persons. In the said  programme, Dr Sa’ad Idris and Dr Amir Yola (both are fistula surgeon) were used as resource persons to provide detailed explanation on the realities of FGM as well as provide answers to questions raised by the audience.

More so, daily newspapers have continued to crusade against the practice of  FGM through  their  news  reportage,  well  researched  features  stories  and  thought   provoking editorials. For instance, the Punch newspaper on March 14, 2013 carried a story titled “Niger constitutes panel on Female Genital Mutilation”. A similar story was carried in the news page of Daily Times of March 13, 2013 with the headline “Gov. Aliyu Sets up Committee on Gay marriage and Female Genital Mutilation.” In the same vein,  Thisday of May 23, 2012 and Guardian  of October  18, 2010,  carried  stories  headlined  “Experts  Decry female  Genital mutilation” and “Stakeholders Raise Alarm over FGM” respectively.

The Nation newspaper was not left out as it carried a story titled “NGO Sensitizes against Female Genital Mutilation” on its November 13, 2010 edition. Perhaps, to show how globalized the issue of FGM is, the Thisday newspaper again published a story in its February

11,  2013  edition  titled  “Health:  UNFPA,  UNICEF;  Call  for  End  to  Female   Genital Mutilation.”

The issue of FGM has obviously gone beyond the geographical frontiers of regions to gain the interest and alter concern of global development partners. In this regard, the sixth of

February every year, has been designated  as the International  Day for Zero Tolerance  of Female Genital Mutilation. In the same vein, USAID officially incorporated the elimination of FGM into its development agenda. It, therefore, suffices that the media have succeeded at galvanizing  support  and  mobilizing  development  partners  for  the  elimination  of  FGM practice.

However, if the practice has continued or remained on the increase in the face of these media  campaigns,  it, therefore,  underscores  the  fact  that  cultural  attitudes  are  not  easily changed. This, therefore,  brings to the fore the need to explore the  involvement  of other forms of communication  other than the mass media, for the  purpose of achieving desired result. Herein lies the relevance of development communication approaches which “involves the  use  of  all  forms  of  communication  in  the  reporting,  publicizing  and  promotion  of development at all levels of a society” (Edeani 1993:30).

Drawing the line between development communication and development journalism, Okunna  (2002:293)   notes  thus:  “Development   journalism   refers  to  the   use  of  mass communication   (the   mass   media)   in   the   promotion   of   development.   Development communication  on  the  other  hand,  is  broader  in  scope  and  is  the  use  of  all  forms  of communication in the development process”.

Hence,  while  development  journalism  is restricted  to the use of the  mass  media, development communication combines mass media use and all local and traditional forms of communication like market place, town crier, visits, church, the  family and village square. Ebeze (2002:29), Ukonu and Wogu (2006: 16) and Chukwu (2006:111).

It is therefore permissive to contend that the arguable elitist leaning of mass media messages may not result in change of attitude by the ruralites, since they would  arguably prefer known credible traditional media to the mass media. It, therefore, suffices that rather than depend on the mass media, they depend on their traditional rulers, religions leaders and

other opinion leaders in the village. Arguably, therefore, the ruralites do not depend on the media for “accurate information”.

This also underscores  the complexity of changing an existing culture. Culture  has been variously defined. According to Okunna and Omenugha (2012:274), culture is “a shared attribute of a human group. This may include their physical environment,  tools,  religion, customs, and practices and their whole way of life”. People usually hold on tenaciously to their cultural ideologies (no matter how irrelevant). This obviously stands as a barrier to their believability of media campaigns against such practices like FGM.

This stance perhaps lay credence to the Selective Influence Theories which permit the media audience to select what media content to expose himself/herself  to and  whether to perceive it as true or not and consequently retain it or do away with it.  (Wogu: 2008:120- 123). Hence, even though the media has succeeded in setting agenda for public debate, Leon Festinger’s Cognitive, Dissonance Theory (Ozo-Mekuri and Kasarachi,  2006:242-243)  and Uses and Gratification Theory (Ozo-Mekuri and Kasarachi 2006:228-233), here position the target  audience  as  active  members  who  determine  the  degree  of  media  influence,  not otherwise.  Simply  put,  it  is  the  media  audience  member  that  determines  the  degree  of influence a media message would have on him.

Therefore, the way rural women in the South-South region of Nigeria perceive media campaign on FGM determine the degree of input such media campaign would have on them. This assertion would only hold true if they are in the first place constantly exposed to such media messages. However, if they don’t either because of constant power failure to listen to radio or watch television or poor economic status to buy newspapers, they would only depend on social community interaction on FGM which would encourage rather than discourage the practice.

1.2      Statement of the Problem

Observation reveals that despite increased  mass media campaign against FGM,  the practice still prevails in several communities of Nigeria. Corroborating this view, Omenugha and Ekwugha (2008:121) note thus “despite the wide spread information against FGM, it is still strong in some parts of the country”.

This research,  therefore,  seeks to measure  empirically,  the degree of influence  of media  campaign  against  FGM,  in  the  eradication  of  the  practice.  The  research,  would however, focus on selected communities in the South-South geo-political zone  of Nigeria. The study is important because if ignored, the desired aim of anti-FGM media campaign may not be achieved.

There  seems  to  also  be  a  wide  gap  in  literature  on  anti-FGM  media  campaign. Despite, several studies that have been done on media campaigns and FGM, none specifically has been directed towards measuring the degree of influence of anti-FGM media campaign on the eradication of FGM practice. This research seeks to fill this vacuum.

1.3 Objectives of the Study

The general objective of this study is to examine the influence of media  campaign against  Female  Genital Mutilation  (FGM)  on the eradiation  of FGM  practice  in selected communities of South-South Nigeria.

Specifically, the study is meant to:

(1)  Find out the frequency at which rural women in the South-South geo- political zone of Nigeria expose themselves to the anti-FGM media campaigns.

(2)  Find  out  if  rural  women  in  the  South-South  geo-political  zone  understand  the language used and the content in such media campaigns.

(3)  Find out if such rural women believe the substance of such media campaigns.

(4)  Find  out  if exposure  to  such  media  campaigns  has  in any way influenced  their attitudes against the practice of FGM.

1.4     Research Questions

The following research questions would guide this study:

(1) What is the frequency of exposure of women in South-South Nigeria to  anti-FGM

media campaign?

(2) To what extent do such South-South rural women understand the language use and message content of such anti-FGM media campaigns?

(3) How  do  the  women  perceive  (believe)  the  message  of  those  anti-FGM  media campaigns?

(4) What is the overall influence of such anti-FGM media campaign on the attitude of such South-South women as regards FGM practice?

1.5     Significance of the Study

This study is significant in the following ways:

Firstly, to the mass communication student, it would help evoke interest in further research in this area. Only selected communities from the South-South geopolitical zone of Nigeria would be studied in this research. Mass Communication students can replicate this study in other geopolitical zones of Nigeria.

Secondly, it would encourage media professionals to double their effort in the campaign against harmful cultural practices including Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). This they can achieve, by creating more programs was aimed at combating the practice.

Also, to development partners, it presents the empirical data on achievement so far  and what need to be done. This study would go a long way in helping them reappraise their styles,

methods and approach. It would also assist them in the planning of their programs so as to conform to prevailing trends.

It would also help change cultural attitude not in line with development trends. It  is a known fact that some cultural practices are no longer in tandem with modern day realities. Such practices are dehumanizing to say the least. This study would help in reorienting the people towards abolishing negative cultural attitudes where need be.

Finally, it would help women to understand their vital position in the country’s economy and mobilize them to contribute maximally to national development. The place of women in every society is well known. Women must therefore be protected from all forms of abuse and discrimination including harmful cultural practices like Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).

1.6    Scope of the Study

This study shall be delimited  to women within the age bracket of 40-60  years  in selected rural communities in the six states that make up the South-South region of Nigeria. The researcher’s choice of this age group, drawn from the fact that women within this age bracket are mostly those involved in carrying the practice of FGM on young girls.

1.7   Definition of Terms

1.   Influence: The effect that somebody or something has on the way a person thinks or behaves.

2.   Media Campaign: Media contents. Ideologies or attitudes canvassed by organs  of mass communication like radio, television, newspapers, magazines, billboards etc.

3.   Female Genital Mutilation: The cultural practice of cutting sensitive part of the female genitalia with a view to reduce her sex drive.

4.   South-South  Nigeria:  A  geo-political  zone  of  Nigeria  which  constitutes  of  the following six states: AkwaIbom, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Edo and Rivers.



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