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Journal VOL. 1 NO. 2, September. 2020, ISSN: 2714 - 4054

 

Agenda Setting in Democratic Societies: Assessing the Role of the Press in Political Communication Framing

Akinkoya Omoniyi Felix, Odetoyinbo Ayo Clement, Ogbuehi Chidi Solomon

 

ABSTRACT

This paper examined the role of the media in agenda setting. It considered the assumptions of agenda setting theory especially the issue of salience and prominence. These concepts bring to the fore the issue of priming and framing of stories by the press for them to become agenda. The discourse showed that the press are not the only one who set agenda after all; but also government which comprises politicians, elites and business conglomerates, who, by their comparative positions, access and control the media, and thereby make their views news agenda by all means. The theories of agenda-setting and gate-keeping are seen to be interwoven. In setting agenda, the discourse revealed that the issue of political economy and political communication, the controllers who are the elites (political actors, business moguls) in this era of digital convergence need visibility and publicity which they want to exchange and bargain with the press in whatever means, while the press too, need them for survival. Likewise, around the corner are the citizen journalists (amateur) who cover stories through their cell phones as witnesses have considerably taken over the role of the press in setting agenda with no string attached. Even professional journalists receive stories from them through their cell phones. The media organisations woo these amateurs to send in their stories decided by the amateurs themselves. This paper concluded that agenda setting is not the sole right of the press. Nevertheless, this paper capped the conclusion that no matter the situation, professionalism, ethics and the standard of the press must not be sacrificed at the altar of tabloidization and trivialisation but be upheld.

 

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