MEDIA'S ROLE IN PROMOTING WOMEN PARTICIPATION IN POLITICS.

MEDIA ROLE IN PROMOTING WOMEN PARTICIPATION IN POLITICS.

By Ifoema Oti

Head of News & Current Affairs,

AIT, Lagos

Introduction

The primary role of the Media is and will always be to inform, educate and entertain the people by providing them with fair, accurate and balanced information about activities taking place within and around them. It's most important role is to report the news.

The Media and Politics

The Media is a powerful force for change and it exercises its greatest influence in politics during elections. The Media is involved in the candidates’ political campaigns; from fundraising to press announcements, staged events and major speeches as well as appearances on news stories and interviews.

                                      

Political candidates need the Radio, the Television, the newspapers, the magazines and the Internet (especially the new and social media platforms) to reach voters with their messages. All these are planned with an eye towards gaining coverage and winning elections.

Candidates know that for them to succeed, they need the Media on their side.  Candidates who lack effective Media strategy are most likely to fail. By providing the political platform for debates, campaigns and advertisements, voters are able to learn a great deal about the capability and credibility of candidates. These help them to make educated choices. In other words, what the voter hears, sees and reads, greatly influences what he/she chooses to believe or disbelieve and what he/she accepts or rejects.

Today with the new and social media, the world is changing. There are hundreds of thousands of websites and home pages. The Internet has become a veritable tool for political communication. Here candidates gain information, express their views, engage in debates, analyse what they are offering, mobilise voters and political leaders. They can even raise donations on line. For both Candidates and Voters, this is a new and exciting experience. Reporting is also becoming more objective and more interpretative. We are beginning to see more analysis of candidates’ action plan, voters’ views and interpretation of issues.

Of the hundreds of thousands of activities around the world, it is the media that decides which of these activities merits coverage. In other words, it is the Media that determines what news is. However what is hard news for one Editor may not be news at all to another. Again in this age of competition, Media owners are more concerned about profit and ratings than sound political information. He plays the piper; dictates the tune. Editorial judgement is sometimes determined by owners.

The decision on what stories to report, the treatment and prominence given to such stories often reflect partisanship. These are some of the reasons why the Media is sometimes accused of bias by individuals or groups dissatisfied with their coverage.

Politics, Women & the Media

Politics is a male dominated institution into which only a few women dare to venture. To participate candidates have to be well funded, connected and be good lobbyists. The odds are often against women who have to deal with cultural and domestic issues. Many do not have the financial capability to meet the demands of seeking elections. Those who desire to contest contend themselves with assurances and promises of support from party members without making any effort to engage the media. Many are concerned about how they may be viewed by the Media and how to handle the new media attention.

Society does not progress on its own. Women need to make their voices heard. Equal opportunities can only be achieved when those who are denied them come together to insist that their needs be met. Women need representation in government and since who wears the shoe knows where it pinches; it is these women candidates that can effectively articulate those needs and work to eliminate the hurdles that keep them from making meaningful contribution to issues that affect them.

Therefore, women who seek political office must aim to make themselves visible, especially in the media. They should solicit moral and financial support not only from party members but reach out to prominent women organizations and individuals who can help them realize their aspirations.

But the media needs to do more for women aspirants and candidates. They may be few in number, but their political fortunes would be better off, if there is a deliberate quantitative and qualitative improvement in the coverage of their issues and concerns. The media can achieve this if it:

·         Engages in advocacy for Parties to embrace affirmative action by electing more women as candidates for parliamentary and executive offices

·         Continuously enlightens the male gender on the importance of supporting female politicians

·         Shuns stereotypes about female politicians

·         Gives more space or airtime, as the case maybe, for female aspirants and candidates

·         Reflects the views of female aspirants and candidates in political and election reports

·         Generally mainstream gender into news reporting

 To conclude, the media must realize that despite constituting about half of the population, women still belong to the disadvantaged segment of society. The media should therefore inculcate the promotion of women interests into their social responsibility during elections.

PARTICIPANTS LOOK ON DURING A RECENT MEDIA EVENT IN LAGOS,NIGERIA