CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study
As the world grows complex and
sophisticated, new media technologies are invented. The invention of new media
technologies has always been a catalyst for change in the broadcast industry.
This change can be attributed to the introduction of new media technologies in
broadcasting occasioned by giant technological advancement. The advancement in
media technologies has cut the barrier of time and space in our broadcast
industry; it has also made communication easier and more democratic and the
creation and distribution of media content easier. No wonder Defleur and Dennis
(2009) observed that technology has
always been a metaphor for change in media industry. As far back as Gutenberg,
it was technology, the movable type that
spurred change. Later, fast printing presses, the telegraph, zinc engraving,
modern photography, radio, television, fibre optics, and other technologies
heralded new developments for media and their audience. The emergence of
new media technologies and the imaginative applications of these new
technologies and older technologies make it possible for the society to be more
informed. It also makes information processing, delivery, storage and retrieval
easier. As the world strives towards globalization, the new media technologies
are believed to be a great facilitator of this move.
Nsude
(2004) believes that the human family is disunited and fragmented into nations
and cultures with conflicting interest and perceptions and there is need
therefore for a more united world. Throughout history, new media and new forms
of media delivery have continually appeared. Today we have witnessed the
arrival of a global community brought about by advances in communication
technologies. This has invariably brought to fore the concept of globalization.
Marshal McLuhan, a Canadian Scholar, who foresaw the effect of technological
change in communication, said that the human society has been restored to a global
village.” The concept of global village assumes that “communication technology”
now work like the nervous system in the human family. Messages could be sent
and received with surprising speed. This therefore has shrunk the world into a
smaller place not because of a contraction in landmass, but due to the marvels
in communication technologies. Baran (2009) citing McLuhan states: The media permit us to experience the world
with a scope and depth otherwise impossible. Media, then, are extension of our
bodies. Just as clothes are an extension of our skin, permitting us to wander
farther from our warm caves into the cold world; just as the automobile is an
extension of our feet, enabling us to travel farther we could ever walk;
television extends our vision and hearing, and computers extend our central
nervous system. With television we can see and hear around the world, beyond
the galaxy, into the future, and into the past. Computers process, sort,
categorize, reconfigure, and clarify.
The
new media technologies play functional roles and make tremendous contributions
to the day to day running of the broadcast industry and society. Each advance
in communication increases our power to convey and record information, and each
has played a role in prompting significant changes in our culture and society.
It is difficult to digest fully the influence of one medium before another
comes on the scene. Prior to the arrival of new media technologies,
broadcasting equipment has been mechanical or analogue in nature. These
mechanical states of the equipment hinder effective production and
dissemination of news and information. Even the transmission of broadcast
signals was often affected by wave interference, hedges and unclear signals.
The reception of signals was largely limited to the carrying capacity of the
transmitter. The arrival of the computer has had enormous influence in the
production process in the broadcast industry. The computer has put tremendous
speed on news reporting and editing making the process almost instantaneous.
This process lays a strong emphasis on accuracy as Agba (2001) citing Swinton
(1974) observes, “You cannot catch up with an error in an era of satellite
circuits and high speed wires” in today’s cyberspace, high-tech age, the
computer has reduced, if not completely removed, the difficulties in the
production of media products through the electronic system. For instance, in
the past, the production and distribution process in a broadcast industry
involved clear definitive steps and employed manual labour. Today, studies have
revealed that broadcast industry especially in Europe and North America not
only gather information but also have their stories written using computers.
This modern technology eliminates the need for compositors to type because
reporters have done the key stroking and the story already exists in an
electronic form. In addition, many reporters run their stories through
computers that correct spelling and grammar. Also editors plan the pages of
stories on computers, further reducing the need for compositors. For instance
with the new media technologies AIT news can be accessed from any part of the
world. The station’s transmission on satellite has broken the barriers inherent
in analogue system and non-satellite system. However, the introduction and
acquisition of new media technologies have strongly influenced broadcast
transmission and reception particularly in Nigerian Television Authority (NTA)
Port - Harcourt, Rivers State Television (RSTV) Port - Harcourt and Daar
Communications Ltd (AIT) Port - Harcourt. According to Agba (2001) technology is integral to a global
marketplace wherein media companies and individual media come together and
compete across national boundaries in a fashion unheard of only some years
back. Broadcasting as a branch of mass communication has witnessed a
landmark transformation into a field of vigorous competition with vast
liberalization of infrastructure, information can now be digitalized,
transported, stored, retrieved, modified and distributed. High speed digital
electronic highways serve as the common technology through which these pieces
of information are transported.
With
the introduction of new media technologies, the broadcast media have penetrated
deeply into the basic fabrics of our social institutions in the society by
beaming out information and programmes that meet and satisfy the needs and
aspirations of their listener and viewer. In the words of Bittner (2009)
Technology has aided the media to move from the experimental stage, to the
present stage where they now exert great influence on world events. With the
introduction of new technologies in broadcasting, such as the Internet,
satellite cable system, fibre optics to mention but a few, journalism practice
across national boundaries has taken a drastic turn for the better. Technology
has aided both the print and broadcast media to establish a strong presence in
the Cyberspace. This brings us to the concept of technological convergence. By
technological convergence we mean the continuous development in media
technology aimed at bringing about a blend in technologies in the process of
message delivery. Okoro (2006) citing Folkerts et al states that in this
process, technological changes not only create new forms of media but also
cause formally distinct media forms such as newspapers to blend or overlap
functions with the new media, as is now the case with news on television and
the internet. Ilo (2000) in Okoro (2006) agrees that this convergence is rooted
in technological innovations in microelectronics, telecommunications and the
computer. In this mode, all kinds of data, irrespective of their origin can be
manipulated and integrated through digitalization on the basis of their common
informational structure. With this development they will become instrument for
the dissemination and propagation of local Nigerian news and culture across Nigeria
borders and thus, maintaining a strategic presence on the information
superhighway.
In
view of the above submission, it is pertinent for the broadcast media
professionals to be acquainted and able to manipulate these technologies and
also have good knowledge of the workings of these new technologies employed in
broadcasting.
It
is unarguably becoming a statement of fact that the success of any
organization; institution, business, or individual venture depends largely on
the level of communication effectiveness and efficiency at its disposal. Every
business or organization, regardless of its size or purpose, is concerned with
processing of facts (or data) about its operations in order to provide accurate
information to its management. This function could be carried out faster
through the use of modern communication channels like internet, television,
motion picture etc, which disseminate information to all nooks and crannies of
the populace. These modern communication devices go a long way to alleviate the
numerous human efforts being wasted in our previous (un–organized or
non–systematic) manner of running our organizations or collecting our
information (Mbam: 2002). The needs in today’s organizational and institutional
pattern to save time, cost and minimize the process of organizing and
coordinating our big activities is the core function of Information and
Communication Technologies (ICTs).
However,
the story is different in the Nigerian broadcast industry. Even in the face of
technological advancement in other countries and the applications of these new
technologies in the broadcast media, the acquisition and use in Nigeria is
rather slow. Nigerian broadcasters are yet to catch up with the trend in modern
technologies, although communication experts foresaw long ago that more private
broadcast media will spring up in Nigeria by 21st century, giving communication
its place and priority in the country. The use of new information technologies
in Nigeria is a recent phenomenon, as the media are doing their best to catch
up with the trend of things in the world in terms of the acquisition and use of
these new technologies. These technologies are capable of creating
sophistication in the method of broadcasting and also improve the output and
quality of programmes.
According
to Amuchie (2001), in a world that has become a global village where
information travels faster than the speed of light, any country that stand
aloof, whether out of ignorance or lack of appreciation of this necessity will
certainly contend with backwardness. The Nigerian broadcast media cannot afford
to stand aloof where others are making progress, thus, to fight the shackles of
backwardness successfully, there is need to embrace the use of these
technologies in order to improve the quality of the programmes and broadcast.
The improvement of the broadcast media all over the world is greatly due to the
application of the right technologies and communication system within their
broadcast network Malcom (2001).
1.2
Statement of the Problem
It
is saddening that despite the startling developments in media technology, TV
broadcasting in Nigeria especially in Ebonyi state is yet to assimilate the new
innovation or imbibe the realities of modern broadcasting. The advancement in
media technology can only be said to be achieving the desired ends when they
readily and continuously influence positively the operations of the Nigerian
broadcast media. What this translates to, is that the success or otherwise of
all these technologies can only be measured in terms of the extent to which
they bring improvement on the accuracy, speed and transfer of message and
redefine the concept of broadcasting to an enviable height. The use of new
media technologies can only be said to be effective when the media professionals
and audience benefit from the technologies through improved quality of
programmes. This research will be carried out to answer the following
questions.
·
How have the new media technologies
enhanced productivity in terms of accuracy and news production in these
stations?
·
Are the public broadcast stations more
abreast of the influence of the new media or the private broadcast station more
aware of this influence?
·
How have the new media technologies
influenced the members of staff?
·
How proficient are the members of staff
in the use of these new media technologies? What are the challenges posed by
these technologies to the members of staff?
·
How do the stations acquaint their staff
with the operations of new media technologies?
·
Are these influences positive or
negative?
·
How have these technologies helped to
overcome the barriers of time space and distance?
1.3 Objectives of Study
The objectives of this study include the
following;
i.
To determine the extent to which the new
media technologies have influenced the operations of the broadcast media.
ii.
To examine the level of proficiency of
the members of staff in the use of new media technologies.
iii.
To determine the extent to which new
media technologies have been incorporated into the stations operations.
iv.
To determine the challenges posed by new
media technologies to broadcast operations.
1.4 Significance of Study
This study will be beneficial in the
following ways: The findings will help to reposition the thought pattern
and help media professionals to get acquainted with the new technologies to
help produce quality programmes, add to the existing literatures and act as a
handy material for students who might have interest in researching further on
the topic, shows the extent to which broadcast media have incorporated the use
of modern technologies in their operations and also ascertain how favourable or
unfavourable these new technologies are to the broadcast media.
1.5 Research Questions
To realize the objectives of this study,
the following research questions were asked;
i.
To what extent have the new media
technologies influenced the operations of the broadcast media in terms of
reach, programmes, economy etc?
ii.
How proficient are the members of staff
in the use of the new media technologies?
iii.
To what extent have the stations
incorporated new media technologies in their operations?
iv.
What are the challenges posed by these
new technologies to the broadcast industry?
1.6 Scope of the Study
The interest of this study lied in the
influence of new media technologies in broadcasting with regard to the
broadcasting stations in Unity FM Abakaliki metropolis.
1.7 Definitions of Terms
For a proper understanding of this
work, key terms used are defined based on their conceptual relevance to this
study.
Influence: According to Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (7th ed.).
Influence is the effect that somebody or something has on the way a person
thinks or behaves or on the way that something works or develops. It could be
further said as the power that somebody or something has to make somebody or
something behave in a particular way.
New Media: According to Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (7th
ed.).New Media means new information and entertainment technologies,
such as the Internet, CD-ROMs and Digital Television. On the other hand McQuail
(2005:136) simply defines the “new media as a disparate set of communication
technologies that shares certain features apart from being new made possible by
digitalization and being widely available for personal use as communication
devices.
Media Technologies: This refers to any special device or
medium that helps in the procession, distribution, storage, display and
reception of information.
Broadcast: This is the business of sending out
radio and television signals over a distance, to a large heterogeneous audience
by means of airwaves.
Broadcast Media: This is that electronic media or
channel that uses the airwaves which enables signals and information to be
transmitted to a large and diverse audience.
Convergence: According to Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (7th ed.).Convergence
means to move towards a place from different direction and meet.
Digital: According to Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (7th
ed.). Digital means using a system of receiving and sending
information as a series of the numbers,
numbers one to zero, showing that an electronic signal is there or is not
there.
Globalization: This means international integration.
It can be describe as a process by which the people of the world are unified
into a single society. This process is a combination of economic, technology,
socio – cultural and political forces. www.wikipedia.org.
Internet: According to the wikipedia. org the
internet also known as the “Net” or the “Web” can be easily understood as a
“network of networks”. Specifically, it is the worldwide publicly accessible
network of international computer networks that transmits data by packet
switching using the standard internet protocol (IP). Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (7th ed.). “Internet”
is an international computer network connecting other networks and computers
from companies, universities, etc.