HARMONISING THE ECONOMIC RATIONAL BETWEEN CONSUMER’S RIGHT AND COMMERCIAL INTEREST IN THE CONTEMPORARY BROADCASTING INDUSTRY

Abstract:

This paper examines “Consumers’ Right and Commercial Interest: Balancing the Economic Equation”. It is a descriptive and analytical paper which seeks to know whether the broadcast media industry in Nigeria are fulfilling their social responsibility to the public as well as the consequence of commercialisation on the consumers; and conflict between the broadcast media commercial interest and obligation to the consumer. There is no doubt, the deregulation of the broadcast media and the subsequent commercialisation and liberalisation of the media landscape opened a new vista for broadcasting in Nigeria to the benefit of few and the detriment of the consumer who does not have the clout to determine what goes into the media either through participation or access. The consumer has become the guinea pig sold to advertisers who can afford the high and exorbitant media charges. The consequence is that since he who pays the piper dictates the tune; the consumer’s right to be informed, educated, entertained and communicate through the broadcast media is trampled on. This is not good for the broadcast media industry since the consumer is one of the most important factors in the survival and existence of the media, thus the increasing need to steer a middle course by giving the consumer his due. The Social Responsibility Theory and the Democratic Participant Theory provided the theoretical underpinning for this paper.