The Role Media Plays in Promoting Awareness On the Prevention of Cancer in Kampala Metropolitan: A Case Study of New Vision Uganda

CHAPTER ONE:

INTRODUCTION 1.0 This chapter also covers the background?, the problem statement, major and specific objectives, research questions, scope of the study, significance, justification of the study, and definition of key terms. 1.1 Background of the study In high-income and many emerging economies, the popular media, through a variety of media formats (web, print, television and so on), plays an integral role in influencing the public’s awareness and perception of cancer (Passalacqua R et al., 2004). The media purport to provide information that is focused, relevant, and easily understandable, enabling the wider public to identify applicable risk factors and adopt healthy lifestyles and choices, as well as promote research into cancer (directly benefiting charitable funders). This, in turn, can modulate the time lag between symptoms to diagnosis and therefore survival rates (Williamson JM., 2011) However, positivism around the media’s role in cancer has been seriously challenged. Scholars agree that media awareness campaigns should be seen as the cornerstone for health communication interventions. This is because of the myriad of communication techniques and channels that could be used to increase awareness and knowledge of health problems and interventions (Kreps & Sivaram, 2009; DeJong, 2010; Obono, 2011). Day (2011) opines that media awareness campaigns “are varied, multifaceted, highly planned and strategically assembled media symphonies designed to increase awareness, inform, or change behavior in target audiences” (p.79). Thus, media awareness campaigns are planned communication techniques that are designed to suit target groups in order to tackle diseases and health challenges that negatively affect individuals in the society. Interestingly, DeJong (2010) argues that media awareness campaigns are also known as information campaigns, which are used to raise awareness of health problems, usually with the intent of motivating people to avoid the problems.