Abstract

Government policies are meant to reach the people, particularly the elite, who are the opinion leaders that can influence the acceptability or rejection of a policy through credible media. However, there seems to be a gap in either the quantity or quality of information reaching the elites as many government policies are trailed with controversies. Thus, this study raised questions on the preferred media the elite gather information from and what informs their preference. It also examined their perception of the mass media coverage of government policies and their believability of the policy messages. A census survey was conducted on the elite on Senior Executive Course 38 at NIPSS, using questionnaire as instrument to source data. Result shows that the elite pay attention to the credibility, believability and depth of analysis of messages on government policies from their preferred media. They are satisfied with the quantity of information on government policies; but rated the quality of the information on government policies to the people below average. The study recommended the intensification of in-depth analysis of government policies to help the people in taking informed decisions and that the government should have a clear strategic document to guide its communication activities

Key Words: Mass Media, Government Policy, Public Opinion, Credibility, Believability

* Sola Adeyanju, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor and Head of Dept of Culture, Language and Media in the Directorate of Research; and also the Deputy Chief Operating Officer, Political Parties Leadership and Policy Development Centre at the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru, Jos, Nigeria.

^JCMR Journal  of  Communication and Media Research, Vol. 9, No. 2, October  2017, 1 – 13