Salience in the Media and Political Trust in Nigeria: The Mediating Role of Political Participation

Abstract

Political distrust is prevalent in many parts of the world. Scholars have discovered many factors affecting political trust, but they have paid little attention to the influence of issue salience in the media on political trust. Focusing on the role of media in assigning salience to corruption issues in Nigeria, this study examined the influence of mainstream media and social media on political trust. In addition, we treated political participation as a mediating factor and investigated its effect on the relationship between perceived salience of corruption in media and political trust. A survey was conducted on a sample of 688 Nigerians aged above 18 years old using a multi-stage cluster sampling technique. The data was later analyzed using Partial Least Square-Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM). We found that salience in media predicted political trust, and the effect was stronger for social media than mainstream media contexts. Our findings also suggested that political participation directly affected political trust and was a significant mediator that affected the relationships between salience in the mainstream media (SMM) and political trust and between salience in the social media (SSM) and political trust. The results imply that salience in media leads to political participation, leading to political trust. This study supports the assumptions of both agenda-setting and agenda-melding theories. It suggests that policymakers in Nigeria should adopt media, especially social media, to restore the people’s trust in government.

Nigeria in the Minds of Undergraduate Students in Public Tertiary Institutions: An Empirical Survey on the Trust Deficit in Political Governance

“…Corruption, involving bribery, money laundering, misappropriation of funds, along with the accumulation of wealth by Nigerian leaders have also been found to exacerbate this trust deficit. This finding is consistent with Akinola et al (2021), who also emphasized the influence of religious membership, political participation, and corruption management on political trust in Nigeria.…”

“…The study found that there are different predictors for trust in each level of government. Akinola et al (2021) conducted a review study that employed a microlevel analysis of public opinion survey data (question by question) to explore the empirical linkages of political trust within Nigeria. The study utilised data from the Afrobarometer Survey Round 4 carried out in 2008.…”

Cabaran Kerajaan Menguruskan Pesara dan Pelabur Antarabangsa: Cadangan Penambahbaikan Dasar dalam Program Malaysia Rumah Keduaku

“…Dengan situasi pandemik COVID-19 pada masa kini, kawalan pergerakan warga asing adalah sangat kritikal. Malah, pengurusan Program MM2H adalah bertepatan dengan skop kerja di bawah JIM di mana urusan pengeluaran visa dan pas adalah lebih sistematik dan boleh dipercepatkan jika Program MM2H diletakkan di bawah bidang kuasa JIM.Kenyataan ini dapat dikukuhkan lagi dengan kajian olehAkinola et al (2021) yang telah dijalankan di Nigeria. Dapatan kajian tersebut memaparkan bahawa penggunaan platform media sosial (kerajaan dan rakyat) mampu meningkatkan kepercayaan dan sokongan rakyat terhadap kerajaan.Selain itu, hebahan dan perkongsian aktiviti daripada Pusat MM2H seperti menyenaraikan aktiviti-aktiviti yang melibatkan peserta MM2H (Contohnya: Majlis Hitea, Program bahasa kebangsaan, kerja amal, dan sebagainya) dilihat mampu menarik minat pelancong atau pelabur asing untuk menyertai MM2H.…”