News Source Usage in Oromia Radio and Television Organization: A Case Study of Oromia Radio
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Date
2012-06
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
This study presented an examination of news source usage in Oromia Radio. The study explored the dominant sources used in Oromia Radio news program, the major criteria of news source selection, the number of source used in each news item. It also assessed how gatekeepers had impact on news production, and the way journalists presented facts they obtained from sources. Five basic research questions were raised to guide the study, and scholarly articles related to the issues were discussed.
Both quantitative and qualitative methods were employed. Content analysis and in-depth interviews with key informants were used to collect data. In the quantitative, 196 news items of 30 days evening news programs were selected by using systematic random sampling technique and analyzed. In the qualitative, six key informants who directly responsible for news production were selected by purposive sampling technique.
The finding of the study showed that being government official was the major criteria to select news source in Oromia Radio. The results of the study also showed that government officials were extensively used as the main sources of news in order to express the policies and strategies of the government. Government officials accounted for 70.48 % of news stories. This implied that government voices and issues were preferred for news production and the public were given less attention to express their opinions through Oromia Radio.
Those government officials played as a single gatekeeping roles indirectly in influencing reporters, editors, newsroom head , editor in chief and the station's manager. Journalists were influenced to report the positive sides of government and hid the weak side of the government and wrong doing of government officials. The findings revealed that single sources were used in more than half of the news stories, it accounted for 54.1 %. Double and multiple sources were offered 33.2 % and 11.7 %, respectively. The findings also indicated that nearly 96 % of sources were human, and nonhuman sources were only offered 3.14%. 41.3 % of news were presented with journalists' personal opinion and 24% were not balanced. In addition to these, there was limitation of attributing the source of information professionally.
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Oromia Radio and Television Organization