ASSESSMENT OF THE USE OF ICT IN IMPROVING PRINT MEDIA PRACTICE: (A STUDY OF THE NIGERIAN OBSERVER)

ABSTRACT

This study “ASSESSMENT OF THE USE OF ICT IN IMPROVING PRINT MEDIA PRACTICE: (A STUDY OF THE NIGERIAN OBSERVER)”has positive impact on news writing because the advent of modern technology has really done great thing in our country. It is relevant to the print media industry because every technological breakthrough brings with its new audience, new orientation, new prospects and challenges. For a print media organization to effectively sell its products to an audience efficiently and effectively, it must have an efficient and adequate information technologies and corresponding knowledge of their uses. The objectives of the study is to assess the influence of ICTs in improving print media practice. It explored the impact of the technologies in the Newspaper industry. However, the research method used in the study is the survey research method on the staffs of the Nigerian Observer. The sampling technique adopted for this study involves the simple random sampling techniques. Simple random sampling means that workers in various departments stand the chance of being part of the sampleof the specified media house. The findings showed that It was established that Information Communication Technology (ICT) plays a critical role of news gathering in the Nigerian Observer, the influence of Information and Communication Technology on the Nigerian Observer is indeed huge as it aids the news gathering process, respondents strongly disagreed that the quality of Newspaper coverage in the Nigerian Observer is good without the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and lack of finance as the main challenge encountered in the course of using ICT in the Nigerian Observer.

It recommends that ICT should be utilized in all print media organization for easy process of daily newspaper production, ICT should be tagged important to any print media outlets due to its advantages and contributions to the Newspaper production process, Government and bankers should provide loan programmes for editors of the print media industry so that they can purchase and maintain Information and Communication Technologies in various print media houses and undergraduates in the mass communication and other disciplines should be encouraged, as part of their information, to engage themselves in the use and manipulation of the new information and communication technologies, to get the acquainted with the tools for the purpose of familiarity and efficiency.