THE ROLE OF MASS MEDIA IN PROMOTING HUMAN RIGHT IN NIGERIA

The place of the mass media in the promotion of human rights in any given society cannot be ov eremphasized; the mass media generally, can be used to bring about positive attitudinal change in t he individuals. Thus, the paper examines the role of the media in the promotion of human rights i n Nigeria; it explores the various ways through which the media can be used to promote human ri ghts in Nigeria; some of the various ways identified in the paper are:through editorials, features, ne ws commentaries, discussion programmes. The paper identifies the basic human rights to include: ri ght to life, right to dignity of human beings, right to personal liberty, right to fair hearing, right t o compensation from property compulsorily acquired, right to private and family life,right to freedo m of thoughts, conscience and religion, right to peaceful assembly and association, right to freedom of movement, among others. The paper discovers that the Nigerian populace does not enjoy these rights, as these rights are still trampled upon in most cases. More so, the paper identifies that the mass media have not really been effective in the promotion of human rights in Nigeria. Thus, it p roposes that the media, both electronic and print, should be used topromote the issue of human rig hts in Nigeria, so that people will know their rights