PurposeThe importance of social exclusion and the disadvantage experienced by many minority ethnic and religious populations are rooted in SDG 10. To address this exclusion effectively it is important to understand their key drivers. This paper aimed to establish the key drivers of exclusion and their outcomes in Nigeria.Design/methodology/approachThe methods involved a scoping review of literature and stakeholder workshops that focused on drivers of social exclusion of religious and ethnic minorities in public institutions.FindingsAt the macro level, the drivers include ineffective centralized federal State, competition for resources and power among groups, geographic developmental divide and socio-cultural/religious issues. At the meso-level are institutional rules and competition for resources, stereotypes and misconceptions, barriers to access and service provision. At the micro-level are socio-economic status and health-seeking behaviour. The perceived impact of social exclusion included increasing illiteracy, lack of employment, deteriorating health care services, increased social vices, communal clashes and insurgencies and vulnerability to exploitation and humiliation. These drivers must be taken into consideration in the development of interventions for preventing or reducing social exclusion of ethnic and religious minorities from public services.Originality/valueThis is a case of co-production by all the stakeholders and a novel way for the identification of drivers of social exclusion in public services in Nigeria. It is the first step towards solving the problem of exclusion and has implications for the achievement of SDG 10 in Nigeria.

Since the corona virus disease broke out in Wuhan, Hubei Province in China in 2019, the world has known no peace in terms of global health. The COVID-19 pandemic has brought a new lifestyle of wearing facemask called the ‘new normal’. The media particularly newspapers have been fighting this global pandemic through different reports such as straight news, features, opinions and cartoons among others.  However, newspapers seem not to be doing enough in this war in their editorials. The above dictated this study which examined how Nigerian newspapers framed the second wave of COVID-19 in their editorials. Using qualitative research method, the study analysed contents of the published editorials of selected newspapers on the second wave of COVID-19 in Nigeria. Data analysed were presented in simple statistics while hypotheses raised were tested using Chi-square Statistical Technique.  The study found that Vanguard and Punch newspapers (the selected newspapers) published very few editorials (poor frequency) on the second phase of the pandemic in Nigeria despite the deadly effects of the disease. The study also revealed 13 types of frames (content categories of frame) in the editorials published on the second upsurge of the pandemic in Nigeria by the selected newspapers.

The study interrogates how the media mounted pressure on state actors to review weak anti-graft legislation in Nigeria. Content analysis was adopted for the study, while 1,520 hard copies of the Daily Sun, The Nation and Daily Trust as well as Vanguard and The Punch newspapers published from 2015-2019 were examined. The study was anchored on Framing Theory. Data collected were presented in tables and frequencies and were analyzed with the ANOVA statistical tool. Findings indicate that there was no significant difference in the degree of pressure mounted on state actors by the newspapers to review weak anti-corruption laws. The study recommends that media organizations must re-calibrate their editorial policies aimed at pressurizing state actors into addressing loopholes inherent in the legal framework in the fight against sleaze in the country.

Academic publishing is exciting and enjoyable, especially in the 21 st century. However, this possibility may not be the case with communication academics of public/government universities in southern Nigeria (South-South). This gap necessitates the current study, which evaluated the perceived limitations to academic publishing in the 21 st century among government universities' communication academics in southern Nigeria. Anchoring on Motivation theory and adopting the survey design, data from 44 respondents were collected. Measures of central tendency were used to analyse the collected data. The Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) technique was applied to test the hypotheses. The study found that the perceived limitations to academic publishing among communication academics do not differ significantly across the categories of public universities. The study recommended that management of public universities offering mass communication and related courses should provide research infrastructures and Internet connectivity across and within campuses.

The media are partners in a democracy because they ensure political participation in the democratic process. Audience perception of the media is vital as it affects credibility and believability of the media and their messages. Credibility and believability of the media are predicated to an extent upon the source of media messages. These issues prompted this study which examined the INEC-Sponsored media messages during the 2019 general elections in Nigeria with specific reference to Warri voters. The study which adopted survey research methodology sampled 384 respondents and used questionnaire to collect data. Data collected were analysed by simple percentages and measures of central tendencies, while hypotheses were tested by Regression Analysis. The study found among others that voters in Warri metropolis perceived that the INEC-Sponsored media messages during the 2019 general elections were credible and thus created the expected level of awareness and sensitization about the general elections. This consequently and significantly influenced voters’ turnout in Warri metropolis during the 2019 general elections. The study thereafter recommended among others that INEC should continue to sponsor unbiased media messages to voters as this will strengthen elections and democracy in Nigeria.