Determinants of Turn-Taking in Nigerian Television Talk Shows

Abstract

Previous researches on media studies in Nigeria have not given the language of television discourse adequate attention. The print media seem to have had more admirers than the broadcast media. This paper therefore attempts to fill this gap by examining natural conversations in television discourse. It investigates the determinants of turn-taking patterns in Nigerian television (TV) talk shows. Three popular Nigerian TV talk shows were purposively selected for the study; four episodes bothering on different topics were selected from each talk show and recorded on video cassettes via the television. Our findings revealed seven main determinants of patterns and features of turn-taking namely: discourse topic, duration of the programme, composition of the guests/participants, culture, social status, gender and the personality of the hosts. These revealed the nature of the show and participation, floor occupation, shared understanding, turn quantification and emotiveness.