Mass media in Nigeria
Mass media in Nigeria has an interesting and long history.
Media culture
Historically, Nigeria has boasted the most free and outspoken press of any African country, but also one which has consistently been the target of harassment by the past military dictatorships. Many agents of Nigeria press have been imprisoned, exiled, tortured, or murdered as a result, among them being Ogoni activist and television producer Ken Saro-Wiwa, who was executed for treason by order of the Sani Abacha dictatorship in 1995.Even under the somewhat less-oppressive current civilian government, journalists have continued to come under fire, be it from the government or from other popular establishments. However, as with most other countries, blogging has increasingly become a much safer, and much easier, conduit for Nigeria's growing Internet-enabled minority to express their dissatisfactions with the current state of affairs in Nigeria.
Media corruption
Brown envelope journalism in Nigeria is a practice whereby monetary inducement is given to journalists to make them write a positive story or kill a negative story. The name is derived from cash inducements hidden in brown envelopes and given to journalists during press briefings. It is a common practice in Nigeria and many journalists do know that it is unethical. One of the effects is that the Nigerian media has become a hotbed for sponsored stories.Mediums
Newspapers
Until the 1990s most publications were government-owned, but private papers such as the Nigerian Tribune, The Punch, Vanguard, and the Guardian continued to expose public and private scandals.Laws related to the media, including newspapers, are scattered across various pieces of legislature.
There are few good sources of discussion and analysis of these laws.
An analysis of newspapers shows a strong bias towards coverage of males, reflecting prevalent cultural biases. Few articles discuss women and there are few photographs of women outside the fashion sections.
Although earnings have declined since the late 1980s the number of publications has steadily grown.
As of 2008 there were over 100 national, regional or local newspapers.
Radio and television
While newspapers have long thrived in Nigeria, radio and television has not received as much recognition, due to limited resources and press restrictions which beset the establishment of radio or television services in Nigeria. However, such limitations have since been improved in order to reach larger audiences both within and without Nigeria, such as with the growth of satellite television. The BBC World Service as well as the Voice of America and the German broadcasting organization Deutsche Welle also provide shortwave radio in the Hausa language.Most viewed channels
| Position | Channel | Share of total viewing |
| 1 | AM Family | 10.4 |
| 2 | AIT | 6.5 |
| 3 | AM Showcase | 6.0 |
| 4 | Silverbird TV | 5.4 |
| 5 | TVC Entertainment | 5.0 |
| 6 | M-Net | 4.9 |
| 7 | Galaxy TV | 3.3 |
| 8 | AM Yoruba | 1.9 |
| 9 | WAP TV | 1.4 |
| 10 | KAFTAN TV | 1.0 |