The Guardian (Nigeria)

The Guardian

Type	Daily newspaper
Publisher	Guardian Newspapers Limited
Founded	1983
Official website	http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/

The Guardian is an independent daily newspaper published in Nigeria by Guardian Newspapers Limited.^[1] The Guardian has been described as "Nigeria's most respected newspaper".^[2]

Foundation

The Guardian was established in 1983 by the entrepreneur Alex Ibru and Stanley Macebuh, a top journalist with the Daily Times newspapers. The Guardian was a pioneer in introducing high quality journalism to Nigeria with thoughtful editorial content.^[3] The paper was first published on 22 February 1983 as a weekly, appearing on Sundays. The paper started daily publication on the 4 July 1983.^{[citation needed]} In the early 1980s the Guardian had a long-running campaign against the use of traditional chieftancy titles, calling for Nigerians to be addressed simply as "Mr" or "Mrs".^[4]

Struggle for freedom

During the administration of General Muhammadu Buhari, reporters Tunde Thompson and Nduka Irabor were both sent to jail in 1984 under Decree No. 4 of 1984, which suppressed journalistic freedom.^[5][6] On 26 August 1989 the Guardian published a long letter by Dr. Bekolari Ransome-Kuti, a human-rights activist, titled "Open Letter to President Babangida" in which he criticized what he saw as increasing government suppression of free expression of ideas.^[7]

The owner, Alex Ibru, escaped an assassination attempt during the military regime of General Sani Abacha. On 2 February 1996 his car was fired upon and Ibru was hit. He was rushed to the hospital with one of his eyes dangling from its socket.^[8] Following Abacha's sudden death in June 1998, legal proceedings began against his son Mohammed Abacha and his Chief Security Officer Major Hamza al-Mustapha. Eventually, in December 2010 a Lagos High Court acquitted those accused of the attempt.^[9][10]

Content

The Guardian is owned by a member of an ethnic minority and has a national outlook in terms of reach and content. It claims to be independent of any ethnic group, religious community, political party or other interest group. However, rightly or wrongly it has been accused of hate-mongering against the Igbo people.^[11] The Guardian is the main competitor to The Punch for advertising, although not for circulation. Unlike The Punch it focuses on business content rather than on what the editor of The Punch refers to as "appeal to the working classes".^[12] The Guardian is read by the most educated section of the elite, while The Punch can be understood by anyone with basic literacy. Other Nigerian papers fall between these extremes.^[13]

The paper is one of the few relatively long lasting national papers in Nigeria. It is believed its durability is a result of its broad range of issues, and contacts, its close link to the Ibru family and non-partisanship. In its early stages of circulation, The Guardian was of one the few national dailies that did not publish advertised obituaries. Since 1989, the policy has changed and elite advertisement now makes a large percentage of the newspaper's revenue.^{[citation needed]}

References

1. ^ "The Guardian". JournalSeek. http://journalseek.net/cgi-bin/journalseek/journalsearch.cgi?field=issn&query=0331-2984. Retrieved 2011-05-14. 
2. ^ "Lagos Journal; A Gleeful David Faces the Goliath That Is Nigeria". New York Times. October 28, 1988. http://www.nytimes.com/1988/10/28/world/lagos-journal-a-gleeful-david-faces-the-goliath-that-is-nigeria.html?pagewanted=2&src=pm. Retrieved 2011-05-14. 
3. ^ Linda K. Fuller (2004). National days/national ways: historical, political, and religious celebrations around the world. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 171. ISBN 0275972704. http://books.google.ca/books?id=llmCOvtWcUcC&pg=PA171. 
4. ^ Okechukwu Jones Asuzu (2005). The Politics of Being Nigerian. Lulu.com. p. 257. ISBN 1411619560. http://books.google.ca/books?id=XZH93qwrFJkC&pg=PA257. 
5. ^ STANLEY MOKAOGWU (2011-03-19). "Investigative Journalism:A Panacea For Corruption". http://www.nigerianobservernews.com/19032011/weekendobserver/features/5.html. Retrieved 2011-05-14. 
6. ^ Kassim Omomia (2011-04-20). "Buhari And The Subtle, "No Court Declaration"". Nigerian Pilot. http://nigerianpilot.com/?q=content/buhari-and-subtle-%E2%80%9Cno-court-declaration%E2%80%9D. Retrieved 2011-05-14. 
7. ^ Cheryl Johnson-Odim, Nina Emma Mba (1997). For women and the nation: Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti of Nigeria. University of Illinois Press. p. 177. ISBN 0252066138. http://books.google.ca/books?id=ZyMyspsywPsC&pg=PA177. 
8. ^ CLEM KHENA-OGBENA (9 JANUARY 2011). "How Al-Mustapha, Others Were Cleared". Leadership (Nigeria). http://www.leadershipeditors.com/ns/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=22886:clem-khena-ogbena&catid=33:special-report-&Itemid=151. Retrieved 2011-05-14. 
9. ^ Julcit Sanda (26 February 2003). "Ibru: Mohammed Abacha Heads for Appeal Court". ThisDay. http://allafrica.com/stories/200302260311.html. Retrieved 2011-05-14. 
10. ^ Paul Dada (22 December 2010). "Attempted Murder of Alex Ibru - Al-Mustapha, Others Cleared". Leadership (Abuja). http://allafrica.com/stories/201012220252.html. Retrieved 2011-05-14. 
11. ^ Eugenia Siapera (2004). At the interface: continuity and transformation in culture and politics. Rodopi. p. 68ff. ISBN 9042017325. http://books.google.ca/books?id=waZ-r9ubNecC&pg=PA68. 
12. ^ "Nigeria: The PUNCH newspaper seeks to knock out the competition". RAP21. World Association of Newspapers. 2004-09-07. http://www.rap21.org/article18257.html. Retrieved 2011-05-14. 
13. ^ Judith Marcus (1999). Surviving the twentieth century: social philosophy from the Frankfurt School to the Columbia faculty seminars. Transaction Publishers. p. 183. ISBN 1560003529. http://books.google.ca/books?id=vB2Qf34T7JoC&pg=PA183.