Evaluation of Grassroots Newspapers’ Mission Statements in South-West Nigeria

Aim: Mission or vision statement is expected to reflect an organization’s ideology and operational philosophy. It provides an organization’s sense of direction, focus, and distinguishing features among its peers. Grassroots newspapers are often less institutionalized due to their low capital base. This study explores the extent of conceptualization of mission statements to guide the operational philosophy of grassroots newspapers in South-West Nigeria. Method: It adopts the content analysis research method to extract quantitative and qualitative data on key messages conveyed in the mission statements of 27 grassroots newspapers identified as operating within South-West, Nigeria. Results: The study finds that half of the identified grassroots newspapers have clearly expressed mission statements; mostly focused on creating a voice for community members, projecting their image and activities to the outside world, while reviewing national issues related to their communities; fostering development, and upholding journalism ethical standards. Conclusion: The findings thus suggest a high level of professionalism among grassroots newspapers operating in Nigeria’s South-Western region because they appear to understand their societal expectations. However, it is unclear if they indeed live up to the expressed mandates in their everyday operations as this was beyond the scope of this study. Further studies are therefore suggested to explore the extent to which grassroots newspapers in the region, and beyond, live up to their expressed mission statements. Originality: Research studies on print media in Nigeria often focus on national or regional newspapers with minimal attention accorded grassroots media. This study is original in its quest to understand the operational philosophy of grassroots print media in the country. The study thus contributes to public understanding of the operations and guiding principles of grassroots media often considered as alternative media capable of enhancing media access to local communities and enhancing their participation in political and developmental processes.