Influence of News Credibility on Public Perception of the Broadcast Media in Nigeria

Abstract

This paper examines the influence of news credibility on the corporate image of broadcast media in Nigeria. The paper was anchored on the preliminary assumption that a relationship exists between the credibility of the news a media disseminated and how the public perceives it. Source Credibility Theory and Perception Theory were used as its theoretical framework. A Survey of 375 respondents, the eventual outcome of distributed 400 copies of the questionnaire provided evidence that the public confidence in government owned broadcast media is low compared to the private broadcast media as a direct consequence of the level of credibility of the news they disseminate. The paper recommends that broadcast media should always support the promotion of credible news in order to improve on their public perception.