Title: A Qualitative Content Analytic Study Of Energy Crisis By Select Nigerian Newspapers
Authors: Timibra, Ayibanua, Prof. Fred Amadi, Itieke-Idamieba Harry PhD
Volume: 9
Issue: 11
Pages: 272-287
Publication Date: 2025/11/28
Abstract:
This study analysed how four Nigerian newspapers: The Guardian, The Nation, The Punch, and Vanguard, reported on the 2024 energy crisis, with particular attention to their role in promoting sustainable energy solutions. Anchored on framing and agenda-setting theories, the study employed qualitative content analysis, drawing on 60 purposively sampled news articles. Qualitative critical discourse analytic tools such as transitivity, ideological common sense, naming and referencing strategies, and euphemism and dysphemism were applied to uncover dominant patterns in reportage. Findings revealed that dominant themes revolved around decentralisation, nationwide blackouts, systemic vulnerability, political leadership, energy poverty, recurrent outages, and economic costs, all framed through attribution of responsibility to government, institutions, and citizens. Renewable energy, especially solar, wind, and hydro, was consistently framed as the only logical alternative to fossil fuels, often portrayed as an inevitable and morally imperative solution. Coverage of government energy policies was predominantly supportive, legitimising reforms through euphemistic framings while critical perspectives were comparatively rare. Newspapers also largely performed a watchdog role, holding policymakers and stakeholders accountable through investigative reports and editorials. However, significant gaps were noted: reportage frequently reproduced elite and official narratives while neglecting deeper governance failures, affordability challenges, and community-level realities, an indication of what this study terms structural amnesia in media discourse. The study recommends broader inclusion of grassroots perspectives, more critical interrogation of renewable energy feasibility, balanced discursive strategies in policy coverage, and deeper investment in investigative journalism. It further calls for Nigerian newspapers to move beyond surface reproduction of state and corporate narratives toward contextualised, evidence-based reporting that bridges elite discourse with everyday experiences of energy poverty. This study opens pathways for further investigation into comparative media representations of energy crises across African countries, longitudinal studies that track shifts in media framing of sustainable energy over time, and mixed methods approaches that combine discourse analysis with audience reception studies. This study will contribute to a broader discussion of the media's influence in shaping Nigeria's energy future.