Assessing the Reportage of Bilateral Relationship Between Nigeria and Other Ecowas Member State

ABSTRACT
This study was intended to examine the reportage of bilateral relationship between Nigeria and other ECOWAS member state. This study was guided by the following objectives; to examine the accuracy and comprehensivness of media coverage on the bilateral relationship between Nigeria and ECOWAS member state; to analyze the representation of Nigeria's leadership role within ECOWAS by media, assessing whether the portrayal is balanced or biased; to evaluate the consistency of media reporting on key bilateral issues, such as disputes, peacekeeping effort and regional integration and; to explore the impact of media on the reportage on the understanding of regional cooperation and public regarding Nigeria's bilateral relationship within the ECOWAS framework. The study adopted content analysis research method in analyzing newspaper coverage of bilateral relationship between Nigeria and other ECOWAS member. The paper considered for this study are The vanguard, The Guardian and ThisDay . The study findings revealed that media coverage of the bilateral relationship between Nigeria and ECOWAS member states lack accuracy and comprehensivness. It is observable from the research that the portrayal of Nigeria's leadership role with the ECOWAS in the media is biased, often either overstating Nigeria's dominance or underrepresenting. This study concluded that Media reportage significantly influence bpublic perception and understanding of Nigeria's bilateral relationship with ECOWAS.