¹Peter Chierike Ikegbunam,² Chinenye Nwabueze, Ph. D,³ Emmanuel Odishika, Ph. D

¹Department of Mass Communication Paul University AwkaAnambra State, Nigeria

²Contributing Editor National Newsbreak Newspaper Owerri, Imo State, Nigeria

³Department of Mass Communication Novena University, Ogume, Delta State, Nigeria

DOI : https://doi.org/10.47191/ijsshr/v4-i9-27

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Abstract

This study is a response to over concentration of media studies on media effect. Premised on the negligence of what personal experiences and social ties can do to media consumers. The study examined whether personal experiences stimulate the need for information among respondents; if personal experience of issues informs readership of local news in national newspapers; determine whether community attachment encourages exposure to local news in national newspapers and establish whether people who are more involved in a community read local contents in national newspaper more than those who are less involved. The study applied survey and FGD research methods using questionnaire and interview guide to gather data from 400 respondents purposively selected from a total of 1,554,095 residents of the study area. The community attachment and sense of community theories were used to provide theoretical background for the study. Findings revealed that personal experiences of an issue in a community involvement of the resident encourage the desire for media interpretation of the issues already known. Drawing from available literatures and field data from the study, the researcher equally found that the more closely tied and committed one is to one‟s community, the more one desires to know about that community. The two null hypotheses tested and rejected provided more statistical support to the research findings obtained from the study.

KEYWORDS:

Personal experience, community attachment, local communities, local news contents, social structures, newspaper readership

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