NEW MEDIA PORTRAYAL AND THE RECONSTRUCTING OF GENDER IN NIGERIA

Abstract

With the rise of feminist socio-politically radical Nigerian women through new media, there is a concern about rescuing the country from a misplaced gender construct. It is against this background that this study sets out to examine the impact of new media on the (re)construction of gender roles and identities in Nigerians vis-a-vis their exposure to the global digital media space. While hinged on social learning theory, to elicit primary data for in-depth insight, the study uses a qualitative research methodology as a total of 30 participants drawn from all geopolitical zones of Nigeria were recruited for a focused group discussion which lasted for a period of 3 weeks. Findings show that the new media has significantly disrupted and opened new vistas of debates on the traditional connotations and identities assigned/associated with the genders within the Nigerian society. Aside the need for more extensive research on the new media and gender, it is recommended that Nigerian media and government agencies ought to purposefully devise actionable programmes and policies to counter new media cum neo-imperialistic narratives on gender which are inimical to Nigeria's core values and cultures.