Press Coverage Of Cybercrime Issues In Ghana: A Content Analysis Of The Daily Graphic And Daily Guide

Abstract

The media is often referred to as the mirror of society, reflecting events and issues that occur in society. This study examined the nature of coverage the press in Ghana gave to cybercrime issues through a content analysis of sampled editions of the Daily Graphic and the Daily Guide in 2011. The study set out to examine the view that the structure of ownership of a medium determines the content it turns out. Specifically, it tested the view that a state-owned newspaper such as the Daily Graphic was likely to give more coverage to cybercrime issues than a private newspaper such as the Daily Guide. The study employed quantitative content analysis research method in the collection and analysis of data from 144 selected editions of the two newspapers. Five main themes/categories were coded and analysed namely: type, content, placement, source and author/writer of stories on cybercrime. The findings of the study revealed that cybercrime issues generally received low coverage and prominence from the two Ghanaian newspapers. The results of the study also showed that even though the Daily Graphic published more stories on cybercrime issues than the Daily Guide, further examination of the five main categories revealed that the two dailies covered cybercrime in a similar fashion. The statistical test results from the findings did not support the view that the content of a medium often tend to reflect the interest of its owners or financiers.