Beyond Public and Private Ownership: Analysis of Media Ownership Patterns in Cameroon and Implications on Journalists’ Professional Aptitude

Abstract

Media concentration in the hands of a few individuals/tycoons has been noted to have a negative effect on journalism. Thus, who owns and runs the media matters. This piece of research went beyond already established patterns like public and private to examine salient media ownership patterns within these two grand patterns and to establish the relationship with professionalism in Cameroon. The study made use of a mixed methods approach utilising both qualitative and quantitative analysis. Guided by Altschull’s media ownership theory and the social responsibility theory of Siebert et al., the study found out that beyond private and public media ownership, other salient media ownership patterns exist, such as horizontal ownership (Newspaper 29.3%, Radio 27.9%, TV 11.1%), conglomerate ownership (8.9%) cross ownership (8.1%), sole proprietor ownership(4.3%), vertical ownership (3.3%), religious ownership (2.4%), community ownership (1.4%) regional line ownership (1.1%), political line ownership (0.5%) and co-ownership (0.3%). With this diversified ownership pattern, Cameroon portrays a unique ownership trend similar to those of many African countries but very different from ownership trends in the USA, Europe and other parts of the world where media concentration lies in the hands of one family or a few individuals. Though media concentration is not very visible in Cameroon, some key players in the likes of the Cameroon government (CRTV and SOPECAM), the Groupe l’Anecdote, La Nouvelle Expression, TV+, Spectrum Group, BT Media Group and DASH Media Group are dominating the media landscape in Cameroon. The research established a significant relationship (p-Value = 0.038) between journalists’ professional aptitude and media ownership patterns. However, when it comes to specific media ownership patterns the relationship among these variables varies. Media owners were found to have an influence on journalists and media content which affects professional aptitude by using various means, including media policy, direct instructions in the editing of news stories, sanctions and orientation of new recruits to the editorial policy of the media house. As a result, basic elements of professional ethics like truth, verification, relevance, balance, fairness and objectivity are compromised in favour of the owner’s interests. The study therefore, recommends strict respect for professional norms and canons by both journalists and media owners. Additionally, the government’s policy of administrative tolerance on setting up a media organ should be accompanied by strict follow-up measures such as the readiness of such organs to operate in terms of acquiring the necessary equipment, qualified personnel (who will perform their functions freely and objectively) and budget to sustain it.