Cameroon Pidgin English as a Language of the Media.

Abstract

The stigmatisation of Cameroon Pidgin English (CPE) has contributed immensely to its slow recognition and acceptance in the media. Contrary to the situation in the 50s and 60s which limited the use of CPE to occasional slots in local newspaper columns (Schneider 1966: 111), it has been gaining grounds in its function as the language of the media from the 80s till date. CPE is now confidently used in newspapers, television, and radio broadcasts, advertisements etc. As such, CPE has been given the name ‘a crowd pulling’ language especially when used in the media. This paper substantiates Kelly’s (1978: 293) statement that “popular language is used to popularise a supposedly popular medium.” It describes the extent to which CPE is used as a tool for spreading publicity information over the radio and Television in Cameroon. This paper shows that five media structures were used for the study, namely: CRTV Buea, FM Mount Cameroon, CBS Radio and Equinox TV in Douala. The results revealed that CPE is used in a wide range of media programmes: news broadcasts, advertisements, Public announcements and talk shows. So, Neba, Chibaka, and Atindogbe have a point when they say that “This language, then, may not be the curse that it has been made to appear in the past, but rather a blessing in disguise”, 2006: 58.