AKSU Journal of Communication Research (AJCR)

CITIZEN JOURNALISM AS THE FULCRUM FOR PETER OBI’S 2023 PRESIDENTIAL MOVEMENT

Author:  DORIS A. NWOSU, PhD & AGATHA ORJI-EGWU, PhD

Abstract
This study has highlighted the part played by citizen journalism in the projection of Peter Obi‟s salient qualities that have endeared him to the public and how the role of citizen journalism can make it a fulcrum through which Peter Obi has acquired the large following that has translated into a movement. The study highlighted some of the messages in social media made by followers of Peter Obi. The sample size of the study stood at 396. Since it was difficult to establish the actual population for the study, the choice of 396 as the sample size of the study was based on Philip Meyer‟s prescription that a population of 500,000 or above should be assigned 384 as sample size. The study also generated purposively copies of questionnaire for Peter Obi‟s followers to elicit the source of their first conception of Peter Obi‟s presidential ambition and the current sources of information on Peter Obi‟s political campaigns. Findings show that citizen journalism was the major outlet through which Peter Obi‟s presidential candidacy was put forward to the public and this was why the majority of his followers were the citizen journalists themselves. It also found out that the citizen journalists have become opinion leaders through whom multi-step flow of communication about Peter Obi‟s qualities was conveyed to non-users of social media. It was recommended among others, that for Peter Obi‟s Presidential Movement to record a palpable success in 2023 Presidential Election, citizen journalism can only serve as awareness medium among the young people while this should be backed up with physical means of communication, especially among non-social media users.