Abstract

Despite the numerous advantages reported as regards citizen journalism in developing countries, little has been documented on its adoption and practice in rural developing communities. This study, is anchored on democratic participant media theory. A qualitative research design was adopted and interviews were conducted among 40 participants within three large rural developing communities in the north-eastern region of Nigeria. The findings confirmed that a large proportion of the rural dwellers were not aware of the term citizen journalism, and only a few of them participated fully in the practice of citizen journalism. The results establish that citizen journalism practice is still very minimal in the rural areas of Nigeria, due to poverty, power failure, their attitude, religious upbringing, customs, high level of illiteracy, high internet subscription and slow speed. Nonetheless, it was found that citizen journalism provides an avenue for community dwellers to gather and disseminate messages with immediacy, assists in exposing the excesses of government officials, and promotes a healthy lifestyle in community settings. It is relevant to encourage citizen journalism practice in rural areas, and further studies could continue to explore the issues affecting the adoption and practice of citizen journalism in developing countries.