A Comparative Study On The Importance Of Pidgin English In Broadcasting

CHAPTER ONE

THE IMPORTANCE OF PIDGIN ENGLISH IN BROADCAST / PRINT

1.1     INTRODUCTION

Pidgin English came into existence as a result of the coming of the colonial masters to Africa, the highly respected philosophers – said and I quote, “No language is an Island meaning that language only came into existence through a pre – existed one.  Pidgin English came into existence through English Language.

The coming of the white men to Africa really changed a lot of cultures, languages, norm, ethnics and non – ethics values etc in African.  The language pidgin English started during the colonial era, then, it was very essential for them to understand the white man’s language in order to be able to fit into the happening in the society.

Those days, if a black man manages to understand the white man’s language, he is given a big post ahead his fellow black men for instance is the film titled “The battle of Musanga”, were the major character was “Mr. Johnson because he understands the white man’s language, he was kept ahead of his people as a mediator, intercessor and interpreter between the two recess, and with that, his financial income was somehow above that of his people only his extravagant way of spending made him broke always.

Pidgin English took a solid stand when slaves were freed in Sierraloen (Freetown), when they found themselves in Freetown and having no other language to speak than the English they know, and also considering the fact that most of them has lost their mother tongue as a result of slavery it was then, they started broking the white man’s language (English) into smaller segments in order to understand the message of one another, otherwise known as pidgin / broken English.

 

Examples of pidgin English is as follows:

PIDGIN ENGLISH	MEANING	GOOD ENGLISH
Make I come	”	I am coming
Make I come?	”	Should I come?
I won go	”	I want to go
You wan fight	”	Do you want t fight?
Make I see person	”	I want to visit some one
I won shop	”	I want to eat
Hungry decatch me	”	I am hungry
Comot for road	”	Go away from the way,
She sabi book?	”	Is she brilliant?
You fit run?	”	Can you run?
E’m feet run o--	”	He might run
I won rest	”	I want to rest
Your head no correct	”	You are crazy?
Go carry my good come	”	Go and bring my food
You be devil	”	You are a devil
Forget my side	”	Forget about me.

    

Sometimes pidgin English can be mixed together with one native language examples are:

PIDGIN ENGLISH	MEANING	GOOD ENGLISH
You de kolo?	”	Are you mad?
You de yan dust	”	You’ve said rubbish
You deyamtuatin	”	You are saying rubbish
You be hua	”	You are a fool
You be sabi sabi	”	Mr. know all
You be gbeboru	”	A gossip
You don yan okpata	”	You’ve said non sense

 

 

All these idioms were used by our fathers then to make sure there was proper information dissemination.  Come to look at it, we shall need this pidgin English language to communicate effectively with a massive number of Nigerians who shall up till this time, do not understand good English because communication without response or feedback in the communication line or fraction simply means that communication has not taken place.

So since communication stands as the life wire of every society, at all spares of the society educational, cultural, industrial, even at the rural levels, the farmers, headsmen traders and labourers require constant dosage of information to function optimally.  The nature of this project narrows our means of communication to the broadcasting and print medium of communication.    

Communication occupies a key position in human existence.  It is the most vital factor in building or developing an organized, united and progressive nation.  Without it, there will be no national development.  It is an established fact that every human activity involves information and communication.

 

Truly speaking, for an average Nigerian to survive and function well in our modern and developing society, we need information.  He needs to communicate with other in the society just as his physical requirement of food and shelter.  He needs to know what other have in mind and what their feelings as on any particular issue.  He needs instant information about himself, about his government and about the economic state of the nation.  In a nut shall, pidgin English is what ever medium used for dissemination of information, be it in the electronic or print media will always have a positive effect on massive number of the audience or Nigerian community especially in the rural areas.   

 

1.2     ASSUMPTION

It is highly assumed that the Enugu urban is interest in verbal and print information / communication made in pidgin English.

It is also assumed that the degree of education in Enugu is still pretty low, hence Enugu urban ties usually understands the surface structure of an utterances and paid to come to grips with the underlying meaning of communicated messages in pure English.

 

1.3     STATEMENT OF RESEARCH PROBLEMS

There has been a lot of misinterpretation / misconception of communicated message by a good number of people in Enugu due to language used in disseminating this massages.

They usually do not understand broadcasting and print information made in pure English language and as such, try to ignore broadcast and printed information made in pidgin English language and develop a negative opinion or attitude towards the program or programmed massages on pure English language, they find it difficult to give a satisfactory and accurate meaning of the communicated messages on pure English language.

 

1.4     STATEMENT OF RESEARCH QUESTION

As a result of the research problem stated above, this study examines the following questions;

1)                If the audience get the massages disseminated more clearer in pidgin English or pure English.

2)                If the message disseminated is more interpreted in pidgin English than in pure English language.

3)                If pidgin English normally pose any problem when used as a language in broadcast and print.

4)                If pidgin English holds the interest of the audience when used as a medium of communication.

5)                If the messages communicated to the audience in pidgin English when used as a language of broadcast and print is more easily understood than pure English language.

 

1.5     OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

The study or objective is to provide a common and natural language, regardless the earth ethnic group.

Any communication or presenter needs feedback from his or her audience to make sure that the message disseminated has gone across and to achieve that, the communicator needs to select the language that will interest or that will be more understandable to his audience.

Another objective is to find out how effective, the broadcast / print information dissemination in pidgin English is to the audience and readers.

 

To identify how many people understand pidgin English, enjoy it and use it to communicate to contribute to the knowledge of mass communicator in this choice and u of pidgin English for broadcast and printed information.

To help aim, if the broadcast and printed information made in pidgin English can help in the misconception and misunderstanding of the half educated / illiterate ones amongst us.

 

HYPOTHESIS

The following hypothesis will be fully tested.

 

Hi:     Pidgin English sustains the interest of readers more than the standard English when used in broadcast / print information dissemination.              

 

Ho:    Pidgin English does not sustains the interest of readers more than the standard English when used for any broadcast / print information dissemination.              

 

Hi₂:    Pidgin English attracts audiences and readers attention when used in programme presentation / print than standard English

 

Ho:    Pidgin English does not attract audience / readers attention more when used as a medium for information dissemination.

 

H₃:     Pidgin English and standard English will be acceptable on an equal basis in Enugu 

 

Ho:    Pidgin English and standard English cannot be acceptable on equal basis in Enugu 

 

Hi₄:    Pidgin English is more interpretative in nature than standard English.

 

Ho:    Pidgin English is not more interpretative in nature than standard English.

 

H₅:     Pidgin English is more understandable than standard English.

 

Ho:    Pidgin English is not more understandable than standard English.

 

1.7     SCOPE OF THE STUDY

Due to time factor and funds, the study is limited to Enugu.  The sample size for the study is 100

 

1.8     LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

Since the study is only limited to Enugu audience, the result that will be derived will not generalized to the nation but to Enugu from where the sample is drawn.

 

1.9     DEFINITION OF TERMS: CONCEPTUAL AND OPERATIONAL CONCEPTUAL DEFINITION

(a)              PIDGIN GNGLISH: A language (English) reduced in quality in order to understand the message of one another during and after the colonial rule (era)

 

(b)             LANGUAGE: Since the language is solely base on human interaction, human speech, medium of expressing or disseminating ideas, feeling / desires by means of a system to sound and symbols.

 

(c)              STANDARD ENGLISH: Un – adulterated English.   

 

(d)             AUDIENCE ATTENTION: Attracting and directing messages.

 

(e)              PROGRAMME / PRINT: An act of conveying formation presentation or sending out ideas or information on radio / print media.

 

(f)               COMPREHENSION: Ability of the mind to understand.

 

(g)              ACCEPTANCE: The sense of understanding or agreement in which a word or object is concept.

 

 

(h)             COLONIES: These were the various Europeans headquarters that ruled African before independences.

 

(i)                INFORMATION DISSEMINATION: Distribution of information.