The Nigerian media has been playing an active role in instituting democratic structures
since the inception of the country as a nation state. The newspapers that were
established during the early years of colonialism were used as potent tools of
propagating the ideas of democracy in Nigeria. The various titles that appeared on
Nigerian newsstands then were deployed to fight the colonial government. And through
the instrumentality of the press, Nigeria achieved her independence in 1960. This study
therefore critically assessed the performance of Nigerian mass media in consolidatingdemocracy. The study is of the view that the mass contributed immensely to the return
of democracy in Nigeria. This the media did through their critical criticism of the
military juntas, mobilization of the citizens to participate in entrenching democratic
values, exposing cases of corruption, and making public officers accountable to the
people. Despite Nigerian media great performance in promoting democracy, they are
faced with challenges which borders on issues of ethnicity, Lack of adequate modern
communication gadgets, pressure from pressure groups and the government, ownership
question, corruption, poor welfare and security issues among several others. For
Nigerian media to serve as instrument for stabilizing democracy, they need to ensure
that they live up to the ideals of the profession and deal with all cases of unethical
practices among its members. The government on the other hand should truly support
the noble profession by creating the right atmosphere for media men to operate without
friction.