Paper short abstract:

The paper examines the extent to which motivations/gratifications felt by new media users for radio broadcasting engendered democratisation through quality participation.

Paper long abstract:

The increase dependence on new media technologies in mediasphere is a global phenomenon of the 21st century. This study examines the extent to which new media technologies in radio broadcasting engendered democratisation through quality participation. Through the theoretical frameworks of adaptive structuration, uses and gratification and Pretty (1995) model of participation with a survey of purposively selected FM radio stations in southwest Nigeria, radio programme producers and presenters were sampled on their motivations to use new media technologies for participatory programming. The aim is to determine the extent to which motivations/gratifications engendered democratisation through quality participation. It was found out that when given the platform to express and role to play in media enterprise, citizens motivate the interest of presenters for participatory programming majorly through text-based new media platforms and, thereby increasing the social responsibility (information dissemination and mobilisation) function of the media and, as well, may serve as a predictor of the candidates of the people and subsequently, hopes of good governance. The study, while contributing to the current discourse on the convergence of new media and mainstream media, also practically advance the concept of participatory communication and its democratizing potential especially in a developing polity, beyond the theoretical and speculative dimensions.