THE ROLE OF MASS MEDIA IN PROVIDING INFORMATION ON CHILD ABUSE AND SACRIFICE IN UGANDA; A CASE STUDY OF NTV UGANDA AND BUKEDDF. TV

ABSTRACT

This is a progressive dissertation q~esearch report to be submitted to the University of Kampala

International University; Uganda in a partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of

Bachelors Degree in mass communication. It covers research findings on the topic ‘The role of

mass media in providing information on child abuse and sacrifice in Uganda.’ It bases i5 case

study on the best television stations Bukedde tv which was actually ranked number one TV station

with the highest viewership too. In this study, the vice of child abuse and sacrifice was the

dependent variable and information about it by both Bukedde tv and NTV was the independent

variable. The researcher specified my research on the culTently rising issue of child abuse and

sacrifice to manifest the efforts that the media have made to expose this evil. The two television

stations were selected because of their widespread and reach into almost all the parts of the country

through their extended outlets and internationally on their online broadcasts. Research was clone to

exhaust the topic and vice that continues to happen in the country and the world at large. This was

through watching various tv stations and reading a number of books written by different authors,

magazines and newspapers as well as publications all over the country and those on the African

continent and beyond. Different cultural backgrounds have been looked at to discover the source of

motivation of child abuse and sacrifice rituals .i.e. the Aztec, Inca, and The Moche cultures among

others as shown in the Literature Review. Different cases of child abuse and sacrifice were looked

at along with some snapshots pinned at the appendix section; and the references to the books

contacted are shown at the back of this dissertation and within pages. This dissertation is as a result

of the extensive data researched from different sources. Ugandans, based on the findings of the

research, need to partner and make a concerted effort to overcome sacrifice rituals. There is also

need for the approach to be multifaceted; therefore, involving civil and religious leaders to change

the perceptions of people especially those who visit shrines in search of quick wealth. Witch

doctors recommend human blood for wealth transformation. This seminal work throws more light

on the causes of ritual murders. It answers questions why the practice has been an integral part of

various cultures from one civilizatiort to another universally. Different myths and realities about

child abuse and sacrifice are revealed in the later pages of this dissertation which are very

shocking!