Big Brother Africa and the Promotion of Morality – A Critical Analysis

Abstract

Big Brother Africa (BBA) is a television reality programme which has an immense followership among the youth population in Africa. However, the programme has on several occasions been criticised for its lack of depth and utmost disregard for the Nigerian and African moral fabric. This paper therefore examined the moral contradictions on display by the housemates. The study employed a descriptive research design and qualitative methodology, which relied mainly on the use of secondary data in the discourse. The findings from the study point to the great disparity between the moral values that are considered acceptable in the Nigerian society and the moral values portrayed in the presentations of the Big Brother Africa reality TV show. The study therefore concludes that BBA is not designed to promote moral values and customs that are acceptable in any given society. It recommends that reality TV entertainment in Nigeria should be developed to reflect the social, cultural and religious values that exist in the cultural and social systems in Nigeria and Africa.

Keywords: Reality television, entertainment, morality, Nigeria, Big Brother Africa

DOI: 10.7176/NMMC/86-03

Publication date: December 31^st 2019