Assessment of Discursive Maxims and Ideological Constructions on Police Assaults of Journalists among Editorials in Nigerian Newspapers

Abstract

Police assault on journalist has become a regular occurrence in discourse study. Several studies have focused on editorials from numerous topical issues with only few ones having deeper explanation of police recklessness. This paper has therefore, investigated the discursive maxims and ideological constructions of some Nigerian newspaper editorials about police assaults with a view to use discursive maxims and their functions as well as analyzing the ideological constructs behind them. Aspects of Grice’s cooperative principle (1975) and Van Dijk (2014) socio-cognitive model of the critical discourse analysis served as framework for this study. Data were obtained from Nigerian newspaper editorials. This paper found out that maxims of Grice’s cooperative principles were deployed in editorials to firmly engage the readers. Maxims of Quality displayed truthfulness of the massage, maxims of Quality presented the use of illustration and labelling to foreground implicature. Textual coherence is revealing in maxims of relation while maxims of manner ensure clarity. The use of Gricean maxims underscored enduring resilience of the press in the face of socio-political landscape state violence and media suppression. It requires more attention from medial organizations to invest more in building institutional resilience as a way of ensuring press freedom