NIGERIA information supplied by public office holders regarding the extent of property they own. To sum it up, the panel felt that the constitution guarantees Freedom of Expression, but not freedom of the media right down to single media organisations. And the courts seem to follow that interpretation which seems to give media more duties than rights. SCORES: Individual scores: 2; 3; 3; 3; 2; 1; 2; 2; 3; 2; 2 Total score: 25 Average score: 2.3 1.2 The right to freedom of expression is practiced and citi zens, including journalists, are asserting their rights without fear. ANAYLIS: It is true in broad terms that journalists have become more assertive under the democratic dispensation, although the lack of definitive guarantees for media freedom as noted earlier is an obvious constraint. Censorship, organisational and other constraints exist in government owned media where loss of jobs is an obvious restraining consideration. Even in privately owned media, journalistic forthrightness can be limited by deployment to beats like defence where government may come after you for treading on sensitivities. “You work”, one journalist said, “yet not without fear”. Journalistic practice is also hedged in by such media owners who have political and business associations which journalists are not allowed to tamper with. There is also the pressure through advertisers, and the Nigerian government is an important advertiser. Com4 African Media Barometer - Nigeria 2008