Journal for Peace and Justice Studies

Volume 23, Issue 2, 2013

Temitope Olaifa
Pages 139-154

Out-of-Court Third Party Intervention in the Media: A Case Study

Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) methods are becoming increasingly attractive and more people are opting for them in resolving disputes ranging from interpersonal to international conflicts. The impetus to shun violence of any form is gradually compelling people to look for options outside the judiciary. Litigation, considered as one of the Alternative Dispute Resolution options, is considered adversarial due to its lose-win, win-lose outcome which, rather than uproot the cause of conflict, exacerbates and entrenches it the more. One of the options open to parties in conflict is the electronic media third-party intervention where the public is given opportunity to be part of the resolution of conflicts. This paper looks at one of such cases handled on the program ‘Olowogbogboro’ on the Ogun State Television, Abeokuta, Nigeria. We analyze its process and outcome against the background of the law of inheritance in Yorubaland.