The National Media and Broadcasting Policy (NMBP) is a policy guide that is supposed to regulate the activities of the media. The core values of the policy include freedom and independence of the media, access to the media and pluralism of the media. The media in this regard include the print, broadcasting and film. It also covers the mass communication services which include Wire services, advertising and Public Relations. The fundamental goal of the policy is to serve the interest of all Ghanaians, especially the disadvantaged. Freedom and independence of the media is one of the core values of the policy. This means that all media houses should be free of government control and intervention. They should have full control over their contents and programs, and be free to express its own opinion on any issue bordering on governance and national development. The media institution has been trying to be free and independent of any governmental control. The coming into force of the 1992 constitution which made provision for the establishment of the National Media Commission and the repeal of the criminal libel law and other laws which criminalized certain aspects of free speech contributed to the current freedom and independence of the media. The Commission as a regulator has formulated the National Media and Broadcasting Policy to serve as a guideline to the various media houses and also to regulate the activities of these media houses. The policy talks about the ability of the media to be free and independent and one can confidently say the media is free because it is now critical of government and able to keep government on its toes without fear of being victimized. For instance the broadcast and print media freely discuss issues on social rot in government. It sets the agenda for mass discussion and the agenda they set must be one that excites the interest of the public and the agenda setting theory by McCombs and Shaw substantiate this further. However, freedom goes with responsibility and the media in recent times have turn to abuse its freedom by losing sight of its social responsibility. For instance some media outlets do not go the extra mile to ascertain the veracity or credibility of an advertisement it runs because it has been paid for. Again, in the name of this same freedom, the media shirk its responsibility by showing movies and films that expose the audience to scenes of sex, nudity, violence, superstition. This is also evident in the kind of music played on the airwaves with regards to its lyrics without recourse to our culture as captured in the vision of the NMBP on page 3. The abuse of this freedom is also manifested on the use of hate speech in radio discussions. The Media Foundation for West Africa monitoring of Hate Speech on radio is a clear indication of the abuse of freedom of the media and that of expression. Here, the social responsibility theory by Siebert, Peterson and Schramm of the press goes a long way to buttress this point. Pluralism is another core value that has been captured in the policy. Gone were the days when Ghana had just one broadcast medium which is the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation and the print media which included the Daily Graphic (Graphic Communications Group) and Ghanaian Times (New Times Corporation). But the liberalization of the airwaves has seen the establishment of many print and broadcast media. Examples are T.V.3, Metro TV, TV Africa, UTV, Crusading Guide, Chronicle, Insight, etc. This has broken the monopoly of the media by the government. One theory that further explains this assertion is the Uses and Gratification theory. This theory posits that society has a need and in this case the media identifies that need and satisfies it. For instance, the various TV stations are competing to show one Telenovela or soap opera because the society craves for it. However, unlike the broadcast and print media, activities regarding the internet and other social media like facebook, whatsapp, twitter, bloggers and many others were not captured in the policy. Meanwhile, the internet is that aspect of the media which the society especially the youth largely depend on for information and ideas in recent times. Prominent individuals like President Obama and Goodluck Jonathan created facebook accounts during their election campaigns. The Egypt uprising for instance was made known on twitter. Besides, the internet is fast in dissemination of information. So why should the NMBP leave out internet when it sought to interweave technologically mediated communication with our traditional means of communication on page 3. As stated in the same vision, “traditional and modern communication should interact foe our people to build and maintain their own, distinctive many-roomed dwelling the global village. The policy also talks about a universal access of the media. This means that the media is supposed to be accessible to the audience and all individuals. But the problems is how many people in the villages or even in cities are able to afford the newspapers, those who also use radio cannot afford dry cell batteries, so eventually they are also denied access to vital information let alone contribute to the national discourse. Those who have the opportunity might not be able to contribute to the discourse because their views might not form part of the agenda of the day. One theory that supports this assertion is the spiral of silence by Nouelle Newman. The Agenda-Setting Theory also can be related to issues raised in advertising in the National Media Policy. The theory says the media (mainly the news media) aren’t always successful at telling us what to think, but they are quite successful at telling us what to think about. This theory is good at explaining why audience with similar media exposure place importance on the same issues. Although different audiences may feel differently about the issue at hand, most people feel the same issues are important. The Agenda-Setting Theory comes from a scientific perspective, because it predicts that if people are exposed to the same media, they will place importance on the same issues. Relating the Agenda Setting theory to advertisements in the media implies that a great impact is made on the various audiences who are exposed to those adverts. The policy warns that the portrayal of certain lifestyles or products in the media should be critically examined. This is to ensure that the presentation and content of advertising will be done in a way that will not diminish the valuation of our national culture as the elaboration likelihood model indicates. The policy generally is meant to preserve the Ghanaian attitude to violence, sex and superstition. The elaboration likelihood model (ELM) of persuasion is a dual process theory of how attitudes are formed and changed, which was developed by Richard E. Petty and John Cacioppo during the early 1980s. The model examines how an argument's position on the "elaboration continuum", from processing and evaluating (high elaboration) to peripheral issues such as source expertise or attractiveness (low elaboration), shapes its persuasiveness. According to the theory, attitude, motivation and ability increase the likelihood that a message will be ingrained into listeners' minds, although they may not process information objectively. Attitudes may be influenced by peripheral cues providing guidance or implications, which cause the audience to draw a conclusion and believe it is their own idea. The targeting of some advertisements, movies and media contents to children who may not have developed sufficient filters to evaluate their content and the tendency of adverts to promote stereotypes especially women and their role. This clause generally reflects our attitude as a nation to violent scenes and sexually explicit content. Sex is generally considered a private affair by most Ghanaians therefore the flagrant show of it in media contents is abhorred. The policy however does not prescribe specific scenarios that are not permitted. Another positive clause in the policy is that adverts should be used to propagate socially desirable ideas and behavior. This allows advertisers to market their products and at the same time contribute to the socio cultural development of the public. The question here is that, is this clause in the National Media Policy given the devotion it needs? Because TV is a powerful medium, it is important that this clause is enforced. It will serve the public good if adverts found in violation of this clause are banned. However, it is also important to note that the regulatory agency does not have the legal power to punish offending advertisers. It could be inferred from the policy that advertisers and movie producers must desist from depicting scenes of violence, sex and superstition. At best, moderation should be exercised as Ghanaians are generally discreet. Over the years, communication has been used by several nations as a tool for development. It is generally used to support development initiatives by way of disseminating effective messages which will encourage the indigenes to support or participates in development-oriented projects. The national media policy notes the absence of a comprehensive communications strategy to compliment Ghana’s development agenda. This denies the nation all the benefits of using PR to educate the public on socially relevant topics. The policy also identifies a general lack of understanding of the role of PR for national development. This understanding forms the bedrock of socio−economic transformation of most western nations. The policy notes the marginal increase in the number of media houses in operation with the print and broadcast media being the dominant players. The policy however does not provide clear cut guideline for the regulation of the industry. It only takes note of the absence of a strong regulatory framework which could lead to “arbitrary decisions and practices”. Also, the media policy raises a number of issues arising from the development of the media. They are Media as a Public Trust, Freedom and Independence of Media, Media Pluralism, Universal Access, Especially of Disadvantaged, Cultural Impoverishment, Marginalization of Local Languages, Education and Development and, Technological Competence. The rest are Human Resource, Institutional Capacity, and Public Accountability. The policy divides media into three categories, namely Public media, commercial media and community media. A key component of the policy is that all media and media services shall be regarded as a public trust. Therefore the public interest shall be of prime importance. With regards to television, it is incumbent on owners and managers of the various stations to ensure that their content promotes the greater good of the public interest. It is worth noting however that the burgeoning Ghanaian movie industry of late is promoting sex and superstition at an alarming rate without considering the need of the parental guidance rule (PG). The regulators of Ghana's media landscape must put in place measures to reverse this worrying trend because it can have a lasting effect on the Ghanaian audiences as the keep watching such media contents as explained by Gerbner and Gross in their theory. Cultivation theory is a social theory which examines the long-term effects of television. "The primary proposition of cultivation theory states that the more time people spend "living" in the television world, the more likely they are to believe social reality portrayed on television. Cultivation leaves people with a misperception of what is true in our world. The policy is based on the right of an individual and advocates absence of restraint. Though the National Media policy has given the media the free range to operate as private and public entities, they are restrained from certain reportage. If the media is given a free range to operate, then there should be no restriction or prohibitive regulations. The media is not given enough freedom to operate as the NMC policy stipulates. Also, if the media is a state owned, they tend to report on stories about the current government portraying just their good sides and less reportage on their bad ones. This can be associated with the libertarian theory of the press. In 1956 three professors of communication-Fred S. Siebert, Theodore Peterson and Wilbur Schramm-brought out their Four Theories of the Press which went a long way in establishing a typology in the minds of journalism educators and students. Libertarian is one who advocates maximizing individual rights and minimizing the role of the state; one who believes in free will. A libertarian press functions to present the truth, however splintered it may be in a pluralism of voices. It is impossible to do this if it is controlled by some authority outside itself. An aspect of the policy talks about media avoiding partisan interests whether secular or religious. But that is not so in most of our media houses today. Some political parties own some of the media houses to the extent of channeling what they want the public to believe. The policy states clearly that, political parties and religious organizations shall be precluded from owning and operating any broadcasting station. However, that is not the case in recent times. Well, maybe the National Media Policy should not have precluded them as they are also key players in national development but rather put in place strict rules to guide them as those institutions communicates very sensitive issues. This mostly results in biased reportage, propaganda and the credibility of journalist and media houses starts to be questioned. At the same time, all media professional association should adopt or revise their charters to reflect the relevant constitutional provisions. In order words, there should be ethical and implementable rules to govern them. Most media houses operate without any ethical rules. What the policy talks about is slightly the opposite of what the media is practicing. The broadcast media overall policy deals more with media ownership and media responsibility in national development. The media is undoubtedly a powerful tool in every country; it can make and unmake a nation or an individual. The policy generally challenges the use of media to improve values of a society. It can be said that this is a challenge for the country in that regard. Due to the growth and role of technology in a developing country, the evolution of an information society, globalization etc; the media finds itself in a competitive environment. To what extent does information disseminated through our air waves add value to individual lives, the society and the economy at large? Ghana Broadcasting Cooperation can still be recognized with the importance of promoting and projecting the nation’s identity but it is also important to note that it no longer stands as the only media house in the country. Democracy and liberalization has led to the emergence of other media houses. Competition for audience attention is now keen to the media and this explains changes in media programming, ownership and role in the society. The adoption of concepts like agenda setting and framing which enable the media tell it’s audiences what to think about, and how to think about it has intensified due to this competition, but most often it is what the media deems relevant and want the public to think that is put out there. There is the first process (agenda setting) which transfers the salience of items on their news agenda to our agenda. The second process (framing) transfers the salience of selected attributes to prominence among the pictures in our heads. In the National Media Policy, broadcasting of international messages on our local airwaves was not allowed during prime time news. With the issue of globalization there is no way the media can refrain from broadcasting foreign materials. The Social Cognitive Theory states that, people learn by observing others, with the environment, behavior, and cognition all as the chief factors in influencing development in a reciprocal triadic relationship. The Social Cognitive Theory is a learning theory based on the ideas that people learn by observing others. This essential has its own advantages and disadvantages on the Ghanaian culture. The information deficit model (or simply deficit model) attributes public skepticism or hostility to a lack of understanding, resulting from a lack of information. It is associated with a division between experts who have the information and non-experts who do not. The model implies that communication should focus on improving the transfer of information from experts to non-experts. The media also serves the purposes of bridging the knowledge gab in our society. Knowledge gap can result in an increased gap between people of lower and higher socioeconomic status. Mass media therefore attempts to improve people’s life with information via various media channels, and although this might not always work the way it is planned; mass media has an increasing effect of promoting a sense belongingness of the different gap between members of social classes. Just a little percentage of radio and TV media programme (content) projects the values of the Ghanaian culture. Most of what we see today in the everyday life of a Ghanaian depicts more of the foreign culture. Journalism is now more politically inclined. Its focus and roots has somehow shifted back to politics; who said what and how it was said and how it can help in the development of the nation. But a countries development cannot only be based on that. Very little programmes are produced to address issues on the respect and protection of women, children and the physically challenged. Our filming industry is improving at the level of movie production per annum, but the question is are they still seen as healthy developments which encourages and channel into socially useful and culturally validating initiatives in the country? How many of them really promote desirable aspects of the Ghanaian culture. Can what we see in our movies today be reality or stereotypes and how do viewers consume and respond to its content. It can be said that there is an over exploitation of other cultures in our movie production of Ghanaian/local movies. The functions of the censorship board can also be questioned because it pretty much looks like our media today puts out just about anything they think can gain them a level of viewership or listenership to make profit. It is recommended that the policy be revised and also media houses required conducting thorough research on audience views on how the media operations can be used to benefit them and the nation as a whole. Relating to the Inoculation theory which states that, to prevent persuasion it is necessary to strengthen preexisting attitudes, beliefs, or opinions. First, the receiver must be warned of an impending attack. This establishes threat (or recognition of vulnerability) and initiates defenses to future attacks. It is critical that the attack is strong enough to keep the receiver defensive, but weak enough to not actually change those preexisting ideas. This will hopefully make the receiver actively defensive and allow them to create arguments in favor of their preexisting thoughts. The more active the receiver becomes in his or her defense the more it will strengthen their own attitudes, beliefs, or opinions (McGuire, 1964). The concept of constructivism explains that individuals who are more cognitively complex in their perceptions of others have the mental capacity to construct sophisticated message plans that pursue multiple goals. They then have the ability to deliver person-centered messages that achieve the outcomes they desire. This can be employed and appropriately utilized with the help of research to collate data on audience preferences, develop the country by addressing the right kind of issues and in turn making the required profit. In view of all these, one can conclude that, the National Media Policy is outdated and needs a review to suit modern information systems. Community film viewing facilities is a thing of the past. The issue of mobile cinemas never existed in our part. The policy seems to have lost its track as now the developmental character and role of community media has shifted its focus instead of helping shape the various communities due to its powerful nature of impacting on audience. The policy has lost its value because now even community Medias are more centered on political issues and are used by politicians or opinion leaders to impact ideas on the people as supposed by the Spiral of silence. The mass media can create pluralistic ignorance by focusing on the spread of one opinion and muting the minority opinion, causing people to believe what they believe is what everyone else believes. What does the policy define as “highest ethical standards?” The National Media Policy recognizes the media as the Agenda setters but it limited them on their output, role and scope. There are lapses in the policy that needs to be filled by redefining the roles of the media especially the wire services. The policy however was more concerned with the rural areas and gave premium to our local languages. The National Media Commission seems to have made a policy that has no legal grounding to enforce it- the policy is too mild and therefore needs a recommendation of serious review.