A CONFLUENCE OF POLITICAL ECONOMY AND AUDIENCE SELECTIVITY ON HAUSA VIDEO FILM PREFERENCES AMONG THE YOUTH OF KAWO AND UNGUWAN DOSA AREAS OF KADUNA METROPOLIS

This paper studies the preferences of the content and genres of Hausa video films through a quantitative survey of young people selected from Kawo and Unguwan Dosa areas of Kaduna metropolis using quota, simple random and convenience sampling techniques. Semi-structured questionnaires were self-administered to a sample of 200 but only 189 were valid. The findings reveal that despite the incessant criticism of the Hausa film industry over its dependence on romantic genres, it was the most preferred among the respondents. Other factors such as the song and dance numbers were also a major attraction for viewership among the youth alongside love for popular actors and their dressing followed by the appeal of advertised film trailers. This paper concludes that the audience members are not as passive as assumed and that the market domination of films with romantic content is both to satisfy audience demand and also make profit. It is observed that over-exposure to certain genres/contents during socialization may have contributed to youth perception and preference. The paper recommends that film producers should strategically utilize the most preferred genres and actors to address important social challenges and also promote positive aspects of the indigenous Hausa culture.