Abstract

The study investigated participant roles in selected editorials in Nigerian newspapers. The data for the study were editorials. The editorials were taken from The Nigerian Tribune, The Punch and The Vanguard. Seven editorials were selected and each editorial was labelled T1, T2, ... T7 for proper analysis. Each main clause of the editorials was also numbered for accurate accountability and reference. The selected editirials were critically read and the participants were identified and their roles were interpreted and discussed. The findings revealed that most of the messages of the texts were realised by participants such as actor, carrier, attribute and goal. The study concluded that the dominance of participants such as actor, carrier, attribute and goal in the editorials showed that editorials were not meant to tell us what happened, but rather, how things were and should be.