This study appraised cultural inclusion and representation in MTN advertisements in Nigeria. The general aim was to evaluate the extent to which MTN Nigeria’s multi-ad campaign strategies reflect genuine, equitable cultural inclusion across the nation’s diverse socio-cultural landscape. The study was theoretically anchored on Media System Dependency (MSD) Theory. Utilising a convergent mixed-method design, the study conducted both quantitative and qualitative content analyses. The population comprised MTN’s 2025 Facebook advertising output, from which a sample of 45 advertisements meeting the inclusion criteria was coded. The findings revealed that ethnic representation was infrequent and narrow, with 84.4% of advertisements carrying no identifiable ethnic marker. Where markers appeared, majoritarian groups dominated (Hausa: 11.1%; Yoruba: 8.9%; Fulani: 8.9%), leaving Igbos underrepresented (4.4%) and minority groups completely unrepresented (0.0%). Visual/pictorial elements (31.1%) skewed higher than symbolic (17.8%) and substantive linguistic representation, as standard English (84.4%) and Pidgin English (15.6%) entirely dominated copy execution. Although character placement was overwhelmingly prominent (84.4%), the dominant narrative framework was Majoritarian Hegemony (80.0%), compared to Progressive Inclusion (20.0%). The study concludes that MTN Nigeria’s advertising output operates primarily as a mechanism of majoritarian hegemony that systematically flattens the nation’s deep ethnic, linguistic, and regional plurality into a monolithic, consumerist consensus to optimise corporate economic efficiency. It is recommended that MTN and its creative agencies intentionally feature minority ethnic groups, actively incorporate indigenous languages directly into ad copywriting, balance single-person layouts with multi-ethnic community frames, and systematically replace the homogenist narrative with a progressive-inclusion framework.

Udeme Boniface ETIM, Philomena Effiong UMOREN,"Appraisal of Cultural Inclusion and Representation in MTN Nigeria Facebook Advertisement (January – December, 2025)" International Journal of Advanced Multidisciplinary Research and Educational Development, V2(4): Page(385-396) July - August 2026. ISSN: 3107-6513. www.ijamred.com. Published by Scientific and Academic Research Publishing.