By Dennis Udoma, Uyo
A Professor of political communication at the University of Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, Professor Nkereuwem Udoakah has charged the Nigerian media industry to live up to its responsibility and discharge its mandate to the nation irrespective of the COVID-19 pandemic.
He gave the charge at the just concluded 2021 Press Week organised by the Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Akwa Ibom State Council in Uyo.
Prof. Udoakah, who was a guest lecturer at the event spoke on the topic: “Post COVID – 19 Economy and the Challenges of Journalism Ethics Ahead of 2023 General Elections.”
He described the lecture as an inquiry into the impact of the pandemic on the economy; how companies and industries including the media can operate under the crisis and still break even.
He said, the pandemic being a global phenomenon has affected all the economies of the world, advising that; as other nations manage to survive and carry on with their obligation to her citizens, the Nigerian media must also rise up to its responsibilities.
According to him, “the mass media industry, like other industries in any country, is a system of inter – locking relationships of production. As a business enterprise, it is to make money for it owners.
“To talk about post COVID – 19 economy would be an inquiry into the impact of the pandemic on all industries or companies, and how they make their wealth and get their capital base. In order words, how do they break even, and make profit and stay afloat?
“The pandemic, as it has been agreed, is a global phenomenon that affects all economies. Therefore, as other nations will manage to discharge their obligations to their people, Nigeria and her citizens must gear up to their responsibilities”.
Udoakah, who was former Head of the Department of Communication Arts, University of Uyo (UNIUYO), also queried how many of the media organizations in Nigeria have ever declared their profits or losses from the previous businesses? Talkless of them paying their staff salaries and wages, or sanctioning journalists in their employ for professional misconduct?
He said, “it is my view that, thinking up excuses of poor post pandemic media economy to cover up our determination to abandon our role in the coming 2023 general elections will be unacceptable”.
The don, therefore, urged that, as other professionals are up and doing to contribute to the survival of the society, so must journalists in Nigeria do to regain the confidence of the public as truly watchdogs of the society.
He advocated the setting up of what he called “National Day of Solidarity” and “Journalists Solidarity Funds” for journalists who may be persecuted or victimized by governments or forces of the State, for carrying out their legitimate and progressive assignments in defense of the people and democracy.
Udoakah stated that, this would be some of the ways to encourage reporters to uncompromisingly expose all forms of corruption, unmask the hypocritic manipulations of selfish politicians, and tell the truth about the struggle of Nigerians for survival.
He further called for reorientation and reorganization of the Nigerian press to become a democratic, revolutionary and anti – hegemony press, to provide unimpeded access to the citizens and canvass the interest of Nigerians.
Also speaking, former Editor with Saturday Sun Newspaper, Dr. Usoro I. Usoro commended Prof. Udoakah for his insightful delivery, and called on the Nigerian Press Council (NPC), to overhaul or remodified the professional ethics and the code of practice for journalists to make it truly a profession, like law, medicine and such others.
Dr. Usoro, who was also a former Senior Special Assistant/Chief Press Secretary to Governor Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State maintained that, this would enable media practitioners to also charge professional fees, like their counterparts in law, medicine, etc.
Usoro argued that, journalism is a profession like others, where the practitioners would at the end of the day, go to the same market to buy things as other professionals.
He called for better remuneration for journalists and tasked practitioners to look beyond general beats reporting and go into special projects/reports where they can also charge fees as advertorials to break even.
