By Celestine Okafor (Editor-in-Chief ) @CeleOkaf
With the current prevalence of fake news in the global media space, Managing-Director of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Mr. Bukky Ponle, has urged the Online News Publishers in Nigeria to ensure that their news output conforms with responsible Journalism and requisite professionalism.
He enjoined them to strive to live up to their social responsibility to the nation and also to intensify their crusade for responsible Journalism based on truthful, fair, and balance reporting practice for the ultimate development of the Nigerian society.
The new NAN boss gave this exhortation on Thursday when the executives of the Nigerian Guild of Corporate Online Publishers (GOCOP) led by its National President and Publisher of the Eagle Online Newspaper, Dotun Oladipo, visited him in his office in Abuja, to solicit for the assistance of NAN in enriching the news contents of the Online media organizations.
Ponle however advised the GOCOP delegation to prevail on their members and other colleagues to use their various Online platforms to remedy the societal ills and showcase the achievements and developmental strides of the current Buhari administration.
The NAN Managing Director told his visitors that though he is not averse to criticism, but such criticisms, he said, must be constructive, healthy and in line with developmental intentions, otherwise, it might trigger negative or offensive reactions.
Ponle also said he would be delighted to partner with the Guild of Corporate Online Publisher (GOCOP) to enhance professionalism in their practice, pointing out that the Online media and social media generally have been put in a difficult situation as a result of the eminent position it has assumed today in contemporary society by ensuring efficient and rapid news delivery.
He stated that "in recent times, we have witnessed news disinformation, misinformation, and total lies just to serve a purpose but it does not help us. It is high time we all looked forward to helping our country to get it out of this".
While responding to the request by the Online Publishers group for a kind of partnership agreement with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) to avail the web publishers the opportunity of its vast agency generated information news materials at a relatively cost-effective rate, the NAN boss disclosed that NAN being a federal government establishment is severely hampered by operational financial logistics arising from the challenges of Corona Virus pandemic which has shrunk government revenue profile.
Nevertheless, however, he assured the Publishers Guild that his agency would look into their request, but pleaded that GOCOP members should endure with what the News Agency could currently offer to its news subscribers.
Ponle said “We have in the past months reviewed our operations and added value; the ratings are there, I will urge you just to bear with us now. It is painful for us to review upwards but how do we survive? We can only survive if we add just a little for us to do what you are expecting us to do".
He added that “If NAN were to be a private organization, it would either go down or increase its price in a par with the market situation".
The Publisher's body however thanked Ponle for the audience he gave them during the courtesy visit, promising that they would continue to operate in line with the advice he gave their members in the practice of their trade.
Leader of the delegation and GOCOP President, Dotun Oladipo, told the NAN Managing Director that the Online media proprietors certainly have not experienced anything new or rewarding in the way their members have practiced the profession, but however, hinted that "we have considered so many issues and put so many things into critic before we came up with the slightest offer we have added".
Oladipo stated that the challenges of remaining in business in the face of the harsh economic realities which has left the Guild gasping for breath like every other business establishment compelled the delegation to embark on the visit to seek help or intervention from NAN for a cost rebate.
"But for the online platform, it has not worked that way; we discovered that for both government and private businesses the level of patronage has drastically dropped due to bad economy, which has led to downsizing in most places. Our records will testify that since we started, we have always fulfilled our part in terms of payment in spite of the level of hardship and COVID-19 pandemic challenges".
The GOCOP president explained that the membership of the Online Publishers Guild comprises eminent practitioners and qualified journalists whose criteria of membership includes that the journalist must have practiced for not more than 10 years in a reputable media organization in Nigeria and anywhere in the world. Besides, the journalist must have risen to not less than the position of the level of an Assistant Editor to qualify to be a member.
This, Oladipo told the NAN Managing Director, was to enhance professionalism in practice. "Because we have seen a lot of disinformation and falsehood online and the question has always been how to help the country to overcome this challenge. We have seen in the last couple of years how social media has developed and being put to negative use by many Nigerians.
“How do we step in when there is authentic information to dwell on and we also believe that with the number of years that those who are members of this association have put into journalism, they have a name and people keep following them".
He assured the delegation's host that the Guild of Online Publishers will not disappoint on their commitment to professionalism. NNL.
