Journalists from broadcast, print, and online media organisations from different states across the South-West geopolitical zone have observed and recommended critical tools for practitioners to enhance their investigative reporting.
In a communique issued at the end of a Two-Day workshop on “Using the Freedom of Information Act for Investigative Reporting”, held on Tuesday, October 31 and Wednesday, November 1, 2023, at Palms 77 Hotel, Ibadan, Oyo State, a series of critical observations and recommendations emerged, underscoring the pivotal role of the media in shaping transparency, accountability, and good governance in society.
The workshop was organised by Media Rights Agenda with support from the MacArthur Foundation through the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ) under the Collaborative Media Engagement for Development, Inclusion and Accountability (CMEDIA) Project, a multi-level intervention that supports media independence, improved transparency, accountability, and good governance in state and local governments with more public awareness on the need for accountability, and amplified marginalised voices.
Participants at the workshop acknowledged the societal value of routine event coverage, which serves to inform the public, educate, entertain, and offer valuable insights while, a concern arose over the media’s preoccupation with routine reporting at the expense of more in-depth, impactful investigative journalism that plays a pivotal role in ensuring transparency, accountability, and ultimately, good governance.
“The FOI Act is a powerful tool for information gathering for journalists and other media professionals and can significantly improve the quality of routine and in-depth media reporting. Accordingly, journalists should make the effort to read the Act and familiarize themselves with it to enable them to use it effectively for enhanced reporting.
“Furthermore, critical media stakeholders such as journalism and mass communication training institutions, media support and media development organizations, media professional bodies and associations as well as media organizations and newsrooms are encouraged to devote more time, effort and resources into creating awareness about the Act among journalists and building their capacity to utilize the Law.
“In addition to the above, in order to engender better and more impactful reporting of various issues, particularly those relating to transparency, accountability, good governance and development, participants urged these key stakeholders to similarly put more effort and resources into providing continuous training for journalists in other areas such as investigative reporting techniques, fact-checking and information verification tools and approaches as well as the use of artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies which can aid their work.
“Journalists, particularly those engaged in investigative reporting, should routinely mine available documents, records and data, including the annual budgets of Federal and State Governments, their audited public accounts, and other reports for information. They should analyze such documents, records and data to ascertain their level of compliance with applicable laws, rules, regulations, codes and other standards. Any identified breaches should be the basis of reporting aimed at holding the government involved accountable.
“Journalists should take advantage of various tools, which are available digitally, online and offline, which can enhance their work, including in conducting research; analysing data; verifying information, among others, by identifying such tools, obtaining them and learning how to use them in order to improve their reporting.
“Journalists should endeavour to give greater prominence to issues affecting women and other marginalized group. Women and members of other such marginalized groups should also be routinely reflected in news stories as important news sources in addition to focusing attention on how they are impacted by government policies, programmes and actions.
Meanwhile the workshop had plenary presentations and break-out sessions, which addressed different topics including: an Overview and Elements of Investigative Reporting; The Role of Records and Documents in Investigative Reporting; Understanding the Freedom of Information Act, 2011; The FOI Act and Investigative Reporting; and How Journalists and the Media Can Use the FOI Act.
Other topics treated are: Fact-checking and Investigative Reporting; Making Requests for Information Under the Freedom of Information Act; Deciding What Investigative Reports to Carry Out; Interviews in Investigative Reporting; and How to Present Stories from Investigative Reporting.
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