The talking heads of government media in contemporary Nigeria have become ogres and the social responsibility role of media, which essentially includes impartiality and its self-censorship mechanism, in my view, is an enabler and a key driver in agenda setting for public diplomacy. Given that media gatekeepers do not have a monopoly of what constitutes information, the public and consumers of government information, particularly through new media have undergone some transformation in recent years.
These uncommon developments cannot be underestimated from 24 hours news stations to online media platforms, the Nigerian discerning public and indeed the world have many sources of information than ever before.
Against this backdrop, spokespersons should embrace constructive journalism, which aims to give stories more contexts and make public communication a dialogue and government to citizens’ journalism become more active, participatory and engaging. What is important in my view is that spokepersons as custodian of government information, should be willing to submit government constraints and performances to alternative viewpoints, robust criticism and balance reportage for the greater good. It should be noted journalism and public communication is an essential tool in a democratic political process.
Taking public information forward, practitioners of both government departments and state house journalists should come to the understanding of the role of bad journalistic storytelling and lies, which is affront to sustainable democracy and development. With the public good in mind, the bearer of public information must remain committed to journalism’s core values in searching for and reporting the truth and nothing but the truth, whilst leaving citizens feeling positive about government actions and inactions because positive communication will cause citizens to feel energized, open, optimistic and ready to engage in public affairs. Crucially, the ability and willingness of media men on the other side of the divide to re-examine critically its system of engaging and reporting government policies and programme is indeed one of the challenges of this administration and its leadership.
Finally, it must be remembered that the citizens demand that their elected and appointed servants shall not only be honest in fact, but beyond the reach of suspicion of dishonesty. It is my hope that the government at all levels, particularly at the centre and its appointed spokespersons will rise to the occasion in the public interest.
Samuel Orovwuje,
orovwuje@yahoo.com
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