The Vice-Chancellor, Igbinedion University Okada (IUO), Edo State, Prof. Lawrence Ezemonye has acknowledged the role of media in promoting an egalitarian society devoid of fake news and other social media misinformation.
Speaking during the College of Arts and Social Sciences yearly public lecture series of the university, titled, ‘Rethinking The Social Media: Fake News And The Death Of The Gatekeeper,’ Ezemonye said that the role of traditional media to nation building cannot be overemphasised.
The Vice-Chancellor, represented by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (DVC), Prof. Raphael Adeghe, expressed concern over misinformation on social media, noting: “Fake news is one of the negative offshoots of our development.
“As we move from dominance of traditional media to the era of new media, as well as social media, with attendant ‘backgrounding’ of the gatekeeper and proliferation of fake news, Igbinedion University is proud to be at the forefront of providing intellectual platforms to discuss these issues.”
Ezemonye described the topic of the lecture as not only thought-provoking but apt, and appreciated the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) efforts in checking fake news, maintaining that, “Fake news is one of the negative offshoots of development.”
He stressed the need for accuracy and fact-checking, saying: “The world is moving from traditional mode of knowledge to the digital alternative with great implications for information integrity, education and, most importantly, news dissemination and consumption.
“Every year, we have used this occasion to examine topics of national and global significance to generate ideas for policy direction, make critical interventions in national discourse and set agenda for development in all human endeavour.”
The President of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Chief Chris Isiguzo, in his lecture, “Rethinking The Social Media: Fake News And The Death Of The Gatekeeper”, charged Journalists in Nigeria to guide against propagating fake news, advising that proper and adequate checks must be ensured before stories are written and transmitted to the public.
He said: “This is the only way we can help sustain our democracy and distracting leaders from acts of governance through frivolities and malicious deployment of fake news and hate speeches will not augur well for the country.
“We should always remember that while the gatekeeper on social media platforms has died or never even existed, the gatekeeper in the traditional media lives on.
“Unlike traditional journalism, social media is a bottom-up, emergent phenomenon in which there is little or no editorial oversight or formal journalistic workflow. It does not require training or professionalism.
“It is therefore my contention that in an attempt to discuss this topic, adequate consideration should be given to the traditional media.
“This becomes more pertinent because of my professional calling which today faces threats from the misuse of social media.”
Making a comparison between traditional and social media, Isiguzo said stated that the major area of competition between the two is in the area of who gets it first.
“The issue of which of them breaks the news first is a very clear area of interest for both. Similarly, in terms of revenue drive, the two seem to be engaged in a competition for the market,” he said.
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