Disciplinary committee trains journalists on ethics
The workshop with the theme: “Revitalizing Journalism Skills and Ethical Conducts: Towards Responsible Reporting and Improved Information Management/Media Relations,” held at the Banquet Hall of the Maiduguri International Hotel, last Wednesday was organised by the Ethics, Disciplinary and Tackling of fake Journalists Committee, which was recently constituted by the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Borno […]
The workshop with the theme: “Revitalizing Journalism Skills and Ethical Conducts: Towards Responsible Reporting and Improved Information Management/Media Relations,” held at the Banquet Hall of the Maiduguri International Hotel, last Wednesday was organised by the Ethics, Disciplinary and Tackling of fake Journalists Committee, which was recently constituted by the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Borno State Council to rid the state of fake journalists and discipline erring journalists. Journalists from both the print and electronic media, as well as staff of federal and state Ministries of Information, participated in the workshop the state NUJ Chairman, Abba Kakami, declared the workshop open.
In his paper titled: “Ethics and the Challenges of Journalism Practice”, Professor Umaru Pate of the University of Maiduguri, said because the media was regarded as an important social institution that had the power to shape people’s thinking, journalists must operate within acceptable social conducts to ensure balance between their roles and responsibilities to the society, saying its cardinal objective should be to propagate truth for public good. Dr Abubakar Mu’azu from the same institution, in a paper titled: “Journalists and Responsible Political Reporting,” suggested that because political irresponsibility had become the norm in Nigeria today, the NUJ must develop a code of conduct for political reporting; collaborate with Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) to re-organise itself as a professional group to better understand the framework on which politics works; and by so doing, avoid violent political responses from politicians and the polity.
Other presenters were Barrister Ayuba Damo who spoke on “Libel and Slander in the Nigerian Press”, Dr Igomu Onoja of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), “Electronic Media and the Broadcast Codes in Nigeria”, as well as Mr Lazarus Wakawa, a Deputy Director with the National Orientation Agency (NOA) in Borno State who dwelt on “The Role of Information Officers in Government and Media Relations”.
Earlier, chairman of the ethics and disciplinary committee (the organisers) said the committee chose to train journalists to prepare for the sanitisation exercise soon to take place. He thanked Senator Kaka Malam Yale, Ambassador Saidu Pindar, Mohammed Ali Ndume, Alhaji Kashim Shettima and Shehu Mustapha Liberty for their individual support towards the successful hosting of the workshop.