By Friday Idachaba, Lokoja.
STALLION Times Media Service has called on Media Professionals to adhere strongly to the Code of Ethics of the profession and make peace building the core objective of their reportage.
The Media outfit made the call in a communique issued at the end of a one-day Workshop on Conflict Sensitive Reporting” under the auspices of its “Get Involved Dialogue and Improve Project – GDRIP”, on Saturday in Lokoja.
The Communique was signed by Isiyaku Ahmed, Editor-in-Chief, Stallion Times Media Services and Adeiza Momoh-Jimoh, Chairman, Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Kogi State Council.
The Media outfit urged Journalists, as they strive to deliver on their core mandate of Information, Education and Entertainment, to, in spite of threats, redouble their efforts and live up to the values and standards of the profession.
It also urged them to as well, expose, isolate, and eliminate all forms of incitements to intense hatred and violence and as well, create awareness to ease political and other societal tension in the country.
It further called on Journalists and Media owners to build professional solidarity to promote ethics and good governance and urged that Journalists must always try to identify triggers of conflicts.
The Communique cautioned Journalists against suppression of facts, be mindful of the choice of words in their reportage and their safety by adhering to usage of safety kits while in conflicts zones.
It equally advised them to guard against being misused for propaganda purposes, to incite hatred and spread rumours, thereby artificially creating tension in the society.
It enjoined owners of media houses to evolve a framework for provision of healthcare and social protection for journalists in their stable as well as constant training and re-training on various beats.
Participants at the workshop however, strongly recommended the setting up of a body to regulate the activities of Social Media influencers and conventional media professionals in Nigeria.
According to the Communique, Stallion Times organized the one-day media training on ‘Conflict Sensitive Reporting’ in Kogi in a bid to encourage accurate, objective and balanced reportage of conflict situations.
It said that the participants had observed worsening unethical media reports leading to abuse or irresponsible journalism that “pursues sensationalism, biases, prejudices and blackmail.”
It said that the training was part of the Media outfit’s activities in year two of the three-year Participatory Governance and Media Literacy project tagged “Get Involved, Dialogue and Improve (G-DRIP)” in Kano and Kogi states.
The project, according to the Communique, is being executed in collaboration with the Wole Soyinka Center for Investigative Journalism under the Collaborative Media Project with support from MacArthur Foundation.
Nigerian Pilot reports that Alhaji Shuaibu Usman Leman, NUJ National Secretary presented papers on “Conflict Sensitive Reporting and Safety of Journalists” as well as Fake News and Ethical Journalism Education” at the workshop.
