By Friday Idachaba, Lokoja.
Veteran Environmental journalist and Editor-in-Chief of NatureNews Newspaper, Aliu Akoshile has decried the low coverage and little space being accorded environment issues by media professionals in the country.
Akoshile, former Managing Director of Daily Times Newspapers disclosed this in Obajana during a two-day environmental journalism workshop at Dangote Cement Company, Obajana, Kogi State.
The training workshop was organized by Dangote Group in partnership with Climate Africa Media Initiative Centre (CAMIC) for about 50 journalists from the North Central Geo-political zone of the country.
The veteran journalist who was also the lead facilitator for the Media training themed: “Reporting the Environment For Sustainability”, said journalists had the onerous task of informing and educating the people and should consistently inform and educate them about their environment.
“Environment has placed responsibility on us as journalists. Our professional calling imposes on us responsibility of informing the public. There is therefore need for us to incorporate environment into everything we do.
Akoshile, who is also the Executive Director, CAMIC regretted that the environment had been grossly under reported adding that International Press Institute (IPI) also recently pointed out this aberration.
He noted that the environment was equal to, if not more important than the socio-economic and political issues which dominate the media space.
He posited that climate change had necessitated a shift in journalism practice making constant update a dire requirement adding that as journalists, “You are the link between the environment and the people.
“Neglecting our environment as journalists is detrimental to us as a nation. We must join hands together, to secure our environment. This can be done by giving in-depth coverage of what is happening in our environment.”
He urged that all hands must be on deck to check devastating effects of climate change which now posed the single biggest health threat to humanity.
Akoshile said that it was therefore imperative to organize the workshop to train and encourage Media Professionals to delve into environmental journalism.
“Our survival is dependent on the well-being of the environment. The environment has been there before us and we need it more than it needs us, therefore, we must protect it from harm for our own good as humans.
Akoshile also frowned at the mode of the practice of Citizens journalism saying it remained a veritable tool for promotion fake news, misinformation and disinformation.
He therefore called for gate keeping through regulations in to check their operations and urged trained professional journalists to remain focused in the discharge of their duties.
“It is a major problem we are facing today in the media. It is affecting our revenue and affecting our integrity. We must join hands to protect our profession”, he said.
Akoshile charged journalists to increase their capacity by interrogating information gotten from their environment and avoid use of scientific jargons to prevent mis-leading or misinforming the general public. (Ends)