Journalism And Challenges Of The 21st Century

By Tajudeen A Tijjani.

NEWSDAILYNIGERIA: The challenges facing the profession of Journalism in the contemporary time are numerous and a sign of moral balance and decadence. The society is now engulfed in a show of shameless, and only an effective and moral orientation now become an option.

The whole mess may not be limited to the profession of Journalism alone, but the decaying in its practice has become an issue of great concern most especially for those who practiced the profession from the early 1970 and before then.

Today the profession of Journalism, and proudly the only one recognize in the Constitution as the Fourth Estate, have been hijacked by quacks and untrained reporters.

In the past, you can claim to be a reporter and be certified by the NUJ after a Newsroom tutorial on the behavior expected of a reporter outside the newsroom, and relationship with the public.

Those newsroom law and etiquettes have now been thrown to the dogs, unfortunately with the adventure of what is now refered to as Online reports. It has created rooms for all sorts of characters to infiltrate the profession without any training.

Most worrisome are the other group of with classroom Journalism or Mass Communication certificate who sees themselves as better and knowledgeable than the old hands they meet on job . They have bluntly refused to learn from the old adage which says ‘ da thoso zuma ana yi magani’, meaning with the old honey, you do a medicine.

They refused to learn and relearn, and because of the behavior have put the profession into ridiculous stage in the public perception.

These, may be were part of the reasons why the Kaduna State Council NUJ ganized the one day Symposium to address some of the issues raised, and make all attempt to train and retrain those who are willing to move forward in the profession and embrace the new challenges.

It has been suggested in many foras by expert in Journalism and Mass Communication that the time is now ripe for journalist’s to be registered like lawyers, since the profession is recognized in nation constitution.

That practitioners of Journalism should be made to sit for professional examination to be organized by the National Secretariat after every two or three years for proper identification and recognition.

Although, this may pose a tough tasks, since those who are supposed to liase with the NUJ and look into the suggestion, are the Media owners, who unfortunately have abandoned the ethics of the profession to chase money and wealth. They employed quacks and most at times toddler journalist’s and gave them the organization identify card to fend for themselves.

On the whole, the emergency of the Social Media and Online publications, bereft of any control have contributed to the mess.

As corollary from the above observations, participants at the Kaduna NUJ symposium in collaboration with the Chediya Media in Kaduna Thursday lamented over the present situation of Journalism and Journalist’s, especially on some of their behavioral patterns.

They equally frowned at the behavior of many of the new entrants who have thrown respect to the gutters and behave irrational, and thereby created public disdain for the profession. They alleged that lack of gatemen in many of Media house’s now give ways to any storyline without any editing.

Many of those who spoke at the symposium commended the organizers and their partners and urges them not to relent in the efforts to sanitize the profession of Journalism, and never to hesitate to discipline any erring members.

Senator Uba Sani, the Kaduna State Governor represented by his PPS, Professor Bello Ayuba stressed the need for responsible Journalism and refrain from misinformation, and strive to redirect public discuss firmly anchored on the practice and ethics of Journalism.

He told journalist’s at the venue and the leaders to devise a way of sorting out the grains from authentic information from the chaff, in order to save the society from the deluge of misinformation capable of causing public unrest.

Pr