NUJ Trains Journalists On Ethics, Social Media, Headline Writing

Journalists have been enjoined to inculcate the culture of continuously developing themselves so that they can remain relevant in an evolving media world.
The Chairman of the Rivers State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Mr. Stanley Job Stanley, gave the advice during a training workshop organized by the council for journalists in Port Harcourt as part of the Union’s 2024 Press Week in Port Harcourt.
Veteran journalist and Regional Manager of Business Day in Port Harcourt, Mr. Ignatius Chukwu, who lectured on “Casting News Headlines,” said good headlines should be brief, using finite verbs and be capable of arousing curiosity from the readers.
Bu he warned that most libel suits had arisen from indicting headlines. So, he cautioned against sensational headlines that may deceive the readers and attract libel suits.
The Bureau Chief of The Guardian in the South-South region, Mrs Ann Godwin, who spoke on the topic, ‘Blogging and Content Creation For Journalists,’ urged journalists to explore opportunities available in the social media and advance their career and income.
Godwin, a Wole Soyinka Centre For Investigative Journalism fellow and award winner said Social Media can serve more than just content creation and can earn money for journalists.
“With the advancement of the internet and evolution of social media, employment of Journalists in the newsroom has continued to decline. And the future Journalist should be an all-rounder, inquisitive and can create good stories that attract leadership both locally and internationally.”
She listed various Social handles that can be explored to include LinkedIn, and Twitter(X) for intellectual engagements.
She advised against “lengthy posts, grammatical errors” and should target “rush hours” to deliver posts.
A member of the Editorial Board of The Tide newspapers, Mr Boye Salau, who spoke on ‘Ethical Reporting’ advised Journalists to painstakingly insist on facts, hear from all sides and verify them before rushing to compile reports.
Salau warned that journalists who violate the ethics of the profession would soon lose public trust for themselves and their media organization.
He also said journalists should not bow to pressure from Social Media Influencers, who tend to thrive on fake news.
“As journalists, we must insist on adhering to the time-tested ethical standards by sticking to facts and balanced reporting. This is because, at the end of the day, society will rely on where the facts and the truths are to make the opinion and judgment, not intentional sensationalism”.