Day Dimgba Igwe resurrected

By Henry Umahi

 

 

Last Friday, September 6, friends, associates and family members gathered to celebrate the 10th year anniversary of the death of a journalism colossus, Dimgba Igwe, pioneer Deputy Managing Director (DMD) of The Sun Publishing Ltd, who was killed by a hit-and-run driver in Okota area of Lagos. Venue was Colossus Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos.

It was indeed a full house as media practitioners and publishers, young and old, celebrated an icon. In Dimgba’s honour, a public lecture was delivered by Muyiwa Adetiba, one of the earliest practitioners of soft-sell magazines in Nigeria and publisher of Prime People magazine, among others. It was titled, “Tabloid Journalism Yesterday, Today and the Future.” 

The Managing Director of The Sun, Mr Onuoha Ukeh, said the programme was well thought-out. Take this from Ukeh: “As one of the Fathers of Tabloid Journalism (with Mr. Awoyinfa also) in Nigeria and a time when the country’s newspaper industry has been stung by the bug of tabloidism, the celebration of Igwe is well deserved. Those who felt that tabloid journalism was low-class when Igwe and Awoyinfa pioneered and amplified it, should look at Nigerian newspapers and see that the majority of them only promotes headlines on their covers and run the reports inside. That was a paradigm shift in newspaper production in the country. That is tabloidism.”

Adetiba started on a lighter mood, saying: “My paper is going to be brief for two main reasons: One, nobody listens to a long paper when lunch is around the corner. Yorubas say ‘Ebi ki wo inu ki oro miran wo’, which simply means that a hungry man cannot be a good listener. This is probably more so these days when free meals are hard to come by. Two, it is a bit of a contradiction to do a paper on Tabloid journalism and employ a formal school teacher style. Tabloid journalism is catchy; it is also about brevity. It should be like a woman’s skirt short enough to arouse interest but long enough to cover the subject. (apologies, Winston Churchill).”

Going down memory lane, Adetiba narrated how he visited the office of Dr Doyin Abiola, the then Managing Director of Concord Newspapers, at her invitation about 35 years ago and was introduced to something fresh from their stable.

He said: “As I stood up to leave after our meeting, she asked me if I had seen their new look Weekend paper. ‘Please check it out. Its our joker’, she concluded with a smile. I needed no further invitation. I was impressed but not surprised at what I saw when I eventually had a copy in my hands. Impressed because the paper fitted what I thought a weekend newspaper should be at that time.

“Not surprised because I knew the inclination and ability of Mike Awoyinfa, its editor. I had known of Mike before I met him and in fact, unknown to him, I had thought of working with him on a project. Although he was the leading light, the paper was not all about Mike however. There were some very intriguing writers I was meeting for the first time on its pages. One of them was Dimgba Igwe, the man in whose honour, we are all gathered today.”

Adetiba remarked that in some ways, it would feel strange and surprising to many that he was chosen to present a professional paper on the 10th year of the passing of Dimgba given that they never worked together although he had followed his career and writings since his introduction on the pages of the Weekend Concord.

He said: “I can’t recollect meeting him let alone having a conversation with him at any time. Yet, it is as if I knew him well. This is because we shared a kinship. We both believed in the same genre of journalism. This perhaps, was what decided the organisers of this outing on me. It was also part of what made me to accept.

“Like Igwe, I believe in liberal journalism. I believe in anchoring stories around people and humanizing what otherwise would have been abstract facts. I loathe long, tedious write-ups and tend to push for brevity. I love photographs that can tell their own stories. I look out for empathy in stories and I seek the uncommon in common everyday lifestyles. I love interviews and the vista they allow into people’s souls. Although I am not that much into labels, I think these are the essence of what is known as tabloid journalism which is what I have been asked to speak on today.

“A few decades ago, the country witnessed a rise in, and an acceptance of a class of weekly publications based in part, on the principles and ethos I had earlier mentioned. It was labelled soft sell Journalism by some and derisively but erroneously labelled Junk journalism by others, including those I felt should know better. I dismissed this characterization at the time as envy and therefore a phase that would soon pass. I was wrong. It persisted and not only did it tarnish a genre of our profession, it tarnished the reputation of those who were involved in that genre. It also misguided younger journalists into believing junk journalism was another name for tabloid journalism,” he stressed.

He told his anecdotes about the misconception of his genre of journalism. With that as a peg, he delved into the subject proper.

He said: “I will start my definition of tabloid journalism by stating what it is not. First of all, it is definitely not junk journalism. Junk, by its very definition, is something of such a low quality that it is of no value or use – I am not sure anybody can honestly say that about tabloid journalism. Junk journalism or yellow journalism, is therefore low quality journalism. It is a disrespect for facts and an aversion for accuracy. It panders to conspiracy theories and promotes primordial fears. These are shortcomings that can be found in many publications irrespective of the genre.

“It is therefore safe to say that junk journalism exists in all genres of journalism and indeed all channels of mass communication where practitioners allow their professional standards to be lowered. Although it must be said that some tabloids tend to blur the lines in their quest for exciting, and often sensational news. Many of them cast headlines that have little relevance to the body of the story. I often remind my younger colleagues of the old dictum that a headline must tell the story no matter how creative you want it to be.

“There are many definitions of a tabloid depending on who you are listening to and what that person seeks to highlight. To some, tabloid journalism is a form of journalism that focuses on pop culture, crime and society in a sensational way. “To some others, a tabloid is a condensed newspaper with a long history of sensationalizing lives of celebrities – and stories, particularly of crime and society-that catch attention. Still some others see tabloid journalism as stylish and distinct with bold headlines and short, catchy articles with lots of photographs.

“But the definition I like and one which has influenced me the most, belongs to Alhaji Babatunde Jose, the doyen of Nigerian tabloid journalism. He simply described tabloid journalism as ‘a vivid presentation of news and views’. Note that there was nothing like distortion of news and views in his definition. Or of headlines not representing the body of the story.

“It is interesting to note that tabloid came into existence as a medical word. Coined from tablet-alkaloid, it was trademarked in 1884 by an English pharmaceutical company to describe a pill containing compressed powder. Over time, it became a buzz word for anything that was compressed.

“Newspapers almost completely took the name over when at the turn of the century, the search for quick sales led publishers to compacted, easy to read articles. Broadsheet journals which typified serious reading were seen as cumbersome and tedious. Seen then as new journalism before the likes of Tom Wolfe redefined the phrase around 1975, this new trend was associated with, if not pioneered by Pullitzer, yes, of the Pullitzer Prize fame, and Hearst at the beginning of the century.

“The trend soon caught up throughout the world in different shapes and forms. The common feature being brevity in size and style. The common aim being commercialization of their products for higher profits through increase in sales. For them, newspapers had become products and their readers, consumers.

“We must remind ourselves that journalism itself is the report of news of the day in an easy to digest manner designed to attract the attention of often impatient readers. So tabloid journalism didn’t necessarily re-invent the wheel in this aspect. And to be fair, many tabloids used the commercial success of their publications to advocate societal changes and speak truth to power.

“We all are aware of the role Nigerian tabloids played in the struggle for independence and fight against oppressive military rulers. We also remember that the battle for the actualization of June 12 was fought on the streets as well as in the newsrooms. Many in this room still carry the scars of that battle. Some, like The Mall in the UK, took on an ideological if not a political stance. It was by the side of Margaret Thatcher, a Conservative, in her battle to reduce the hold the British Unions had on the economy.

“With the roaring success of tabloid newspapers-The Mirror reached its peak at 5.2 million sales per day in 1967 as a modern tabloid-came fierce, almost cut-throat competitions. The frontiers were extended to include sleaze, sex and the bizarre. We all remember The Sun in the UK, not our own Surt, with the famous, or infamous Page 3 girls that almost became nude pin-ups.

“As competition increased, the frontiers continued to be extended and distended. And professional standards continued to be lowered. Investigative journalism became checkbook journalism; kiss and tell journalism and long-lenses journalism. The long cherished role of the tabloid as the true voice of the people had been overshadowed by consumerism. The death of Diana, the Princess of Wales in August 1997 at the hands of the paparazzi became a wake up call of some sort as tabloid ethics came under discussion.

“Although the era of tabloid newspapers is fading and their power waning due largely to digital pressure, the idea behind it is not. Now known as tabloidization, this idea has found its way into TV in the form of Talk-shows ‘Reality TV’ and ‘Lifestyle’. Tabloidization is also strong online with what is sometimes called clickbait journalism where the success of a story is determined by its number of clicks. Besides, some tabloid newspapers have transited online fairly successfully. Mail-online which was launched in 2003 had 13 million daily browsers by 2019.

“The future of tabloidization is secure for as long as there continues to be changes in social and demographic patterns in the world and human beings being human, continue to find storytelling and issues of morality appealing if not irresistible; and if tabloidization continues to serve the need to reach bigger audiences by evolving ideas around shifting priorities in journalism and the media landscape as a whole. Instagram and twitter now known as X are classic examples of how tabloidization has evolved in the present and possibly for the future.

“Let me conclude by saying a few words about the man for whom we are all here. From all accounts, he was a quintessential, well rounded reporter, editor, columnist, media manager and publisher. Many in this room today would still recollect where they were and what they were doing when they heard of his gruesome death. His death was second perhaps only to that of Dele Giwa in our world. Time heals. I pray that God and time-have healed the wounds in the hearts of those he left behind. The quality of those here today shows that he is still remembered by many of his colleagues. More importantly, he lives on in his books, his devotion to his craft and devotion to God. I read the article Isaac Igwe wrote to his father last year and I smiled. What a chip off the old block. We definitely have not seen the last of the Igwes.”

Thereafter, a panel discussion moderated by Mr Ken Ugbechie, featuring Funke Egbemode, Richard Akinnola, Muyiwa Akintunde, and Steve Nwosu, all frontline editors, offered refreshing perspectives on tabloidisation. They rejected the classification of tabloidisation as junk journalism.

Those who grace the event included former Presidents of Nigeria Guild of Editors (NGE), Mr. Gbenga Adefaye, and Mrs Funke Egbemode; former Special Adviser to ex-President Muhammadu Buhari on Media and Publicity, and a former President of NGE, Chief Femi Adesina; current President of NGE and Editor, Vanguard newspaper, Mr Eze Anaba; Editor-in-Chief of Tell Magazine,  Mr. Nosa Igiebor and Editor,  Saturday Sun, Mr. Tope Adeboboye.

Others were Provost, Nigerian Institute of Journalism (NIJ), Ogba, Lagos, Mr. Gbemiga Ogunleye; Publisher, Naija Times, Mr. Ehi Braimah; Editor-in-Chief, Political Economist, Ken Ugbechie; and Deputy Managing Director of Thisday, Kayode Komolafe, and  the former MD, The Sun Ghana, and 2006 CNN/Multichoice African Journalist, Mr. Shola Oshunkeye.

Also present were Dimgba’s wife, Pastor (Mrs.) Obioma Igwe; Vice President, and Vice Chairman of Governing Council, Chartered Institutes of Personnel Management of Nigeria, Mrs. Chidinma Obiejesi; and General Overseer of Evangel Pentecostal Church, Rev’d Iheanyi Ejiogu, where Igwe was Deputy General Overseer before his death.

Oshunkeye cracked some ribs with his jokes even as some tears dropped when Adesina narrated how Igwe died on September 6, 2014.

Mr Nosa Igiebor, who commended Mike Awoyinfa, and Dimgba Igwe for their great books of impact, regretted that even journalists were accepting what is abnormal as normal in the country.  He noted that because we have refused to confront the monster, the country has become a joke. Saying that “we cannot stop speaking truth to power,” he wondered what Igwe will be thinking of Nigeria today.

All the speakers were united: Igwe was a great guy, perfect gentleman, compassionate pastor and consummate professional, they said.

The former Managing Director of The Sun, Mr Mike Awoyinfa, whose friendship with Igwe has defiled understanding, said: “To me Dimgba has not died.  We have always been talking.” He also read an emotion-laden letter he wrote in remembrance of his “brother from another mother.” He also narrated how Igwe’s death shocked him beyond measure.

Mrs Dimgba Igwe commended the organizers of the event for remembering her husband. She said that Awoyinfa was a friend indeed as he stood by them all the way.