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From Uchenna Inya, Abakaliki
The Nigerian Press Council (NPC) has called on media practitioners to imbibe all the rules of ethical journalism in their practice in the digital era.
The council said the digital age has opened the floodgates to disinformation, fake news and other negative perceptions of the media and urged journalists to guard against them in their practice.
Executive Secretary of council, Dr. Dili Ezughah, spoke at Ebonyi State University (EBSU) permanent site during the council’s 2025 annual regional workshop with the theme: “Public trust and ethical journalism in the digital age.”
He noted that rebuilding trust in journalism was a collective effort that involve media owners, editors and reporters.
“The digital age has brought its remarkable tools for story-telling, investigation and audience engagement and at the same time, it has also opened a floodgate to disinformation, fake news and other negative perceptions of the media.
“This workshop presents an opportunity for us to reflect on the challenges that the media face in this digital age. This situation, therefore, calls upon us to imbibe all the rules of ethical journalism.
“It is important to state that rebuilding trust in journalism is a collective effort that involves media owners, editors, reporters, coordinators, educators, digital platforms and indeed the public itself.
“The Nigerian press council as a regulatory body that is committed to uphold professional standards has decided to hold this workshop to invite all media practitioners with the tools, knowledge and ethical branding required to thrive in this digital landscape.”
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Head of Department, Mass Communication, Dr. Simon Nwankwo, described the theme of the workshop as apt in view the growing fake news, misinformation and disinformation and commended the council for organizing the workshop.
“Some time ago, we had the Ebola pandemic and then we had the COVID-19 pandemic. Today, we are having fake news pandemic and everybody is suffering it whether you like it or not. It is only that we don’t need to go to the hospital to treat ourselves.To treat fake news pandemic, we organise workshops of this nature.”
The state Chairman of Nigeria Union of Journalists(NUJ), Comrade Samson Nwafor said media practitioners are the worst hit in the fake news era.
He lamented that fake news has continued to spread like fire and keep journalists on their toes in order to remain professionals and ensure public trust.
He implored media practitioners to be more investigative, accurate and objective to survive the fake news pandemic era.
In a lecture titled “Embracing fact-checking to enhance public trust”, professor of Strategic Communication in the Department of Mass Communication, Chike Emmanuel Onwe, enjoined journalists to avoid fake news, misinformation and disinformation in their practice.
He described trust as the currency of journalism and urged media practitioners to ensure that they have it at the back of their minds in the discharge of their duties.
Onwe, former Commissioner for Information and State Orientation, advised journalists to integrate fact-checking and prioritize accuracy over speed in their reportage to succeed in the digital age.
