From Emmanuel Adeyemi, Lokoja
Ahead of the November 11 governorship election , the International Press Centre in conjunction with the UNDP trained journalists in Kogi State on the use of iVerify and Fact checking to enrich their stories and to avoid stories that are capable of generating crisis during and after the election.
The journalists were also trained on how to identify and curb fake news, misinformation and disinformation and trained on how to use tools and devises to also identify fake pictures the location of the sender’s and those behind it.
Organised by the Lagos based International Press Centre with support from the United Nations Development Program, UNDP, the workshop which held in Abuja and was attended by journalists practicing in Kogi State cutting across the print, broadcast, and online media.
Mr. Tayo Obe, Director Journalism Clinic, took the participants through the art of questioning and being detectives of misinformation and warned journalists not to allow themselves to be used by any politician
He said journalism places enormous responsibility on its practitioners and cautioned them on the dangers of misinformation, disinformation, and fake news.
He urged participants to focus on truth as they process the information they come across on the field and encouraged them to take advantage of the diverse opportunities in the industry to legitimately improve their earnings.
Obe said the media is different from what it used to be decades ago and them to avoid being used to misinform or disinform the citizens by selfish politicians and people with bad motive saying there are many ways through which journalists can earn legitimate money from their profession.
Mathew Alao, an official of UNDP in a keynote address, said journalism requires making sacrifices, noting that its practitioners must be discerning and painstaking to detect the truth. He said journalists should focus on reports that can bring peace, unity, and development rather than those that could bring down the society.
David Ajikobi, Editor of AfricaCheck, spoke on the importance of fact checking claims and how to use the various tools for that purpose.
Ajikobi encouraged the journalists to question claims by the political class in the build-up to, during, and after the 11 November governorship election.
Other speakers at the workshop are Mr. Lanre Arogundade of IPC and Rotimi Oyekanmi Chief Press Secretary of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC. They both emphasised the need for media practitioners to stay above board in their election reportage and to avoid that may ignite crisis.