During his electioneering campaign in 2015, Governor Akinwunmi Ambode told this reporter personally that his policy thrust (if elected the Governor) will be on the grassroots and that he would support the local media, especially community newspapers, to project the work of his administration.
In the past one year of his governance, Governor Ambode has fulfilled his promise to sustain community media in the promotion of the state administration.
Almost on a monthly basis, Governor Ambode has directed his Special Adviser on Communities and Communications, Hon. Kehinde Bamgbetan and the state Executive Council to organize meetings with community journalists to focus in each ministry on the state and their achievements to be spread over to different communities.
The latest of this bold move and innovation in communication with the governed is a three day workshop organized by the governor for more than forty (40) journalists from the print and electronic media who were trained on new techniques in the industry such as e-library, e-communication, latest innovations in production, reporting, new gathering etc.
Governor Ambode believes that by sharpening the skills of these journalism practitioners at the grassroots, this will help the local media to project the activities of the government properly (more effectively). Though not a residential workshop, the three day event was intensive. It consisted of between eight and nine hours of lecture each of the two main days of the programme. The workshop was targeted at publishers, editors-in-chief and editors of community newspapers and their counterparts in the electronic media in the state.
Hon Bamgbetan, a journalism guru himself searched all over the state and located a journalism clinic ideal for the programme. The clinic is located at Anifowoshe close, off Adebola and Adeniran Ogunsanya Street, Surulere. The Chief Executive of the clinic is a man, who has projected his name globally in journalism. He is Taiwo Obe, a Fellow of the Nigerian Guild of Editors, Commonwealth professional fellow, a world class journalist in local and international publications including The Guardian, Newsweek International Magazine, This Week and Media Review among others.
He is a first class consultant in the profession, who is always at ease discussing, teaching and practicing journalism with students or with his colleagues in the profession. Those of us who attended the seminar had no doubt that we had been spoken to by the right person who delved into new technologies in the field of journalism including newspaper production.
After Taiwo Obe on the first day, another experienced journalist, Niyi Obaremi mounted the stage. The theme/title of the seminar was, “Rethinking and revitalizing community Media in Lagos State. Thus, all the facilitators focused on bringing out something new for the journalists present.
Niyi is described as a quintessential and award winning newsman, who worked as a sub-editor/rewriter on NTA network, News Line Editor at the Guardian, Group News Editor at the defunct National Concord and Deputy News Editor at Champion Newspaper. He is also a seasoned corporate communications practitioner. He handled the subject, “News Feature and New Techniques in our Contemporary Environment.”
On the second day, another experienced writer/author, Ogbenyi Egbe delivered a lecture on how newspapers can battle and survive on the Newsstands.
This graduate of Urban and Regional Planning, who taught himself computer graphics and rose to the top today to become a master designer of all forms of publications, delved into an exciting subject. He lectured on how a newspaper can catch public attention and readers’ interest. He talked about several aspects of production designs and displays of materials to make a newspaper attractive to the reader at the newsstand and on-line.
He spoke on the importance of newspaper production, noting that if you have excellent stories that are badly displayed, they become a waste because no one will read them. It is like a tailor badly displaying his clothes in a showcase (glass), which cannot attract any customer.
Other resource persons/facilitators at the event (lecturers) included Pelu Awofeso, Kunle Falaye, Treasure Funke Durodola, GM Radio on 103.5 FM, Abiola Ayankunbi a marketing specialist, Gani Kayode Balogun Jr.
All these resource persons explained the strategic role of the internet and the revolution information technology has brought into the mass media. According to them, the internet and the social media have made everyone in the world today a journalist. Everyone goes to the internet today to read and write information as well as disseminate.
According to them, today, the banners of exclusive stories have been pulled down by the open platforms (the social media) with free tools, free applications, all of which have changed the world.
They lamented that it is unfortunate that there are still some Nigerians and journalists, who have stuck to the past (the old) traditions and refused to embrace the new technologies and trends in the media. “These are the days of digital communication which everyone must embrace or be left out,” they cautioned.”
On the 3rd day of the workshop, the topic was on digital marketing, which was handled by Blessing Olisa-Akaeze described as a young outstanding, creative multi-media journalist and digital content creator with The Nation Newspaper.
With others, namely – Omorodion, Abiola Ayankunbi, Kayode Awobadejo, Omomeda, Ashofor, they all spoke on different issues, aggregating to the theme of Revitalizing, Revisiting, Rethinking and Retraining the local media practitioner.
There was preponderance of suggestions that those who are not computer literate and internet informed and complaint in this 21st century are those operating (so to speak) as in the dark ages and a journalist cannot afford, as a beacon of light for the society, to remain in the dark.
Speaker after Speaker harped on the changing landscape of media practice and production, designs, equipment, soft wares and hardwares which shift the goal posts of contemporary communication efforts.
By the time the workshop, which was superintended by Hon. Bamgbetan and Taiwo Obe, ended the participating journalists applauded the facilitators of the programme and unanimously agreed that they produced their bests and enriched the knowledge of the community media practitioners.
Other resource persons at the workshop included Omomeda Ashofor, GM Universal McCann Nigeria, Abiola Ayankunbi, Arthur Kunle Falaye, Akin Omorodion, Niyi Obaremi.