Why good journalism truly matters

Media, democracy and development are tripartite partners that could drive any modern society.
These critical issues formed discussions at the just-concluded 67th General Assembly and 2018 IPI World Congress of the International Press Institute, held in Abuja for the very first time in the history of Nigeria and attended by some 330 participants, 65 speakers from 37 countries.
Themed, “Why Good Journalism Matters: Quality Journalism for Strong Societies”, the congress coincided with when IPI would hold its flagship global press freedom event in West Africa.
Welcoming all, IPI Executive Board Vice-Chair, Dawn Thomas the hosting was an acknowledgement of the country’s historical importance to the institute and that Nigeria became a key focus of IPI’s Africa programme in the 1960s and 1970s.
The IPI Executive Director, Barbara Trionfi disclosed that the congress was a reminder of the power of solidarity in the global media.
At the Presidential Villa, there was a panel of four ministers, comprising finance, interior, information and culture as well as trade and investment, who spoke on what Nigeria was doing in transforming its economy and other national security matters.
As the panel session was ongoing, President Muhammadu Buhari joined the congress to present his keynote address.
The President underscored the importance of quality journalism to building strong societies, saying that good journalism always promotes good governance.
Buhari also sought to draw a distinction between quality journalism and what he described as hate speech and ‘fake news’, while enjoining participants to continue promote good journalism.
The second day featured a town-hall-style discussion on “Why Good Journalism Matters: And How to Make People Like It”, consisting leading editors and media executives.
The Chairman, Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof.
Mahmood Yakubu and other panelists spoke on “Covering Elections, Advancing Democracy”, where the INEC boss said there would be collaboration between the media and civil society organisations such that 2019 general elections would be highly credible.
Many African governments were accused of repressing free press.
Deodatus Balile from the Tanzania Editors’ Forum; Barbara Kaija, Editor-inChief, Uganda’s New Vision newspaper; and Joan Chirwa, Editor-in-Chief, Zambia’s The Mast newspaper deliberated on why this is so.
I also made a case for why local journalists in Africa should be assisted by international organisations like IPI to overcome many dangers being faced on the job.
In the evening of day two, a gala night and award dinner was hosted by the Ministry of Information and Culture, where the minister highlighted the achievements of the Federal Government and reassured that press freedom would be guaranteed in the country.
During a special interactive session, Nigerian Nobel Prize laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka expressed his optimism about the future of press freedom in Nigeria.
On the third day, IPI’s Barbara Trionfi ruminated over theme, “The Story Lives On” alongside other experienced panelists just before the session on “When Lone Wolves Join Forces: Collaborative Investigative Reporting on Corruption, Financial Crimes and Abuse of Power” kicked-off with the likes of Anas Aremeyaw Anas, the renowned undercover Ghanaian investigative journalist and a mythical figure in the African media scene.
Thereafter, there was a special discussion on natural resources and the extractive sector in Africa, where I advised participants not to neglect the non-oil industry in their reportage because of the many unreported illegalities taking place across Africa.
The general assembly was presided over by the IPI Chair, John Yearwood, during which members unanimously passed four resolutions urging action on press freedom issues in Africa, Egypt and Turkey.
They further called on African governments to protect the safety of journalists and repeal anti-media laws, among others.
The general assembly elected four new Executive Board members and re-elected three including Khadija Patel, as IPI Vice-Chair.
An exciting and lively closing dinner was hosted by the Senate President, Dr.
Bukola Saraki and Chairman, IPI Nigeria/ Chairman, Daily Trust Nigeria, Kabiru Yusuf, who expressed his profound appreciation to all for the well-attended congress while Saraki urged media practitioners to be objective in their reportage in the build-up to the nation’s general elections.
Markus Spillmann, former Editorin-Chief, Switzerland’s Neue Zürcher Zeitung, was named as the 34th chair of IPI, as he takes over from John Yearwood.
Before Barbara Trionfi left for Vienna, Austria; base of IPI, both of us were invited to the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) national headquarters on ‘Good Morning Nigeria’, anchored by Claire Adelabu Abdulrazak, where fragmentation of the media, proliferation, fake news, press freedom and the like were discussed.
Meanwhile, some months ago, Barbara had visited Nigeria, where she met with top government functionaries and media executives on the congress, which had Nduka Obaigbena, President, Newspaper Proprietors’ Association of Nigeria/Publisher, This Day newspapers as its Chairman, Local Organising Committee; while the Secretary of IPI Nigeria, Raheem Adedoyin, was Secretary while different planning committees were set up in Nigeria, after last year’s congress in Hamburg, Germany.
No doubt, the congress has come and gone, but the thoughtprovoking discussions were robust and highly resourceful.
It is hoped that stakeholders at the Abuja congress would ensure that good journalism truly matters towards a strong society