By Akpovoke Otiti
Journalism is a very important job. It is about telling the truth and keeping people informed about what is happening in the world. But in Delta State, something very wrong is happening. Some Local Government Chairmen are hiring untrained people to act as journalists instead of working with real reporters. This is a big problem for everyone.
Real journalists go to school to learn how to find and report the truth. They follow rules to make sure the news they share is fair and honest. But these Chairmen are picking people who only post on social media and calling them “press officers.” These people are not trained and often only write good things about the politicians who hired them, even if those things are not true.
This is very different from how the Delta State Governor does things. The governor has a team of real journalists from trusted news organizations. These journalists report the news fairly and professionally. But the Local Government Chairmen are choosing people who do not have the right training, just because they will say whatever the politicians want them to say. This turns the news into a tool for spreading lies and making politicians look good instead of telling the truth.
Many people are worried about this. If fake news spreads, people will not know what is happening. They might believe lies and make bad decisions. A society where false information spreads is dangerous because it can lead to confusion, bad leadership, and even corruption.
The Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) must stop this from happening. They need to make sure only trained journalists are allowed to report the news. Local Government Chairmen should work with real journalists and stop hiring untrained people who only write what they are told.
If this problem continues, people will no longer trust the news. They will not know what is true or false. The government will be able to do bad things without being exposed because real journalists will not be there to report the truth. That is why we must act now to protect real journalism and stop the spread of fake news.
Journalism is too important to be taken over by untrained people. We need to protect the truth so that society can stay informed and make good decisions. If politicians want to share news, they should do it the right way—with real journalists, not social media influencers pretending to be reporters.
