Dr Shadrach Idi, the Acting Head, Department of Public Relations and Advertising, Taraba State University, Jalingo, has cautioned against usage of Social Media contents without fact checking.
Idi gave the charge on Tuesday at a 3-day ‘Critical Media Practice Workshop for Journalists’ in the North East, held in Yola.
The training was sponsored by Dangote Industries in collaboration with Folio Media and Creative Academy.
He said social media can be a helpful tool for journalists and the general public in the discharge of their duties, but cautioned that their content must be verified as they could have some negative impact on the audience.
“Journalists can instantly give news report using their smartphones and make a huge impact, but they must also be vast in multitasking and skillful in the use of computer.
“Since news is so easy to share and almost everyone can call themselves online journalists, it can be difficult to find real news.
“The Internet is flooded with ‘fake news’ and social media platforms are where you are more likely to find those types of news,” Idi said.
He noted that there are endless amounts of social media users who scout for fake news and expose them.
“Finding real news on social media seems to be an issue especially since so many people can share the news not minding the far reach it has on audiences,” said the don.
According to him, since there is a lot of fake news, the press can have trouble maintaining credibility with their audiences.
“This can lead to negative relationship between the press and the public.
Read Also: Fake News: Nigeria sitting on time bomb — FG
“Since many journalists publish without cross-checking their facts, it is becoming more difficult by the day to find reliable sources,” he said.
The don therefore urged journalists to be wary of sharing or redistributing fake news from the social media.
Idi in his presentation on ‘Social Media and Journalism,’ stressed that video demonstrates the positive impacts of social media on journalism, while still thinking of the negatives.
“As long as journalists responsibly use social media as a tool for news distribution and fact check, it can be very beneficial to them and their organisations,” he stressed.
In his remark, Mr Oke Nwankwo, from the Branding and Communication team of Dangote Industries Ltd. reiterated the commitment of the group in training and retraining of journalists in the country.
He said that the Dangote Industries has the responsibility of repositioning and shaping the development of the nation which could best be achieved by empowering media practitioners.
