Professional Journalists Takeover of Social Media is the Solution to Fake News – AMDF
By Alex Uangbaoje, Kaduna
Africa Media Development Foundation (AMDF), a Non Governmental Organization (NGO), reputed for providing professional support for journalists and the media, on Tuesday held the third edition of its annual ‘Media Clinic’ training meeting.
Declaring the meeting which was tagged; “Ethical Journalism in the Era of Fake News” open, Sekyen Dadik, Coordinator AMDF, charged the professional journalists to wake up and takeover the social media space.
According to her until the social media space is taking over by professional journalists, the issue of fake news will continue to be a matter of serious concern.
She added that the emergence of the internet has brought about a revolution in the media and is also presenting its daunting challenges, hence the need for professionals to come on the scene.
Sekyen, noted that, with the emergence of social media, the time has come for journalists to take the centre stage and not leaving it in the hands of quacks.
Also speaking, Executive Director of AMDF, Iliya Kure, urged media practitioners to at all times uphold high sense of ethical responsibility as the practice their much cherished profession.
He noted that, social media emergence have made it easier for fake news to thrive, adding that before 2007 when access to the internet was not common, the issue of fake news was very minimal.
Participants at the event expressed satisfaction over the high quality impartation of knowledge gained at the clinic, describing the training as eye opener that will propel them to engage the social media platforms in reaching their target audiences.
