The Managing Director, News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, Ali Muhammad Ali has urged communications specialists especially in the Nigerian Army to exercise professionalism in battling misinformation among the populace.
The NAN boss, at a Two-Day National Roundtable on “Asymmetrical National Security Challenges, The Army and National Development”, in Abuja, highlighted the need for strict professionalism in disseminating stories around national security.
Malam Ali, in his paper titled: “Professional News Management as Panacea for Infodemics, Misinformation and Fake”, explained that infodemics is a combination of Information and Epidemics, pointing out that infodemics can spread misinformation and disinformation while misinformation can encourage harmful behaviour in the society that will lead to breakdown of law and order and lead to breakdown of social cohesion.
He described fake news as a hoax, saying “it is always false, it never happened. It’s a sensational news item to attract attention and to hoodwink the public”.
“If management of news is simply deliberately influencing the presentation of information emanating from the news media, we will need to meander through the laborious labyrinths of infodemics, misinformation and fake news to understand why this tripod of malfeasance have continued to be a recurring decimal on our country’s media landscape,” he said.
The NAN chief, who used the October 2020 #EndSARS violence as a case study, said the event was an instance of how purveyors of fake news used the social media to guide arsonists and looters to certain public and private properties while pictures of persons, including some celebrities, who were supposedly killed at the Lekki Toll Gate by soldiers, were circulated.
He urged communication practitioners to uphold truthfulness and accuracy in combating infodemics, misinformation and fake news if they wish to build trust with the public.
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“The authenticity of a message reinforces that copy or communication. When people perceive the message to be authentic, they tend to believe it the more and show understanding. Genuineness or sincerity is critical in winning the people over.
“We must also work with friendly media influencers who are credible and have the capacity to push out copies which grab media attention,” he added.
He also urged the communication to be timely in countering misinformation through constant media engagement.
Major General James Myam, former Executive Director, Consult, Nigerian Army Resource Centre who chaired the Roundtable Series commended the Nigerian Army on the outstanding the achievements of the men in uniform in combating insurgency, banditry and asymmetrical security challenges.
Speakers at the event emphasized the gains the Nigerian Army will make in the war against banditry and insurgency by showing friendly disposition to the civilians as such co-operations will ensure that the security agencies get the information they need to deal decisively with the spate of insecurity in Nigeria from the civil society.
They also reiterated the importance of genuine collaboration between the military establishment especially the Nigerian Army and civilian populace in order to get adequate information needed to defeat the festering banditry and insurgency in the country.
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