Media Relations Consultant, Chief Dr. Fidel Onyeneke, has advised journalists and other information handlers to adhere strictly to the ethics of the profession in order to command the respect of the public.
Chief Onyeneke made the statement in Owerri while addressing newsmen.
He observed that some media houses had lost integrity and credibility due to unethical conduct by certain practitioners.
Chief Onyeneke, a former State Chairman of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), regretted that dissemination of non-factual information had created disharmony and fuelled insecurity in the society.
Chief Onyeneke attributed part of the societal vices witnessed in the communities today to recklessness by certain individuals who abuse the use of the media through unguarded utterances.
He therefore called for regular training for the practioners as a deliberate effort to keep them abreast of modern techniques in information handling.
On the recent court verdict on the operations of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), Chief Onyeneke cautioned the media against taking undue advantage of the court judgment and violate the broadcasting code.
He appealed to the federal and state governments to give priority attention to the funding of media organizations, considering their critical roles in enhancing democratic processes.
Chief Onyeneke condemned the generally poor remuneration for some media workers and urged the government to design a special salary structure for the media in the country.
According to him, “the media serves as a veritable tool between the government and the governed, and as such, it should be accorded a place of pride to ensure good governance to the masses”.
Chief Onyeneke also admonished media managers to pay more attention to developmental stories that would give the average Nigerian more confidence in the acts of governance.
