Media entrepreneurs and practitioners, on Tuesday, expressed concern about the survival of the media in the current ever-changing landscape.
They spoke at the Lateef Jakande Annual Memorial Lecture 2024 organised by the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) in Lagos on Tuesday.
The theme of the lecture is: “Rapidly Changing Media Landscape: Media Survival Strategies”.
Speaking at the lecture, the Chairman, ThisDay/Arise Media Media Group, Mr Nduka Obaigbena, called for a change in the law for media to survive in the current landscape.
Obaigbena said such that Intellectual Property (IP) would be regarded as an asset, saying that “what we do must be paid for”.
“Let us pass a law that those who use our works online must pay for it. If we get payment for all our works used by online users, journalism will be better for it,” he said.
Calling on media owners to be prepared for Artificial Intelligence (AI), the publisher said there was need for education and good governance for media to survive.
Highlighting that the world was being driven by technologies and AI, Obaigbena said phones and computers remained the means of distributing news and had changed things.
He said: “The information in the print media has also been consumed by the people at night before the hard copies will surface, hence the need for the media to engage the future.
“Means of distribution is changing but good journalism is not changing. What is not changing is old fashioned truth, telling the story as it is and engaging the audience.
“Newspapers and Magazines are in the battle of survival. We are confronted and challenged by the Artificial Intelligence now.
“The threat we face is AI. Are we ready for a world that is being changed by AI?”
Obaigbena said that AI had also been promoting journalism and making the society a better place, hence media entrepreneurs had to benefit for its advantages.
Also speaking, the Managing Director of The Punch, Joseph Adeyeye, urged media practitioners not to be lost or trapped in the past.
According to him, AI should not be a threat to journalism but a tool that can be used positively to advance the cause of the profession.
Adeyeye advocated re-education, rediscovery and realisation of the current media landscape to stay afloat.
He said: “We need to re-educate ourselves about the nature of the business. We all agreed that things have changed.
“We need to understand that change, we need to address it in a very robust manner. We need also to rediscover our craft.
“We need to deepen our offerings, we need to be more creative in our approach.”
Adeyeye urged media professionals to also comply with the ethics of the profession.
The Father of the Day and Publisher of Vanguard Media Group, Mr Sam Amuka, said; “Things have changed but the time and practitioners cannot stop time’’.
Amuka said: “This mobile phone has changed the way and for most of the media, it is a lot of work to produce a newspaper.
“Most people don’t buy newspapers on the streets anymore because by the time newspapers come out, people have read the story online.
“It is our responsibility as media people to do more things because time waits for no man. If we want to survive, we must engage our minds and brain.”
Decrying inflation and cost of publishing, he, however, said there was need for newspapers to continue to publish hard copies.
A former NGE President, Mrs Funke Egbemode, said if media owners must improve their lot, they must go deeper in reports and analysis.
“Let us court the young. Do a lot more to make more money,’’ Egbemode said.
NAN reports that many eminent journalists, professionals and media owners took turn to proffer solutions and the way forward for the survival of media in the ever-changing landscape.
Appreciating the NGE on behalf of the family, Jakande’s first son, Deji, said that their father’s name had always become a challenge to them, assuring that the children would not disappoint Nigerians.
