President Muhammadu Buhari has listed some things Nigerian media should avoid reporting in order not to worsen current insecurity and other challenges facing the country.
According to Buhari, the media must be sensitive to what the nation is going through.
Among the things he said they should avoid reporting include things that could exacerbate the situation in the country. Things that could further inflame passions and emotions.
This was contained in a statement on Sunday by Femi Adesina, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, to mark World Press Freedom Day, observed round the globe every May 3.
The statement read, “On the occasion of World Press Freedom Day, observed globally every May 3, President Muhammadu Buhari recommits to freedom of the press, and urges media professionals to wield freedom responsibly, and without licentiousness.
“While celebrating the landmark day with the media, the President notes that freedom of the press is an irreducible minimum in a democracy that would flourish, adding that freedom must, however, be used responsibly.
“That everything is permitted does not mean that there are no rules of correctness, particularly in a polity seriously challenged as ours now,” President Buhari says. “The media must be sensitive to what we are going through as a country, and anything that would exacerbate the situation, and further inflame passions and emotions, should be avoided.
“The media needs to ensure that while informing, educating, entertaining and setting agenda for public discourse, it does not encourage incendiary words and actions that could further hurt our unity in diversity.”
The President further stated that “licentious freedom is different from freedom with responsibility” and charged the Nigerian media to embrace the latter, rather than the former.
On the part of government, President Buhari pledges greater cooperation with the media to discharge its duties, in line with the theme of this year’s World Press Freedom Day, ‘Information as a Public Good.’
He charged those who manage information for the government to do everything in public interest, while also encouraging the media to use the Freedom of Information Act available to make its jobs easier.
The President submitted that it was very vital to have access to reliable information in an era of misinformation, disinformation and hate speech, all to cause discord in society.