Speaking during the College of Arts and Social Sciences yearly public lecture series of the university, titled, ‘Rethinking The Social Media: Fake News And The Death Of The Gatekeeper,’ Ezemonye said traditional media’s contributions to nation building cannot be over emphasised. The Vice Chancellor, represented by the Deputy Vice Chancellor (DVC), Prof. Raphael Adeghe, expressed concern over misinformation on the social media, noting: “Fake news is one of the negative offshoots of our development.
“As we move from dominance of traditional media to the era of new media, as well as social media, with attendant ‘backgrounding’ of the gatekeeper and proliferation of fake news, Igbinedion University is proud to be at the forefront of providing intellectual platforms to discuss these issues.”
While appreciating the Nigeria Union of Journalists’ (NUJ) efforts in checking fake news, Ezemonye said the topic of the lecture is not only thought-provoking, but apt and timely.
He stressed the need for accuracy and fact checking, saying: “The world is moving from traditional mode of knowledge to the digital alternative with great implications for information integrity, education and, most importantly, news dissemination and consumption.
“Every year, we have used this occasion to examine topics of national and global significance to generate ideas for policy direction, make critical interventions in national discourse and set agenda for development in all human endeavour.”
National President of NUJ, Christopher Isiguzo, who delivered the lecture, said fake news has a long-lasting relationship with social media platforms, including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram where people can spread and mislead millions of users.
