By Rahaman Abiola
Writing accurate news reports, fact-based stories and underreported features bearing the ethics and conduct of impactful journalism does not come to me alone as a passion; it is a responsibility— a necessity.
I grew up in an environment witnessing how the media was a catalyst for social change. I saw journalism in full force fighting for the downtrodden, offering voices to the ‘forgotten’, shaping popular opinions and commanding overwhelming influence on people across different age brackets.
Spurred by these beautiful backgrounds and stream of experiences, as a young man searching for dreams, I picked an interest in reading newspapers and writing for national dailies. I began pursuing a career in journalism. Many years down the lane, I never regretted taking this path, not even for a moment.
Over the last 10 years of my career as a journalist, including my transition from campus reporter at the university to a professional media expert, I’ve carried the cross of journalism on my shoulders with flamboyant pride. Journalism, to me, is about social change, impact and reform. Because of this, I have demonstrated a balance between “getting it first and getting it right” as Ellen Goodman, an American journalist and Pulitzer Prize winner remarkably noted.
In the course of my job and professional growth, I’ve been vilified and eulogised. I have faced, and still face criticism and receive heartwarming applause. I’ve been confronted with questions, from “why did you do it?” to “why did you do it that way?” Above all, I’ve been able to move beyond the storms, proudly forging ahead in a career spanning years of experience and straddling diverse roles in politics reporting, breaking news and data journalism, global sports and human interest, in both digital and traditional media.
The strength of good journalism lies in the beauty of why it is called the “Fourth Estate” due to its ability to strongly checkmate authorities. I understand that impact-oriented journalism is a response to societal injunctions and injustice. Therefore, I’ve written about corruption and extrajudicial killings better termed “jungle justice” in Nigeria. My works have been lengthened down to the victims of leadership failure and societal negligence. With pride, I’ve similarly, as a veteran editor Glenn Edward Greenwald puts “provided an adversarial check on those who wield the greatest power by shining a light on what they do in the dark and informing the public about those acts.”
A few years ago, I reported about the sorry state of a government-owned school in a Nigerian state where there were no chairs and students sat on the floor to learn. A government authority wanted the report pulled, but I stood my ground. What better way to call authority’s attention to the plight of people in helpless situations.
At Legit.ng, unarguably Nigeria’s biggest digital media and second Facebook publisher in the world, I have been fortunate and opportune to lead a vibrant team of reporters and editors uncovering talents trapped by misfortunes and circumstances.
During my time as the head of news for human interest and diaspora reporting, our people-centred approaches and winning content strategy helped in shooting hidden human potentials into the limelight – just like the story of Mustapha Majibo, a university drop-out who would later build electric cars, tricycles, and generators.
We celebrated men and women breaking boundaries, unpopular heroes doing unimaginable innovations – just like Nonso Offor, a Nigerian man who converted his Venza to Roll Royce Sweeptails. By projecting the ideas of these geniuses, we automatically become an instrumental part of their success stories and greatness; we open them to a world of endless possibilities and positively impact their lives.
With our people-centred approach, we brought help and succour to people in helpless situations – just like Olamide Oseni, a 26-year-old security guard whose leg was amputated after a fatal accident, and an old abandoned visually-impaired woman who got help after we amplified her struggles.
One of the countless significant benchmarks of our journalism journey can be traced to ace singer Davido offering a university scholarship to Morro Suleyman, a brilliant Ghanaian chap who had an A1 parallel score in his West Africa Examination Council (WAEC) examination, after his story was reported by us. Suleyman was helpless and was unable to further his studies until his struggles were given prominence. He would, perhaps, have been forgotten, had Legit.ng not given his story strong consideration and followed through to ensure the success he now enjoys.
Beyond this, I have been practically involved in the training of the next generations of journalists, campus reporters and newsrooms on digital media and journalism of purpose.
In 2023, I am now Legit.ng’s Editor-in-Chief, perhaps the youngest editor to have reached such heights in the history of the 11-year old digital media giant. In an effort to fight fake news and misinformation which have posed challenges to information processing and consumption in the digital age, I’ve been involved in fact-checking journalism and media research, shedding light on dangerous information patterns of public interest. I describe myself in this regard as a “soldier of truth.” Yes, a soldier of truth.
Without any iota of doubt, if there is anything I should be grateful for in my career, it would be the opportunity journalism affords my work to make an impact in people’s lives, my immediate environment and the world at large. I wake up daily with the conviction that I am on the right path of purpose, and that there is no limit to how I can make a change and impact the world through the long arms of journalism.
Rahaman Abiola writes Lagos and he is Legit.ng’s new Editor-in-Chief.
