Lekan Otufodunrin, Journalist and Media Career Development specialist writes on the price he paid for being a ‘gentleman editor’ at The Punch, The Nation.
Although she is not a journalist, she has worked long enough in the company to know how tough editors are usually.
From being an admin officer and later the admin manager, her interaction with editors must have reinforced the image of a typical editor being tough and unsparing.
She is used to reading damning queries from editors to reporters and memos penalising staff when they bother to write one.
Sometimes she has to draw the attention of editors to the condition of service that does not allow for action taken against staff.
She can counsel on the right procedure, but for many editors, the media is not civil service, but a madhouse that requires an iron hand to keep reporters on their toes before they embarrass them with missing a major story or any other editorial lapse.
She must, however, have been taking note of this ‘gentleman editor’ like another colleague calls me until the day I showed up in her office to plead for some staff who risked being heavily punished for an offence.
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“ I know you will come pleading for them,” she said smiling and asked what I wanted her to do when the Managing Director has already given an instruction for the staff to be penalised.
“Editor Alanu (compassion) you have to go and speak to the Oga that gave the directive. My own is to implement whatever you agree with him. You know me I am not a journalist, but you people know how you do your work,” she added.
“Are editors not supposed to be compassionate?” I asked. “They should o, but your own…” she replied.
Sometimes, I really wished I could be like some of my ‘no-nonsense’ colleagues, but I guess we have different approaches to handling issues and staff matters.
Unfortunately, my style must have cost me my job twice in my career. I remember what I was told by a colleague after I was redeployed from my post as Group News Editor at The Punch to Lagos City Editor.
“ Lekan, News Editor’s job is not for gentlemen or a pastor ( I am not one) like you. You have to be tough on the reporters. The management wants someone like your deputy who can handle the reporters with tough hands.
“ You are too soft. Reporters know how to take advantage of gentle people like you … ” he explained as I looked on trying to understand the logic of getting the job done and being tough for the sake of it.
Maybe if I had taken his advice seriously I would not have been Editor Alanu at The Nation years later.
Maybe, maybe not.
