On Saturday, November 20, 2021, the monthly fellowship of Journalists For Christ was held in Lagos with New Media Specialist, experienced journalist, Corporate Communication expert and researcher, Akin Olaniyan as the guest speaker.
The theme of the fellowship which he spoke on was The Pursuit of Excellence in the media.
Expectedly, Olaniyan, presently Lead Strategist at Chatter House, former Deputy Editor of The Punch and Corporate Communication Specialist at Zenith Bank shared lots of insights for excelling in the media based on his diverse experience and expertise.
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Considering the high profile of the speaker, the prospects of learning a lot from him and the wide publicity for the event open to members and non-members of the fellowship physically and virtual, I had expected that the attendance would be large.
The programme did not attract the expected participation with only ten members at the International Press Centre Venue in Lagos and not more than 13 online participants.
Taken that some other journalists and media professionals who should be at the programme may have other commitments, having not less than 40 participants at the programme is not too much to expect.
Learning and networking opportunities like the fellowship session, notwithstanding that it was a faith-based one, should be taken more seriously by journalists, including media students who need all the inspiration and ideas for their career journeys.
It’s ironic that while journalists complain about the lack of enough training opportunities, they don’t maximize the available ones as much as they should.
No training opportunity should be taken for granted. Journalists should not be focused on getting major national and international training invitations and ignoring the ones organized by some local media organizations and institutions.
Attending local training and meetings should be given priority in scheduling personal commitments considering the benefits they offer.
If for any reason they are unable to attend any training, journalists should ask for the presentations and other useful resources by the speaker. They can also speak with those who attended to ask for other useful lessons.