In commemoration of the 80th birthday of veteran broadcaster and public administrator Aremo Taiwo Allimi, the book Footprint in Broadcasting: The professional odyssey of Aremo Taiwo Allimi was launched in his honour recently in Lagos.
The book, authored by the Deputy Director, Digital Media, Voice of Nigeria, Dr Qasim Akinreti, among others, comprehensively chronicles the story of Aremo Allimi’s growing up years, education, professional accomplishments, and public service.
It extensively documents the outstanding career journeys of the former Commissioner of Information in Ogun State, who, at various times, worked at the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA), Lagos Television (LTV), and the Voice of Nigeria (VON).
Similarly accomplished journalist and co-founder of The News and Tempo Magazines, Senator Babafemi Ojudu recently released a new book titled Adventures of A Guerrilla Journalist which recalls various accounts of his investigative journalism experiences and escapades during which he was arrested, detained and jailed under the the military regimes.
The two books, like some others, published about journalists and by journalists, are commendable efforts in documenting for posterity invaluable historical details and professional exploits about the focus of the books.
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Beyond what is known about the life and careers of the many veteran journalists, broadcasters and managers, books on them offer more information and context about who they are and many things they did while on the job.
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The rich institutional memories of the media the accomplished veterans have are such that getting them published in books will make their vast knowledge invaluable resources for the present and future generations of media professionals.
As former Governor of Ogun State, Chief Olusegun Osoba noted in his foreword for The Making of the Flagship: A Story of The Guardian, individual and institutional memoirs are necessary for deepening our understanding of ourselves, our societies, our organisations, our histories and our future.
“It is when we successfully interrogate our journeys in life that we can renew our values and jettison unproductive practices in our journey,” he stated and called for more books on media history.
There is so much to learn from the past to sustain the legacies of our veterans and the glorious image of our profession that more media experience-rich books should be published.
The publications are also necessary for appreciating the heroes of our profession whose sacrifices and outstanding performances deserve to be acknowledged to encourage practising journalists to emulate them. It’s a good way to celebrate them, considering that many are not as visible as they should be in public consciousness after years of meritorious service to the industry and the country.
We call on governments at various levels to honour these distinguished Nigerians for their contributions to national development through performing the crucial roles of informing, educating and entertaining.
We join in commending those who have taken up the challenge of publishing media biographies and memoirs and urge others to emulate them to have more untold stories told. More senior journalists should be willing to publish their memoirs and give others the benefit of learning from their experiences.
Conscious efforts should be made to make the books available to student journalists, media trainers, practising journalists and media managers to enable them to benefit from the insights shared.
The introduction of the Media Biographies course at the Department of Mass Communication, University of Lagos is a good example of how to enhance mentorship and a high sense of historical repository for young journalists and those in media schools.
Editorial Board members: Abdulwarees Solanke (Chairman), Mrs Goodness Chibunna, Dr Qasim Akinreti, Dr Olayinka Oyegbile, Professor Oloruntola Sunday, Mr Lekan Otufodunrin.