In commemoration of the International Women’s Day #IWD, Female journalists who presently occupy all major top media positions in the Nigerian media industry are profiled in this special report by Lekan Otufodunrin, Olaitan Osola and Hannah Ojo for Media Career Services.
Contrary to the belief that women may not be ‘man’ enough to perform some major roles in the newsroom, evidence abounds that many female journalists have proved their mettle when they are not discriminated against in appointments based on their gender.
Those featured include Publishers (Betty Irabor and Comfort Obi), Managing Director and Editor-in-Chief (Funke Egbemode), General Manager (Funke Treasure-Durodola), Chairperson Editorial Board (Wale Sokunbi) and Editor, Daily (Ijeoma Iwagwugwu).
Others are Editor, Saturday ( Gbemisola Egunjobi), Editor, Sunday (Toyosi Ogunseye), News Editor (Adetutu Folashade Koyi), Business Editor (Amanze-Nwachuku Chika) and Deputy Sports Editor ( Ejiro Femi-Babafemi).
There are other female journalists who in the past have held similar top editorial positions and those still proving the saying that what men can do, women cannot only do same, they can do better.
Betty Irabor, Publisher/Editor-in-Chief
When she launched her magazine, Genevieve in 2003, Mrs Irabor, Publisher and Chief Executive Officer of the publication was not given much chance to succeed, despite her wealth of editorial experience.
“We were constantly being told that publishing wasn’t for a woman, but I am happy we have proved them wrong,” she said in an interview published in Volume one of Nigerian Media Leaders: Voices Beyond the Newsroom edited by Richard Ikiebe.
“Ten years is not a fluke, we are here for good and are happy to see more and more women now publishing magazines and doing a great job. It has taken a lot of tenacity, guts and hard work to get here,” Irabor former Acting Features editor of the defunct Concord Newspaper stated.
A graduate of English and Philosophy from the University of Lagos, Irabor was former Chief Executive Officer of Ruyi Communications Limited before becoming a publisher in 2003.
Comfort Obi, Publisher
Dame Comfort Obi is the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Source Magazine, and Secretary of the Newspapers Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN).
A member of the Police Service Commission, Obi’s media career began at the Imo State Statesman newspaper and she later worked for the defunct TSM Magazine.
She was the first winner of the Nigeria Media Merit Award for Reporter of the Year in 1991.
Mrs Funke Egbemode, Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief
Funke Egbemode, Managing Director and Editor-in-Chief of New Telegraph Newspaper started her career as a staff writer in the defunct Prime People magazine before moving to The Punch in 1993 where she rose to become the Deputy Features Editor.
In 2000, she was appointed Editor of The Post Express on Saturday and was also the pioneer Editor of the Saturday Independent.
She is the immediate past Editor of The Sunday Sun and was General Editor of The Sun Newspapers until her appointment in the New Telegraph Newspapers.
A Bachelor of Arts degree holder from the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife, Egbemode also bagged a Post Graduate Diploma in Journalism from the Nigeria Institute of Journalism, Lagos.
In between her journalism career, she has served in the public sector as Assistant Press Secretary at the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation, NTDC, and Special Adviser (Media) to the Speaker, House of Representatives.
Ijeoma Nwogwugwu, Executive Director and Editor, Daily
Ms Nwogwugwu, the only woman presently editing a daily paper in the country trained as an accountant and worked in the banking sector before becoming a journalist.
The recently promoted Executive Director of THISDAY was former Saturday and Sunday Editor of the paper. Earlier, she had been Head of Abuja Bureau and Group Business Editor.
A graduate of Accounting from the University of Lagos, Nwogwugwu also holds a post-graduate diploma in International Housing Finance from the Wharton Business School, Pennsylvania, USA.
A widely travelled journalist, she is a member of the Nigerian Union of Journalists, the Nigerian Guild of Editors, and has served on the board of the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company, Daily Times of Nigeria Plc and the National Hospital Abuja.
Funke-Treasure, General Manager
Mrs Funke-Treasure Durodola, General Manager of Radio One 103. 5FM has over 20 years of experience in key areas of broadcasting, including news and programme presentation, production, newsgathering, feature reporting, corporate development and media enterprise.
She holds two Masters degrees in Journalism and Media Studies from Rhodes University, South Africa and the School of Communication, Pan Atlantic University.
Along with her international exposure and training in programming, broadcast journalism, media management and media training, she has won national and international awards, including being a category finalist at the CNN/MultiChoice Africa Journalism Awards in 2007 and earning the NMMA Radio Production of the Year with a 13 week series on street children.
Gbemisola Olujobi, Editor, Saturday
A journalist since 1984, Gbemisola Olujobi, Editor, Saturday of National Mirror Newspapers was the former Editor of the Living Section at The Guardian Newspaper. The bulk of her work as a journalist has been in the area of women’s rights as well as human rights.
Olujobi was Pulitzer Fellow at the Annenberg School for Communication.
Toyosi Ogunseye, Editor, Sunday
Ms Oluwatoyosi Ogunseye has more than ten years of experience as an investigative journalist on beats such as politics, crime, business, health and the environment. Ogunseye, who is the first female editor in the more than 40-year history of Punch Newspaper, is the Editor of the Sunday Punch.
A serial winner of local and international media awards, Ogunseye holds a BSc in Biochemistry from the University of Lagos, a PGD in Print Journalism from the Nigerian Institute of Journalism and an MSc in Media and Communication from Pan-Atlantic University, Nigeria.
She is currently studying for a PhD in Politics and International Relations at the University of Leicester, United Kingdom.
Being a female editor for Ogunseye is an indication that women can aspire to the pinnacle of their careers. “It strengthens the argument that when society give a girl child the opportunities and privileges that are readily available, she would excel”
According to her, the appointment of women editors is also a platform to help other female journalists reach their full potentials, while not neglecting the men.
Wale Sokunbi, Chairman, Editorial Board
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Mrs. Wale Sokunbi, Chairman of the Editorial Board of The Sun newspapers holds a B.A degree in English Studies of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife and M.Sc in Mass Communication of the University of Lagos.
She began her journalism career in the early 1980s with the Concord newspapers where she held senior editorial positions including those of Features Editor, National Concord and Deputy Editor, Weekend Concord.
She later worked as Editor of the media watchdog magazine, Media Review, which she combined with the position of Executive Secretary of the Diamond Awards for Media Excellence (DAME).
She joined The Sun newspapers as a member of the Editorial Board in 1994. She was appointed Editorial Page Editor in July 2013 and Chairman of the Editorial Board in December 2014.
Being a woman and Chairman of the Editorial Board has been an interesting and fulfilling experience for her.
” It is a challenging position that requires experience and great maturity but it has been a smooth ride. I do not think being a woman poses any peculiar problems to attaining any position in media houses generally, and particularly at The Sun, the Media Review Magazine and the Concord where I worked,” she said.
The Sun, in particular, she noted is an equal opportunity employer and supportive of all its staff .
” I am not aware of any discrimination on the basis of gender. I am quite happy and fulfilled doing the job,” she said.
Adetutu Folasade Koyi- News Editor
Ms. Adetutu Folasade-Koyi, News Editor, The Sun Newspaper pioneered Natural Health reporting in Nigeria by anchoring four pages of Natural Health in The Guardian, in January 1998.
She later moved to The Comet Newspaper as Assistant Editor and edited the Natural Health pages which was later expanded to include the sciences and orthodox health.
A graduate of English from the Lagos State University, Ms. Koyi left The Comet for Daily Independent where she covered the Capital Market beat, on the Business Desk. Presidential Villa and the Senate beat, in the National Assembly.
A widely-travelled journalist, she has been to Uganda, the United Kingdom, Ghana, South Africa, Tanzania, Canada and China to cover conferences relating to health, HIV/AIDS, and parliamentary affairs.
Asked what her experience has been being a female News Editor, Koyi said; “I have seen that reporters are indifferent to me as a female News Editor. They see you as the boss anyway; gender notwithstanding”.
Her major challenge is getting well-written copies, getting reporters to respect deadlines for submission of stories and reporters missing major stories.”
Amanze-Nwachuku Chika., Business Editor
Mrs Amanze-Nwachuku Chika, Group Business Editor of Thisday Newspapers joined the company in January 1996 as a reporter and was at different times, Chief Correspondent (Police Affairs); State House Correspondent and Judicial Correspondent.
In December 2006, Amanze-Nwachuku, a graduate of Mass Communication from Federal Polytechnic, Oko, Anambra, was promoted Energy Editor and functioned in that capacity till September 2014, when she was appointed Acting Business Editor.
She also has a Post Graduate Diploma Certificate in Journalism (2012) and Masters Degree in Media and Communication (2014), from the School of Media and Communication, Pan-Atlantic University, Lagos.
Asked what has been her challenge as a journalist, wife and mother, Amanze-Nwachuku said her responsibilities to provide domestic care at home has often conflicted with her working hours.
“The long hours of work that characterizes the journalism profession has been a very big challenge for me. Being efficient at work while providing the necessary care for my home has been an uphill task,” she said
According to her, working late at night has been one of her greatest challenges, especially with the heightened insecurity. Despite the enormous challenges, Amanze-Nwachuku goes on to state; “ I still love my job and also discharge my responsibilities as a wife and mother satisfactorily,”.
Mrs Ejiro Femi-Babafemi (Mrs), Deputy Editor, Sports
Ejiro, Abigail Femi-Babafemi who has been practising sports Journalism for over a decade is a graduate of the Edo State University( Now Ambrose Ali University), Ekpoma.
Currently, Deputy Editor (Sports) with The Nation Newspapers, she has worked with the Independent Newspapers as a sports Correspondent and the defunct Concord Newspapers.
She has covered several international and local competitions, served in various committees and on the board of the Delta State Football Association. She was Team Media Officer for the Nigeria U-20 Women National Team that placed fourth at the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Japan and also attended FIFA Women Enhancement writing skills course.
If the theme of this year’s International Women’s Day #PledgeforGenderParity is to be achieved in the media, more female journalists have to be given equal opportunities to occupy top positions in media organizations.
Join us at the MCS in saluting these outstanding female journalists whose careers confirms the need for every media organization to pledge for gender parity.