Following the recent call by the Lagos Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists for defaulting media houses to pay salaries of its members, we asked Founder/Director at The Journalism Clinic, Taiwo Obe options for media houses and journalists considering the state of the industry. His short and sharp answers are below.
MC: The Lagos NUJ on Sunday urged four newspapers to pay outstanding salaries of their members. Were you surprised that the newspapers and probably others are owing that much?
TO: No, because the matter had been out there for a while.
MC: Some of the media organizations according to the NUJ should have enough to pay based on what they make from various earnings. Do you it is a case of not having enough to pay their bills or not prioritising staff salaries?
TO: Is this based on an assumption or knowledge? Do they have access to the said companies’ books?
MC: From what you know about the media industry, what should the options, however tough that the management should consider?
TO: Some definitely need management consulting firms to look at their entire structures. Some need financial infusion, to enable them to pay off tired staff and bring in new ones who can adapt to modern newspapering and who would be remunerated commensurately and retool their newsrooms for true digital publishing.
MC: What is your projection about the future of print especially in Nigeria?
TO: There will be no future if we continue in this manner.
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MC: What is your advice for journalists on how to work on their career given the state of the industry?
TO: More enterprising in the utilisation of their knowledge and skills, and in an ethical way. In a class I once took one journalist boastfully said he had covered all Nigerian elections since 1979. I asked him: where is your book? His answer: he had never thought about it.
MC: Any other issue you think the media companies and professional organizations should pay attention to.
TO: Rethink their digital strategy.
This is a really good interview, and like it the more because its brief.
I quite agree with TO that majority of print media have a great volume of tired and redundant staff who are still operating in the old style. I quite agree that most print need to re-evaluate their structural formation and operations, however they are too deep into the past that they cant think .
I fear for many of their staff if ever such organisations wakes up to the challenges of the times then how will they feed and survive.
Also, my other issue is many of these print organisation how they are run like one man business due to the fact that its majorly family business.