By Ibukunoluwa Daramola
At the recently concluded Women in Journalism Conference, 2017 in Lagos, the speakers on each panel emphasized one point categorically to the participants which is that there should be a platform for young and budding journalists to grow in order to reach the peak in journalism or whatever they may find themselves.
Stephanie Busari, the head of CNN in Nigeria also noted that there is a need to utilize the social media. She said the social media created room for her at CNN where she became recognized.
It is not enough for the average journalists to just surf the internet and be on various social platforms and not use it as a platform to be a good journalist in the 21st century.
Journalism should not be restricted to the four walls of a media house, limited only to traditional journalism but could be part of the new age of journalism.
Most media houses in Nigeria are based in Lagos, Port-Harcourt and Abuja but the social media is a global platform where the rest of the world can get to know what goes in your local area.
A sentence that struck a cord in most heart of the participants is that you can make the familiar strange. Essentially, it is a norm to report news but you can be innovative while reporting the news.
The young generation is fortunate to have the social media but there is the need for strategic thinking. You have to be extra to do the extraordinary.
Once you have the story, you are alert to whatever that is going in your area, be ready to go an extra mile to source for news, then you need to create the platform for it to trend and then the brand is also important. Through this approach you can have the world at your fingertips.
It is also important to note that to make an headway, you need to take advantage of internship opportunities. Many budding journalists are however discouraged by the renumeration they receive if they get any at all.
However, the need to be trained by professionals who have had experience in the field of journalism is important. Young journalists, particularly female journalists should be ready to undergo a training process and be ready to be mentored.
