Ensure Professionalism, FG Charges Bloggers, Social Media Enthusiasts

      

The Federal Government, yesterday, called on bloggers and social media enthusiasts to apply professionalism in the dissemination of information to the general public.

The government noted that the “social media has become an avenue for transmitting hate speeches and radical messages”, and there was need to ensure self censorship.

The Director General of National Orientation Agency (NOA), Mr. Mike Omeri made this known at the Nigerian Bloggers and Social Media Workshop organized by the Agency in Abuja.

Omeri expressed concern over some online publications and press articles on the current security challenges and other challenges in the country in what he described as ‘embellished ‎tones’.

The DG noted that the role of bloggers/writers of online articles, the press, social media users, ‎media focused civil society organization in promoting peace, unity and national development.”

He maintained that place of a good ethical conducts among the practitioners and the owners of blogs could not be overemphasized, to have a peaceful society.

According to him, the aim of the workshop was not to infringe on the rights of bloggers on their freedom of speech and expression or impose a regulatory framework on the populace, but to ensure strict adherent to tenet of journalism.

‎”The online media being an emergent critical component of the media also needs to be strengthened to contribute to the effective functioning of the larger body in its quest of building a better society‎.

“Therefore, increasing the knowledge of bloggers and other workshop participants on ethical principles in their practice is imperative,” Omeri said.

He expressed confidence that “the quality of content put together by the credible team of resource persons assured me that this workshop will be beneficial to participants on personal and professional level, as we embark on this knowledge-learning and experience sharing expedition”.