By Ijeoma Popoola
The Nigerian media organisations have always faced challenges but their survival has become much difficult in this digital era.
Determined to sail through, about 50 media executives and other leaders in the media industry gathered in Abeokuta from May 5 to May 7, to chart the way forward.
The event was the second Nigeria Media Leaders Summit (NMLS) with the theme: “In Pursuit of Products, Profits and More.”
The summit was convened by a communication strategist and Founder of the Lagos-based Journalism Clinic, Mr Taiwo Obe.
The first edition of the summit was held in 2019.
At the second NMLS held at the Academy Suites and Resource, MKO Abiola Way, Abeokuta, all the participants admitted that media organisations are facing hard times and heavy threats, and need urgent actions to survive.
According to them, the threats include dwindling revenues, advent of Artificial Intelligence, activities of social media and citizen journalists which fuel fake news, competition with other users of the digital space, and lack of required manpower, among others.
Veteran journalist and former Governor of Ogun, Chief Olusegun Osoba, who chaired the occasion, described activities of some bloggers as a huge pain and threat to journalism in Nigeria.
“They are a terrible pain. They are a terrible threat,” Osoba said.
“The way to confront them is for journalists to publish more factual copies,” he said.
Osoba emphasised that journalists must cross-check their facts and create more credible sources of news to be able to counter activities of the bloggers.
“Go online and push out more credible information,” he said.
He advised media professionals to self-regulate themselves much more than government regulation.
For the Chairman of the Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria, Malam Kabir Yusuf, retaining audience is crucial to the survival of any media organisation.
According to him, reporting all sides of the story, educating the public by providing informed comments, and entertaining audience remain the primary roles of the mass media and should not be neglected.
He expressed concern that the media had left its entertainment role, urging media professionals to balance the serious and the light sides of stories to retain their audiences.
“Your audience must trust that what you are giving them is true, that you are not playing on their intelligence, that you are not protecting your friends and taking it out on your enemies. That is how to build trust. It creates a long-term bonding with your audience,” he said.
He advised media organisations to plan well to succeed. “Companies that plan well are likely to succeed,” he added.
Obe, the Convener of the summit, emphasised the need for media organisations to widen their imaginations to enrich their contents as strategies to survive.
“Media organisations should extract data from their news for value-added products that have the potential for revenue. Whatever has value has the potential for revenue.
“Media organisations should distinguish themselves from one another. Distinctiveness is the soul of branding,” he said.
Obe also advised media organisations to go into other profitable ventures.
Mr Juan Senor, the President of London-based Innovation Media Consulting Group, urged media organisations to see Artificial Intelligence (AI) as a great gain rather than a threat.
“AI will never find the news. News is what is new. AI will not replace our ability in news gathering,” he said.
Senor, who joined the conference virtually, spoke on: “AI-First Media Newsroom: Utopia or Dystopia?”
He said: “AI has no conscience, human oversight is always required. As the machine comes on board, we discover our true value at original storytelling.”
He, however, said that AI could repurpose and background, urging media organisations to take advantage of AI to advance their operations.
“AI can reduce our cost base. “Don’t fight AI. It is a great opportunity. AI is about digital transformation. It is time for AI-powered companies,” he said.
Senor said media organisations should not build their brands on other platforms but could use other platforms to draw attention to themselves.
Mr Kayode Oyekanmi, the Director of Strategy at the Lagos State Ministry of Information, described the summit as an opportunity to share ideas and explore innovative strategies needed to properly navigate Nigeria’s media landscape.
Oyekanmi said that the Lagos State Government was determined to support initiatives that would contribute meaningfully to the development of the media industry and the society at large.
A media career development expert, Mr Lekan Otufodunrin, stressed the need for media professionals to change their mindset from analogue to digital operations, suggesting that media organisations should have specialised areas of focus as a strategy to excel.
Mr Lanre Idowu, the Chief Executive Officer of Diamond Publications Ltd. and Trustee of Diamond Award for Media Excellence, suggested that media organisations could be organising capacity development programmes that could attract funding from reliable sources.
The Managing Director of the Guardian Newspaper Ltd., Mr Martins Oloja, advised media organisations to recruit competent hands, promote excellence and reward hard work.
Dr Waheed Olagunju, Founder of WVL Development Advisers, urged media organisations to develop capacities, have good products, add value, develop good character and build goodwill to be able to attract funding for expansion.
Popular comedian, Atunyota Akpobome, popularly known as Alibaba), said media organisations should revive educational and cultural programmes that attracted public readership/viewership in the past.
A Senior Lecturer at Fountain University, Osogbo, Dr Rasheed Adebiyi, advised media organisations to give the audience what they would desire, not what the organisations would want.
“We have to recalibrate because the audiences are changing. Your news value, value proposition and editorial policy should reflect in your products.
A Principal Consultant at DKO Cunsulting, Dolapo Otegbayo, identified shifting media consumption habits, competiting for attention and engaging young people as critical challenges.
“Monetisation, catering to diverse interests, empowering local voices, and data-driven insights are essential.
“Future-proofing the business and building brand affinity are important in an environment where brand loyalty is fading,” she said.
According to her, products, like humans, have life cycles.
“Nurturing them well is vital. Solving real problems for the target audience is key. Regular customer feedback and quick iteration are essential.
“Poor product design, inadequate research, pricing issues, and late launches contribute to failure,” she warned.
The Team Lead at TOA Marketing, Mr Ore Afolanya, said that young members of media audience would want to read or view real-time updates and perspectives on sports and other areas.
He advised media organisations to adapt to changing times and trends to retain audiences and relevance.
Miss Omotayo Inakoju, Head of Legal Department at EbonyLife Group, emphasised that media organisations should place value on their contents by taking steps to protect the contents through trademarking and copywriting.
All the participants at the summit admitted that it was high time Nigerian media organisations restrategised for sustainability. (NANFeatures)
