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There is a popular saying that 'information is power' and this I quite agree with significantly. I have lost my place in various discussions, all because I am ill-informed about the topic. Oftentimes, I feel out of place in such situations, and the best I could do is keep silent or nod my head in affirmation as a means to show I'm following the conversation. Thus, I enjoyed the habit of listening to the news every morning by tuning to the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) for the breakfast show. In addition, tuning to radio stations while driving to work remains another routine, which for me helps me stay much more informed about events within and outside my vicinity.
Unfortunately, things took a different turn late last year with an unprecedented spike in rates of kidnappings, domestic fire accidents, building collapses, cost of foodstuffs, and living generally, which constantly demoralized the average Nigerian. Gradually, the sanity of the average Nigerian became questioned, making us wonder if being informed actually did us any good or made us more deformed. For a while, especially recently, I practically began to consciously avoid listening to news because of my mental health. I wanted mental sanity and thus stayed far away from listening to news since most had disturbing information to disseminate. Perhaps this was the situation in which I valued 'ignorance as bliss'.
Unfortunately, we have quite a number of fake news stories that are consciously circulated, especially in order to create friction, or those news stories that are unverified or stale. In either way, I have learned my lesson to always confirm the authenticity of any news, especially if it has to do with the passage of relevant information to my listeners or viewers. Bad and fake news often fly like a raging fire, and the extent of damage is not often known. Part of the measures put in by the government are policies and rules for safeguarding the contents of information disseminated to the public. News verification is often not taken seriously by the public until some are caught in the webs of wrong decisions as a result of the fake news.
Some people are game without news, and unfortunately, they are armed with inadequate information, which is usually dangerous to hold. Having information at hand is often not negotiable, as decisions and policies are frequently initiated and thus need to be passed to the populace.
Here in Nigeria, we have an agency vested with the responsibility of information dissemination, most especially in rural areas. News in no doubt has significantly saved lives, and the lack of it has equally ruined lives. Information poorly disseminated from the public or agencies would likely put the recipient at a disadvantage.
I have always been an advocate of adequate knowledge, but where such knowledge has begun to cause more harm than good, I would advocate for strict censorship of punched news. A good number of us have looked stupid for disseminating unverified news and based on the demoralizing effect on the people. With the current economic state, people are more concerned about having something to eat than listening to the news, and we cannot blame them.
Unfortunately, opportunities are missed because they didn't listen to the news.
With the unfavorable effects the news is having on the populace, I would prefer the news be censored and released to the public only when the need arises.
Thank you for reading. I would love to have your comments and contributions.
