Women Journalists From Nigeria

"I think there is a question of reviewing how we do journalism, for example, the focus on balance and simply presenting the facts has not really helped the current political environment. It is not just enough to present both sides anymore.So trust is not necessarily always about not trusting the facts. But more on not trusting what each media represents."

"An explicit call to the global media, especially African ones, to cover global issues without bias or discrimination, such as gender equality, culture and gender, as well as issues of the environment and global peace."

"A natural extension of our work is to contribute to journalism training in Africa, so we will also be introducing online training materials covering a variety of areas relevant to online journalism,"

"I have had instances where men try to help but end up being patronizing. The sad reality especially as a female entrepreneur is that people are less willing to invest in you because you are a woman. But it should not stop you. I try to show my daughters that they should grow up not letting their gender be an obstacle to what they really want to do."

"I would like to see journalism in some countries on the conticontinentnent and embrace the full potentials of new technology. There’s so much we can be doing with things like virtual reality and data – though for us to really explore the full potential of data journalism, we need more open data, and better application of the Freedom of Information Act."

"When you’re young, the amazing ideas you start up with don’t always have longevity."

"Social media is a very important tool too, we can’t underestimate the age of information. Anyone who fears social media, fears the freedom knowledge brings."

"You use what you have at your disposal to enact as much change as you can."

"People can tell when you are detached. And when you get on air, find your style, and then you are likely to be a little more confident."

"If you find yourself here, first, you decide if that is what you want, then you go after it; you work hard and find mentors."

"What is news? Anything out of the ordinary."

"Think of it as a last minute effort to correct generations of social policies and constructs that robbed women and girls the opportunity to get education, to vote, work, to earn equitably, to own properties and the likes."

"We as Africans must tell our own stories too. No one else can do it better."

"Wrong narratives imprison the subject of a story and anyone or anything associated with it. It can negatively affect a wide range of social interactions from interpersonal relations to business associations."

"Years of undercurrent family feud automatically lock many women and children out of their rightful inheritance."

"Based on her national and industry credence, the trajectory of her career and all-round professionalism, Ijeoma Nwogwugwu is the most powerful woman journalist in Nigeria."

"Fortunately women who have gone before me have made that something I no longer fear."

"The first thing I figure out is the plot, and as it develops, the characters take shape. I believe the characters tell me their own stories."

"Playing with words, making up new ones, gifting your audience with a well written story is nothing short of magic."

"Turning an empty page into stories, making something out of nothing."

"Africa is so richly blessed with a population that is dynamic, vibrant, educated; that has energy and drive."

"Pidgin language is a language that brings people together; a language of unity; a language that cuts across divides and barriers."

"The media has a big role in people’s lives."

"Resources are always limited. It’s just about how judiciously you use them. Use them smartly, and in the best way possible, where they will have the greatest impact."

"Pidgin is a real language of opportunity across the region, spoken by millions across the West and Central African region."

"Africa is blessed with a young population, It is a young continent with many people full of energy."

"She is quick witted, highly cerebral, and resolutely holds the government of the day accountable. It is no secret that every leader in the field of business and national politics knows Ms. Nwogwugwu personally, but this has not affected her journalistic responsibility to the public."

"Ms. Nwogwugwu brings to journalism a wealth of experience across private and public sectors. She held the track record of editing all three titles under the THISDAY stable for the longest unbroken period of 11 years and is the second woman in the history of Nigerian journalism to be appointed Editor of a national newspaper."

"Big or small; data is the evidence that defends the truth in your story."

"Journalism is a photocopying machine – what you put into it is what it will return to you. Feed it with mediocrity, and it will return the favour. Put in the work and feed it with excellence, and it will give you the same."

"When you have something else that brings income, it frees you from censorship by your employer, and manipulations from sources, especially in the African context."

"Solutions journalism is journalism that empirically compares standards across/within countries to enable best practices, rather than curates failures for sensationalism."

"You need to be ready at any time to leave a job that takes your soul or decline a source’s Greek gift."

"Editorial independence is what will distinguish you in the long run and give you the higher-paying jobs."

"Keep learning: It can be scary but try your best to learn new techniques. You never know when it is that skill that will distinguish you."

"Never cut corners and realise that excuses will cripple your rise."

"Your visibility is up to you. Do not count on others to be honourable, you may be spectacularly disappointed. Insist on your rights."

"Journalists and now a global media organisation of repute, the BBC, which should know better, are becoming a tool for terrorists, even if unwittingly, by amplifying the faces, voices and stories of killers and marauders who are still operating with impunity across Nigeria,” she wrote."

"I’m totally against sanctions, I don’t believe in muzzling the press. I don’t believe government should be in the business of trying to threaten media regardless of the mistakes media make. But I also believe media should be able to hold itself accountable. Our job is to hold power accountable."

"I think Nigerians ought to tell their politicians that it is time to have a bipartisan approach to insecurity, because it is something that is going to consume us. Even now as it is consuming us, we are not asking who is PDP or who is APC. And this continuous politicisation of insecurity, for me."

"I don’t believe in sanctions, we need to self-regulate because we have a constitutional duty. We have a responsibility."

"We are not saying gender should be the only decider when you want to vote for people in office, merit has to matter. I’m convinced that there are women who are qualified. What we are saying is, where you have women who are qualified but due to situation of things, men have the money and women can’t compete."

"think there’s a lot of distrust for traditional media in Nigeria. A lot of people you talk to will tell you they believe we are somewhat in collusion with people in positions of authority. Sometimes they find it difficult to differentiate between us and the people we are supposed to be holding accountable."

"The first element of sustainability you need is for your country to be functional. Without that functionality, you will sit and make all the plans, and you will end up with a lot of troubles. That functionality of your country partly depends on the ability of proper journalists to do their job."

"The Social Media Bill is a threat to journalism and democracy because what they claim that the bill wants to guide against is hate speech and fake news which has been taken care of. Other laws has taken care of that, we know that fake news and hate speech pose a serious threat to us as journalists, we don’t want it, because it undermines our work."

"Let me reassure everyone, that my work, will not stop. It will not cease. I will continue to ask the hard questions and have the difficult conversations while being so unashamedly pro Nigeria that I will also continue to challenge champions of ethnic politics which have done nothing but polarize us, making it impossible for us to unite and fight bad governance and a system that has let the majority of our people down."

"If journalists follow through with the process of collating and verifying before reporting, it brings a check to the level of bias in information dispensation. The Industry must take responsibility, there’s no excuse for some of the errors we see. Collect, verify, speak to the people involved, go out, get facts, before reporting."

"The inability of the government to deal with them has nothing to do with the lack of knowledge, it has everything to do with the incompetence. So, at that point, you might ask, could we have told our story, or I have heard people say to me, the ethnic dimension of the problem was not known until this documentary was done"

"It takes time to develop a name, to develop reputation and to develop acceptance."

"There is a process that you have to go through as a broadcaster or broadcast journalist. You have to understand that you’re a messenger and the purveyor of a message and the message is more important than the messenger."