- John Cardinal Onaiyekan, Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, has called on media practitioners to stop reporting fake news
- He also advised journalists to desist from sharing or lifting unverified sources of information from social media
- The cleric urged media men and women to work in truth and in the pursuit of peace
Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, John Cardinal Onaiyekan, has urged media practitioners in the country to refrain from reporting fake news.
Onaiyekan, who gave the advice on Sunday, May 13, in Abuja at a forum to mark the 2018 World Communications Day, said fake news destroys character and communal living, NAN reports.
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NAIJ.com gathers that he also advised journalists to desist from sharing or lifting unverified sources of information from social media as this is capable of destroying the peaceful co-existence of a country.
Onaiyekan, who was represented by the director of social communications in the Archdiocese, Rev Patrick Alumuku, said media men must continue to work in truth in pursuit of peace.
The cleric, who spoke on the theme, “Journalism for Peace,’’ stressed that communications emanated from God right from creation and the church had always encouraged peaceful and sustainable communication in the family and society.
“Media men and women are called to work in truth and in the pursuit of peace. The church wants good news to reach the whole world, but we can’t achieve this without the media.
“It is as a result of this that the church is investing in the training of media personnel, especially in social media,” he said.
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In a related development, NAIJ.com previously reported that Femi Adesina, spokesperson to President Muhammadu Buhari revealed how tasking his job was, saying he had truly suffered in the hands of fake news carriers in the country.
He accused some news carriers of distorting information as he spoke at the fifth anniversary lecture of the News Express.
Adesina proposed that those who consume fake news should also be guilty and punished just like those who carry such news.
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Source: Naija.ng