The Delta state Commissioner for Information, Hon. Patrick Ukah, has urged members of Delta Online Publishers Forum (DOPF) to ensure that they always adopt the basic tenets of journalism to build sustainable goodwill, stressing that it is unacceptable for them to use bad news to attract government patronage
Mr Patrick Ukah said when he met members of the Delta Online Publishers Forum, on Wednesday April 19, 2017 in Asaba that the coming together as a united body would make it easy for any aggrieved or offended person or group to seek redress.
Ukah lamented the situation where some online publishers shun professional ethics of journalism in their writings, either because they were new on the job or just merely interested in online business to attract attention from the public, adding that it is very surprising that despite the numerous good works of the Governor Okowa administration within the past two years, in this period of economic recession, online writers do not give adequate publicity to this achievements.
In an address, the Chairman, Delta Online Publishers Forum (DOPF) Mr Emmanuel Ochonogor Enebeli called for synergy between members of the group, the government and corporate bodies in the state as they are all stakeholders. “There must be room for co-operation rather than intimidation,” Enebeli said
“The members of DOPF are professional business men and women, who own websites, which even the main news media often depend on for further news. They take the news from all sources and angles, including the rural communities to the world, as their websites are world ranked by Google signature and other world search engines.
“This makes it different from just social media platforms like a page in Facebook, Twitter handle, Google plus, Instagram and many of such, as the individual social media account has no world ranking, and no such Google signature.”
He reminded the government that the online news operators in the state are not only news providers, but also employers of labour, as many people are directly and indirectly engaged by members, thus helping the state economy in its growth.
Enebeli urged the government and other organizations to see online news platforms, which DOPR stands for as real business operators, and accord due recognition to them, and as they are not just into news reporting. “We should be partners to grow the state, and the Government of Delta State should see DOPF as one of those partners,” he declared.
