Amid growing concerns over toxic discourse in Nigeria’s media space, communication experts and religious leaders have called on journalists to adopt more compassionate, ethical, and trauma-informed approaches to reporting.
The call was made in Abuja on Wednesday during the 2025 edition of Communications Week organised by the National Directorate of Social Communication of the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria (CSN).
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The event themed, “Media with Gentleness: A Path to Being Narrators of Hope in a Distressed Nation”, brought together journalists, students, religious figures, and communication experts for lectures and discussions focused on promoting ethical storytelling and addressing the growing toxicity of digital spaces.
In his address, Secretary General of the CSN, Michael Banjo, called for a more compassionate and responsible media culture amid the rise of aggression, rivalry, and sensationalism across the country’s media landscape.
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Mr Banjo described the Communications Week as part of a broader effort by the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) to promote media literacy and reflect on the Church’s role in shaping narratives in a digital age.
He said the event also serves as an opportunity to reflect on the Church’s responsibility to “evangelise the media itself” in the face of growing misinformation and divisive content.
Referencing trends in Nigeria’s media ecosystem, Mr Banjo lamented the prevalence of online feuds among public figures, the rise of sensational content on social media, and the use of ethnic profiling to incite outrage over trivial matters.
“Even straightforward statements about events or achievements are now twisted to provoke hate speech. We see a departure from the values that defined the early days of Nigerian broadcasting,” he said.
While commending the growth of media in Nigeria, Mr Banjo urged communicators to revisit the foundational principles of journalism, which includes truth, respect, and community-building, as the country confronts rising social tensions and political instability.
World Communication Day, established by the Catholic Church in 1967, is observed annually to encourage reflection on the role of media and communication in promoting truth, unity, and human dignity. Each year’s celebration is guided by a theme chosen by the Pope.
At the event, a posthumous award was presented in honour of veteran broadcaster Raymond Dokpesi, recognising his contributions to the media and public service.
Gentleness, a tool for responsible journalism
Delivering the keynote address at the event, Gerald Musa, a priest of the Catholic Diocese of Katsina, called on Nigerian media practitioners to adopt a gentler, more compassionate communication style.
Drawing from ancient philosophy and modern media ethics, Mr Musa warned against the current trend of aggressive, sensational, and divisive reporting, likening it to the forceful wind in the famous parable of the wind and the sun.
He urged the media to act instead like the sun, using warmth, patience and consistency to drive change.
“In today’s media world, which often behaves like the wind, loud, divisive, and urgent, gentle communication has greater power to change hearts and minds,” he said.
Mr Musa noted that inflammatory language and ethno-religious bias dominate both mainstream and digital platforms, threatening national unity.
He cited Pope Francis’ 2025 World Communications Day message, emphasising the need for gentleness in media, and connected it to communication theories like agenda-setting, framing, virtue ethics, and peace journalism.
He appealed to media owners, regulators and journalists to enforce a communication style that protects truth and humanity.
The power of empathy in media
Delivering a lecture on the theme, “The power of empathy in media: Reporting on vulnerable communities,” the Editor-in-Chief of Premium Times, Musikilu Mojeed, urged journalists to embrace empathy and trauma-informed practices when reporting on marginalised and vulnerable communities.
Mr Mojeed, also the chief operating officer of the media organisation, stressed that media professionals must go beyond headlines and statistics to tell stories that honour the dignity of the people they report on.
Citing examples from his newsroom’s work, Mr Mojeed said journalists often encounter victims of sexual violence, displacement, poverty and systemic neglect.
In such cases, he warned, a careless approach can deepen the wounds of those traumatised.
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“When people in pain agree to speak with us, they are not just giving us access to their story, they are trusting us with their vulnerability,” he said.
He criticised the extractive nature of some media coverage, where reporters visit communities briefly, collect emotional stories, and disappear without returning or following up to see what becomes of the people they interviewed.
Mr Mojeed also challenged editors and newsroom leaders to do better in supporting reporters who cover sensitive or distressing topics.
According to him, trauma-informed journalism is not just about how stories are told but also about how journalists are treated in the process of telling them.
He encouraged faith-based and community media organisations to lead the way in championing journalism grounded in compassion, accuracy and accountability, especially when misinformation and sensationalism are on the rise.
“It is not enough to amplify voices, we must do so with care, with context, and with a deep sense of responsibility,” he said.
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