PUTKA ON EXPO

…Curbing Inadequacies in the Media Space

By Sheku Putka Kamara

When I was a BA 2 student (2011/12) at our then Mass Comm. Dpt., now Faculty of Communication, FBC, Dr. Francis Sowa Esq. taught us that the duty of a journalist is to get the facts right. He had quoted Ken Metzler, an accomplished information academic, among other things, on several occasions just to showcase how newsmen should ensure that the people and facts speak for themselves. This is what has ignited my urge to revisit this topic. If you are a journalist like me, you may wish to remind yourself about certain professional essentials, and so comprehending this piece may just be some very apt guide.

Today, media poverty, unprofessionalism, and the norm of recruiting some untrained and unqualified personnel would appear as some of the obstacles to accurate agenda setting. When Dr. Issac Massaquoi was teaching was on News Writing, he used to quote Gaye Tuchman who once asserted that the rush to meet unreasonably short deadlines is one of the obstacles to objectivity. Tuch also remarked that the value inherent in political events could be another.

Now, I need not overstate how most media institutions if not all (Sierra Leone) do not have the requisite and required plus efficient resources to effectively run media entities. Chief Joshua Nicol had taught me (broadcast) that among other things, strategic management has to be about utilizing available resources for the attainment of pre-determined objectives. Clearly, I am not sure any manager would want to set unrealistic and unappreciable objectives. So, from the word go, there has to be a way the 4ms (money, manpower, machinery, and minute) should be effectively utilized for and in efficient management.

His Lordship, the Justice Dr. Binneh Kamara is on record to have asserted that there is no place for falsehood in journalism. Regarded as one of the greatest media and legal asserts of Sierra Leone, Binneh was painfully making a case that, as newsmen, we should not be wrong. This is why these days, when I teach on fact-checking and accurate information sharing, I am inclined to posit that we have a duty a duty to self and a duty to society. We owe it to ourselves and to the general public not to misinform; otherwise, the repercussions would be counterproductive.

The late Mrs. Bernadette Cole used to teach us during research methodology that carefulness and rigidity are crucial traits in information gathering and processing, and even as we do that, her sister and colleague, the late Mrs. Gloria Palmer will urge us not to write incorrect English language. Those lectures aided to shape us, and today, all of us should be thankful to have gone through those forensic hands.

When Dr. Tonya Musa was lecturing us about Public Relations, he was firm on the attainment of visibility, acceptability, and credibility. To journalists, I here submit that society will hardly accept us if what we submit and present is not credible. So, the choice is ours to make. Pastor Solomon Sellu and Pastor Fareed Bangura of our sister departments (information studies, FBC) has taught me some of these related essentials. The former had opined that knowledge without character does not make one to be disciplined, and the latter in his problem-solving lectures will always say that problem identification is a significant aspect of quality problem solving.

As Tanu Jalloh would say, you see that? Smile. Big brother, Jospeh E. Kapuwa Esq. would smile even more when he gets to see that all of these narratives are largely related to his media law and ethics scenarios for our undergrads. As you continue to read this piece, you may have noticed that I have quoted and attributed almost everything to my bosses and seniors at FBC. This is deliberate, not least because, we are known as the private school of USL and I am on record to have noted that, one who is able to effectively blend the theories and practices from our unit should be able to do well in life. This does not mean that we shouldn’t improve and develop ourselves.

In Krio, we’d say, ‘na man go tell u?’As journalists, we have a lot of work to do. This is not a shilly-shally profession. It takes years of hard work, dedication, and unhindered commitments to get to enviable levels. I will not bore you with all the history, but if you are into mainstream journalism, do not allow inaccuracies and irregularities to get a hold of you.

During my postgraduate in Mass Communication, our then itinerant Prof, the late Ritchard M’bayo told us that precision should not be secondary in media. The Rev. Dr. Victor Salifu Suma is another firm believer in this. From the time when he met us in the final year (2014/15) onto when he joined the PG sector, he had shown clarity and accuracy in sharing thoughts. So, some of us are very lucky to have learnt from the very best in the industry.

Chief James Tamba Lebbie knows this best. From the classroom to the newsroom, I’d rather say, if you know, you know. Lol. When I get to think that Rev. Dr. Mrs. Williette James, I see more reasons to be extra careful and to be accurate in life. These people had set the pace and are still leading the park for us.

Pastor Josephus Paris will tell us and teach us in equal measure in his ICT lectures. Today, I have the opportunity to work with Prof. Ibrahim Seaga Shaw, an accomplished academic and enthusiastic administrator. In him, excellence cannot and would not be traded for nothing. If you are learning anything from this article, I am proposing that we all need the right connections in life. Get to work with those who already know better. That is how we grow because we should never stop learning. We all could make mistakes. That is why we are humans, but hey, the virtues should and must surpass the basic issues that happen from time to time.

Journalism is a very fine discipline, like Sheikh Dr. Momodu Turay will say. I am sure Chief Ambrose Rogers and our veteran Kenneth Osho would relate. I know for a fact that addressing all of these concerns will take time, but then, and like I’d mostly say, the more we do things, the better we get at the same. It is on that note that I will continue to urge journalists to pay more attention to what they do. Carefulness, accuracy, balance etc, these are things we cannot treat with levity. Let me end here for today!

© Sheku Putka Kamara, Expo Times Newspaper – Monday, June 2nd, 2025.