The Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism in collaboration with Albarka 89.9 FM, Ganmo, Kwara State on Tuesday 16th of July, organised a one-day media roundtable on “Good Governance and Responsibilities of the Media.” with participants drawn from media organisations and practitioners across Kwara state.
The enlightenment programme which was funded by the MacArthur Foundation was held at City-In-Hotel, G.R.A Ilorin, with media executives and journalists from conventional and new media in attendance.
The duo of Lekan Otufodurin, executive director of Media Career Development (MCDN), and Kofoworola Bello-Osagie speaks on “How to Pitch” and “Mental Health and Psychosocial Well-being for Journalists” respectively.
In his paper which was delivered via Zoom, Otufodurin intimated to the participating journalists on criteria expecting to see in the story idea by the funder of an investigative and what needed to be done to get the needed funds said “When applying for funding from the sponsors, journalists should know how to create a compelling story idea, followed by a reporting plan and details on how their final reporting product will be distributed. This includes identifying the audience they seek to reach, as well as an outlet that will publish their work. Last, but not least, it is important to develop a budget for the project.
“You need to have a budget for your pitch; you need to get your budget right. If you don’t get your budget right, you can run into trouble when your pitch has been approved. You need to take your implementation seriously because if you don’t implement your work well, you will block the chances of other people.
“Also ensure you meet the deadline and carry your funders along. If you have challenges, let them know. Have proper documentation which will help in your post-production report and send it on time.”
In her lecture also delivered via Zoom, Kofoworola, advised on the importance of good mental health for journalists and affirmed that journalists are prone to stress because of the nature of their jobs.
She however highlighted some of the ways to manage stress to include: high-quality sleep for 7 to 8 hours per day, healthy diet, regular exercise.
“Maintaining a healthy weight, When you over-eat and you are overweight, you feel crappy. You are more likely to over-eat carbs than protein. Food is medicine, Some food actually prevents inflammation and anxiety. A good diet helps protect you from further depression.” she said
The participants also made contributions and lauded the organisers of the programme and the quality of resource persons. They said the programme was an opener to contemporary knowledge in the field of investigative journalism and cyber security.
