Media
NINE new members have been admitted into the Guild of Corporate Online Publishers, GOCOP, at its annual conference on Thursday in Abuja.
Speaking at the ceremony, the GOCOP President, Maureen Chigbo, admonished the new members to shed what she called ‘reporters’ mentality’.
She also stated that by this admission, the new members are no longer just seasoned journalists, but mediapreneurs, who would think about the best media practices and guide their reporters aright.
According to her, they are now leading lights in the journalism practice, especially in the online space.
Speaking further before the admission of new members, GOCOP President, who is the publisher of Realnews Online, reminded them that as CEOs of their media outfits, which have been duly registered at the Corporate Affairs Commission, CAC, as part of the prerequisite for membership of GOCOP, they have to abide by the rules and regulations guiding the organization.
She pointed out that there is no proxy representation in GOCOP, and warning that GOCOP monitors their websites at all times.
While congratulating the new members for passing through the rigorous screening process, Chigbo urged them to be prepared to bring ideas that may help to grow the Guild and transform it to become the reputable industry.
“You are expected to bring value to the group,” she charged, noting that GOCOP members are seasoned practitioners and that there is no school anywhere to train them to start it.
“We learnt on the job, but we have created the pathway for others to follow. What we met was a bastardised environment, but we began to sanitize it and brought it to where it is today,” she enthused.
She emphasised that GOCOP created a mechanism to control members through peer review mechanism.
“Now, we have an ombudsman plus a disciplinary committee. The public is beginning to make use of this provision to seek redress or to voice out any complaints,” she declared.
On fake news syndrome, the GOCOP president said that blame should not only go to one side.
“We must begin to ask questions about who actually is behind this. Let government officials look inward and ask themselves questions. They should look inward on this matter. They should make use of the off-record rule if they do not want to be quoted instead of coming out to deny what they said and call it fake,” she added.
The event attracted the prominent persons in the country, including the Minister of Information & National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, and the Registrar of the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board, JAMB, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, who chaired the 2023 GOCOP annual conference.
Meanwhile, the chairman of the membership screening committee, Muskiliu Mojeed of the Premium Times, announced that with the latest admission, the number of GOCOP corporate membership stands at 103.
The inducted members included Adeola Yusuf (publisher of Platforms Africa), Udokwu Onyeka (Newsbusiness Nigeria), Peter Oluka (TechEconomy), Amos Adetunji (The Decisionmakers Online), and Abdulazeez Lekan Arowona of Royal News.
Others were Idumonza Isidahomhen (publisher of Openlife), Bisi Bamise (bisladnews.com), Iduh Onah (National Record) and Olabisi Deji-Folutile of Franktalk.
They were sworn in by a GOCOP member, Afolabi Odeyemi, a lawyer and publisher of YouNews.
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October 8, 2023 @ 19:53 GMT|
Tags: Maureen Chigbo
