Media Should Stop Promoting Terrorists, Says Information Minister

The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, has urged Nigerian media to stop giving publicity to terrorists and criminals. He said too much coverage of their activities helps those who want to create fear and instability.

Idris spoke at a security summit held by the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) and the State Security Services (SSS), also known as DSS. He said journalists need to balance press freedom with national responsibility for the sake of nation-building.

“Please take these terrorists and criminals off your front pages,” the minister said. “This is what they crave for free of charge.”

The summit will last two days, with the SSS Director General set to speak on Friday. Attendees on the first day included officials from the International Press Institute (IPI) Nigeria, military and police officers, and representatives from Defence Minister Christopher Musa and Kano State Governor Abba Yusuf.

Idris expressed worry that media reports often highlight the actions of terrorists, bandits, and kidnappers while ignoring the efforts of security personnel trying to protect lives and property.

“It saddens my mind. I feel very unhappy when I see our front pages, when I see our headlines, reporting the activities of these criminals and underplaying the ones by the security agencies,” he said.

According to Idris, responsible journalism is not censorship. He believes media professionals should use good judgment in deciding what to report and how to present it.

He said the best journalists know “what not to report in the interest of nation-building.”

“Nobody is calling for censorship. Nobody is asking the media not to do its job, but we must know that we must have a country to keep. We must have our unity to uphold so that Nigeria can make progress,” he added.

The minister pointed out that Nigeria faces complicated security challenges, including terrorism, violent extremism, cybercrime, misinformation, and organized crime. This makes teamwork between the media and security agencies more important now than ever.

He emphasized that both groups have important roles in nation-building. Security agencies are responsible for protecting lives and national sovereignty, while the media acts as a watchdog and connects the government to the people.

Idris also praised the improving relationship between journalists and security agencies, especially the SSS. He noted that the NUJ had not reported any cases of journalists being arrested or detained by the agency in the past one and a half years.

He urged other security agencies to keep up these standards and expressed hope that issues with journalist detention would soon be over.

The minister reaffirmed the federal government’s commitment to improving engagement between the media and security institutions. He mentioned efforts through dialogue, strategic communication, capacity building, and public enlightenment initiatives.