The Federal Government has been urged to save the print media from the current challenges, which had led to the collapse of most newspapers.
A publisher of ‘Market Voices’ newspaper, Mr Emeka Ejide, made this call in a parley with journalists in Awka on Wednesday.
Ejide, who recalls the role of the media during the struggle for the nation’s independence and the enthronement of democracy, said the media had suffered so much in the hands of the beneficiaries.
He said that due to the harassment and harsh environment in which it operated, the media could no longer meet its expectations, including the shaping of the society and agenda setting.
The publisher called on the Federal Government to intervene in the plight of the media to make it sustainable, lamenting that most media houses could no longer pay salaries.
“Due to the hazardous operational environment, particularly during the military regimes and the emergence of capitalists, newspapers lost the focus of giving voice to the voiceless and became propaganda machines.”
“It is unfortunate that due to this lack of focus, journalists are now next to beggars because the capitalists refused to or cannot pay their salaries,” he said.
Ejide said his newspaper; Market Voices, an open market based publication, was conceived to connect the government and the people with what is going on in the markets.
He said that the Nigerian markets had been under-reported in spite of its crucial role in the economy.
The publisher expressed the hope that buyers and sellers would become more aware, as it would inform them on events in Onitsha, Lagos, Kano, Aba, Ibadan and other markets across the country.
“The market people have been contributing their quota towards the development of the nation, yet they have been at the receiving end of government unfriendly economic policies without the opportunity of being heard.
“The Market Voices hopes to put this issue in the front burner and help shape our market structure and we believe that we shall not go the way of others,’’ Ejide said.
NAN
