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Deepening Understanding of Terrorism: NSA, IPRC, and NCTC Empower Journalists to Effectively Report on Terrorism

To deepened understanding of terrorism activities and current narratives and to provide a platform for engagement between media personnel, security agencies and the public, the National Security Adviser and the Coordinator, NCTC in collaboration  with IPCR Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution (IPRC) is a government agency, a think tank under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs organised a 2-Day training for Defence Correspondents in Abuja.The Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution   been mandated with the responsibility for peacebuilding promotion, conflict management and resolution across Nigeria and indeed, Africa and as a fundamental principle, the IPCR firmly believes that peace is an all-inclusive process. Declaring the training workshop on "Effective Reporting Towards strengthening Alternatives to Terrorism ideology," open, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Alhaji Mohammed Idris said the training is to ensure that news narratives reflect the truth to de-escalate tensions and fears. "We must take, into cognizance that the media and its agencies are capable of reducing and transforming these conflicts through the narratives of their reportage. As succinctly put by Ross Howard, ‘professional journalists do not set out to reduce conflict. They seek to present accurate and impartial news. But it is often through good reporting that conflict is reduced.’"The media in Nigeria and indeed globally, remains the most credible source of news and information for the majority of people. It is therefore essential that this workshop is conducted for media personnel working in relations with the NCTC to enable an improvement in the reportage of events, especially related to terrorism ideology and violent narratives from extremist groups."Oftentimes, it is not uncommon for the media to dramatize, exaggerate or over sensationalize terrorism narratives for viewer attention. However, this strategy does not help the average citizen whose fears are more often than not, heightened by such media information."I have no doubt therefore, that this engagement will upscale the skills of the media personnel present in their techniques on reporting that will bring the required change to the way terrorism ideology and activities are reported." he notedInformation Minister opined that the workshop will allow for honest dialogue that will generate useful ideas for improved strategies of reporting to enhance peace and security in Nigeria. Also, it will inform more effective policies that target issues of insecurity through terrorism and facilitate a more collaborative relationship between the public and the security sector and the media.In his remarks, the National Security Adviser, Mallsm Nuhu Ribadu stressed that the training is part of efforts in response to the call of the UN Secretary General’s Plan of Action for member states to develop and implement a national communication strategy, and to ensure the dissemination of positive content across a wide range of media both traditional and digital platforms to counter terrorist appeals and violent extremist narrative.  “Information is power”, and I strongly believe this saying. The kind of information we process, and the way and manner we communicate them should be matters of great concern hence information could be functional with positive expectations or dysfunctional with consequences that are negative and life threatening; the media as conveyor belt of information can therefore influence either positively or negatively. "The press is capable of exercising power in favour of the state or in favour of the enemies of the state. Media practitioners must always be mindful of this in the discharge of their responsibilities in order to expose societal ills and suspicious characters and activities, garnering support for the government to be able to tackle challenges."he saidHe noted that terrorist groups have continued to provide dysfunctional information through social media platforms, networking sites, and online propaganda including mainstream and traditional mediums of communication in such manner appealing for easy recruitment of many especially among the youths; this is a situation that we must jointly combat to attain a safe and peaceful society that will guarantee sustainable socioeconomic development. "To achieve this, the media practitioners must produce contents that would counter or prevent the appeals of terrorism and other non-state armed groups. Indeed, there is the need for robust media campaigns against terrorism, violent extremism and all other forms of organized crime that is are threatening our corporate existence as a country."he addedMallam Ribadu pointed out that the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) in line with its mandate will continue to support the National Counter Terrorism Centre to collaborate with the media by prompting capacity building of members of the Fourth Estate of the Realm at the national and state levels as part of the objectives of the National Counter Terrorism Strategy 2016, and the National Security Strategy 2019. He said, the training workshop is to build journalists capacity to be able to process and disseminate appropriate narratives (counter, alternative and positive) to address extremist ideologies. He urged them to avail themselves of this opportunity to learn from the vast experiences of the resource persons drafted to interact with you. It is our hope to develop the capacity of a reasonable number of journalists and media practitioners in the country in order to evolve a development and peace journalism orientation in the Nigeria media space.The First lecture, Prof. Adeniyi Abiodun on his topic "Effective Reporting Towards Strengthening Alternatives to Terrorist Ideology" noted that Anti-terrorism and counterterrorism are related but distinct concepts in the realm of national security and law enforcement. anti-terrorism aims to stop terrorism before it happens through proactive measures, while counterterrorism deals with responding to and managing terrorist incidents that have already taken place or are ongoing.Both are essential components of national security strategies aimed at protecting citizens and maintaining public safety in the face of terrorist threats.The Second lecturer, Brig General Sani Kuasheka (Rtd.) said there is no doubt that the media plays a critical role in national security and conflict reporting. Journalists in Nigeria play a vital role in promoting peace and security by providing accurate and responsible reporting.Responsible and ethical journalism can significantly contribute to strengthening alternatives to terrorist ideologies and promoting peace and stability. The publication of unverified information on social media or the conventional mass media by journalists also constitutes threats to effective conflict management unintentionally promotes propaganda, reveals military strategies, and jeopardises military personnel's safety in security operations."Balancing these interests requires careful consideration. While transparency is vital, sensitive information that could compromise security operations, as outlined in Nigeria's Official Secrets Act, should not be publicly disclosed. This involves taking cognisance of the following:"Public Interest: The right of the public to be informed about matters that affect them, as enshrined in Chapter II of the Nigerian Constitution (1999) should be respected. However, in reporting, public interest is of utmost importance as against personal or other interests."National Interest: The security and well-being of the nation as a whole should be of utmost importance in conflict reporting."Transparency vs. Security: While transparency is vital for democracy, certain information must be withheld to protect national security and ongoing operations." he saidSpyeTV News reports that, Trainers like Prof. Adeniyi Abiodun trains on "Effective Reporting Towards strengthening Alternatives to Terrorism ideology", Brig. Gen Sani Kukasheka (Rtd.) trains on "Media and National Security Reporting", Mr Chidi Omeje, a Defence and Security Expert will be training participants second day of the training on Effective Reporting, Dr Austin Onuoha on Sensational Reporting and Terrorists' Ideology, Mr Majeed Dahiru, on Changing Perceptions and Counter Narratives while Dr Bossde Awodola Director, National Peace Academy, IPCR trains on Strengthening Alternatives to Terrorism Ideology-Way Forward. IPRC leveraged to engage with the National Counter Terrorism Centre, on strengthening alternatives to the current terrorism ideology through effective reporting. Dignitaries at the opening ceremony of the training were the Minister of Information and National Orientation, National Coordinator, National Counter Terrorism Centre, Office of the National Security Adviser, Major General AG Laka; the Director General, Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution (IPCR), Dr. Joseph Ochogwu, Eminent Resource Persons and Facilitators;, Director General, Voice Of Nigeria Mr. Jibrin Baba Ndace , Directors, Heads of Departments and Principal Staff Officers in ONSA and NCTC, Directors and Staff from IPCR and the National Peace Academy, IPCR and Participants (Journalist) of this Training Workshop. www.twitter.com/spyetv