The act of altering information has been there long before the emergence of social media, and it has been an active component of history for a long time, even before the advent of modern journalism, through established norms that define news as a genre based on specific rules of integrity.
The advent of ICT and Internet, on the other hand facilitates the flow and openness of information while also increasing the likelihood of inaccuracy or misuse of information.
Fake news are lies spread for selfish reasons, and like all lies, they inflict suffering on people who believe them. This is why Minister of Information and Culture Lai Mohammed was reported as saying, “the global epidemic of fake news is already having far-reaching ramifications across the world.”
In the end, we can clearly see that the fake news saga most often leads to confusion, tension and even suicidal ideation, depending on the person or institution in question, while on the other hand, it dilutes serious media coverage, making it more difficult for journalists to cover significant news stories.
In attempting to seek and find long-term solutions to the problem of fake news, it must be remembered that if there is a solution, and a long-term one at that, we must recognise from the start that it must be a collective effort, not just a function of the government or media outlets.
Nigeria as a country must seek and find a way to ensure that its print media and TV stations are known to practice quality journalism, as this would boost their acceptability by the people; once that is accomplished, Nigeria may consider taking into account independent media regulation, as this would definitely reduce the attention on fake media outlets and allow for identifying and punishing those who get it spread.
Nusaiba Mukhtar Yau Department of Mass Communication Skyline University Nigeria
