By Bayo Ogunmupe
The book: Makers of Nigerian Press, written by the veteran journalist and journalism teacher, Dayo Duyile, synthesizes the works of the great pioneers of the Nigerian press, radio and television as well as their contributions to building our mass media into a Tower of Freedom of Expression. Following the libertarian and social responsibility culture of the West European tradition of the press, the founders of the Nigerian press exhibited much courage in establishing a respectable legacy for us to follow. In this work, the author analyses the dynamic performances of the various genre of expression in the periods of colonialism, nationalism and struggle for independence, religious explorations featuring protestant evangelism and the press laws of colonial governments.
The project of winning souls for Christ was led then for the Anglicans by Ajayi Crowther and Henry Townsend, for the Baptists by Thomas Bowen; for the Methodists by Thomas Birch Freeman and for the Presbyterians by Hope Masterton Waddell. They traversed the West African coast in continuation of the 1841 Niger Expedition and Colonization Project to lay the foundations for religious ebullition in the African continent where democracy and free press can thrive. The man who captured the spirit of the time was Sir Fowell Buxton with his book: The African Slave Trade and Its remedy. In Makers of Nigerian Press, Duyile tells us the exploits of the missionaries from the 18th century which ushered into Nigeria the development of newspaper journalism.
The tradition of newspapering began from 1859, igniting the nationalist consciousness, leading to the emergence of newspaper publishers, government ownership of the press, radio and television. This book is a synoptic history of the Nigerian press together with an analysis of the contemporary issues affecting the Nigerian and largest media in Africa. It also focuses on some of the principal actors, providing the overview of the past and the current state of the mass media in Nigeria. It should be borne in mind that most of the contributors were mere functionaries, they neither owned nor set up their own media. Their journalism and proprietorial activities were well worth the record because of their impact on the times.
At its fifth edition in 2019, Makers of Nigerian Press was first published in 1986, a massive book of 784 pages, paperback, it's currently published by Spectrum Books Limited, Ibadan, Nigeria. With a foreword by a doyen of the Nigerian Press the publisher of John West Publications and a former governor of Lagos State, Alhaji Lateef Jakande, the book is worth a place in your library as a reference work. This book has 88 chapters, three pages of references; 61 pages of appendixes and 21 pages of index. In dedicating the book to Alhaji Dr Ishmael Babatunde Jose, the author considered him as the most successful and accomplished journalist and newspaper administrator in the history of Nigerian media. To Duyile, Jose deserved the accolade for his unbeatable record of media leadership and achievement for building the Daily Times into the biggest newspaper empire in Africa.
The second person he dedicated the book to is Alhaji Dr Lateef Kayode Jakande, Duyile commends him for establishing Nigeria's journalism professional bodies: Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria, Nigerian Guild of Editors, Nigeria Union of Journalists and the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Lagos. Duyile's final eulogy for Jakande was at chapter 88, the lat chapter of the book. in his tribute when Jakande clocked 90 years, the author called him the patriarch of modern journalism at 90. He revealed that Jakande was appointed a reporter on the Nigerian Tribune, Ibadan in October 1961 by the Tribune Editor, Akintunde Emiola. I happen to know the dramatis personae of the episode. Emiola later retired as professor of Law at the University of Benin.
For the purpose of a comprehensive review of this 88 chapter book, I am breaking it into three sections. The first section covers the first 30 chapters. Section two begins from chapter 31: Evolution of Public Radio Broadcasting in Nigeria (1932-62). It ends at chapter 60: From Radio Broadcasting (1932) to Television Broadcasting (1959): The portrait of pioneer television broadcasters in Nigeria (1959- 1978). The third and final section starts from chapter 61 and ending at chapter 88. Starting from a review of Nigeria's history; Nigeria's geographical land area is 924,000 square kilometres or 356,669 square miles. Our nationality groups are 347 tribes; population 140 million (2006 census) 200 million by current projections. Nigeria's old capital is Lagos, current capital is Abuja and her main languages according to the size of population are Hausa, Yoruba and Igbo. She has 36 states, 774 local governments, with naira and kobo as its currency and United States model Presidential system of government.
For the Nigerian mass media, the law guiding broadcasting- radio and television- which was in absolute control of government, was only relaxed in the 1990s. The law was dropped in 1992, giving room for private participation in broadcasting. Now, Nigeria has a mixture of public and private radio and television and private newspapers. Government newspapers have almost died out at the moment. However, there are a number of rural newspapers serving the interests of the rural areas where national newspapers do not circulate. Indeed, there is the government owned News Agency of Nigeria serving both domestic and international information needs of the media. It was established by the Federal Government in 1976.
The reverend Henry Townsend of the Church Missionary Society established the first newspaper, Iwe Irohin at Abeokuta, now in Ogun State in 1859. But the first printing press was installed by the Presbyterian Mission of Scotland through their missionary, the reverend Hope Waddel, when he arrived Duke Town, Calabar in 1846. In the teaching of journalism in universities and polytechnics in the 1970s, challenges arose on the methods to adopt. Previously, like law journalism was learned from Fleet Street, London or the training schools of British, Australian, Canadian and American newspapers. Prof. Ralph Akinfeleye of the University of Lagos identified the challenges in 2007 in a paper he delivered at a Lagos workshop on UNESCO Model Curricula for Journalism Education in Developing Countries.
Akinfeleye raised the question, How should a journalist be trained? To answer the question, the former Editor of the Daily Times and former Minister of Information, Prince Tony Momoh, a journalist and lawyer, provided the solution to the issue: "We must teach the history of the Nigerian Press separately as distinct from the history of Nigerian politics and the Nigerian culture.....Because of the importance and volume of materials on the subject. Teaching of Nigerian history must be spread across at least six or eight semesters to enable students accomplish greater knowledge of Nigerian history, politics, press, Nigerian culture and her socio- economic history." Tony Momoh also suggested that the laws and the Constitution of Nigeria should be exposed to the students through teaching, especially the chapters of the Constitution dealing with the media, the legislature, the executive and the people.
Section two comprising chapters 32 to 62 deals with the establishment of radio, television, newsmagazines and the building of the National Broadcasting Commission and the Nigerian Press Council. It was at the third attempt that a self regulatory body for the Nigerian press could be established. The 1992 statute which became known as the Nigeria Press Council decree 85 was a success. It resulted from hard bargaining between government, the Nigeria Press Organization, the Nigeria Union of Journalists, the Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria and the Nigerian Guild of Editors. An accomplished editor and columnist, Alhaji Alade Odunewu was inaugurated its chairman, in Abuja in December 1992.
The final section of this review encapsulates the historical explanation for the longevity of the longest living Nigerian newspaper, the Nigerian Tribune and the factors responsible for the failure of newspapers in Nigeria. Apart from the listing of the 26 outstanding Nigerian newspapers, the perennial failure of government owned media and the veterans of the media, this section deals with the achievements of West Africa magazine (1917-2008); the chronicles of outstanding fathers of modern Nigerian journalism. I am bringing the review of this inimitable book to and end through the contribution of Dr Ate Andrew: The challenges of the Nigerian Press In the era of Terrorism. Andrew is one of three helpers of Duyile in researching this book. The others are Dr Felix Olajide and Dr Ayodeji Aiyesimoju. Andrew quoted the American media guru thus: "The journalist has a position that is all his own. He alone has the privilege of molding opinion, touching the hearts and appealing to the reason of hundreds of thousands everyday." That's enough to persuade you what the journalist can do to inflence in willing leader to end terrorism.
The author Dayo Duyile was a former Editor and Acting General manager of the Daily Sketch. I was one of his line editors at the Sketch. He was a reporter at the Nigerian Tribune, the Daily Times, the Western Nigeria Television Service and was Training Manager at Concord Press Limited. As a journalism scholar, Duyile was, Director, Nigerian Institute of Journalism, lecturer in mass communication at Adekunle Ajasin University, mass comm head of department at Joseph Ayo Babalola University. He is currently senior lecturer at Elizade University. He has written several other works in the media genre for which he has become a distinguished authority on the theory and practice of journalism.
