One thing that you are
constantly reminded in Journalism school is how to
“Always verify your
sources. Sources can be misleading; do not trust all your sources.” One of my
lecturers repeated this phrase countless times making it stick in my head.
Every time he came to
class, I could whisper the phrase to my friends and we would giggle for a
moment before offering him our attention.
At the time, I never
took my lecturer’s words with much weight but with time I understood that he
had the intention of training credible journalists.
This is a lesson I wish
to extend to one Mr. Willis Raburu because it appears that he has forgotten the
basics of Journalism. His tweet on Nicolas Biwott made me question his
credibility.
“BREAKING: Unconfirmed
reports…Total man Nicholas Biwott has passed on…details and clarification to
follow”
I do not expect a
journalist to publish anything that starts with ‘unconfirmed reports’
especially if the life of a person is at stake. I need to introduce Willis to
my lecturer I believe he can get through to Willis.
Willis may have cleared
the air later but his message was already viral and could not have been
reversed. I am not crucifying Willis there other Journalists who have made the
same mistake and I will not let them off the hook that easy.
As a member of the
Fourth Estate, make sure whatever you say or publish is credible information.
This is a basic principle of journalism. Journalists are not rumour mongers.
In conclusion, “Make
sure that you always engage your thoughts before you engage your mouth,”
Professor Egara Kabaji.
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