Editorial (Second Edition)

(Editorial)
Let us give community journalism a chance

Community journalism has been defined as the locally oriented, professional news coverage that typically focuses on city neighborhoods, individual suburbs or small towns, rather than metropolitan, state, national or world news. Asan Andrew Ate and Joseph Omoh Ikerodah in their study entitled: “Community Journalism in Nigeria: Global Technological Reflections,” described community journalism as a community-owned, people-oriented and less profit-driven.
   They further alluded to the fact that community journalism has the capacity to facilitate and smoothen effective communication in places where the presence of national media is not well felt, thus fostering development in other media marginalized communities. If these are true of community journalism, we believe it will be wise for us to give it a chance to strive in our community (the old Aguata Local Government Area). Our people need to see the reason for this as quickly as possible. This is so, because the place of community media to the growth and development of communities cannot be over-emphasized. Community journalism is known to be intimate, caring, and personal; it reflects the community and tells its stories; and it embraces a leadership role.
    The Ogene Newspaper, with the rolling out of her maiden edition which has been applauded by most people in our community as timely and novel, is poised to foster effective communication that will definitely usher in the much needed growth and development we need in our community. Effective communication will no doubt bring the much needed unity we need as a people to survive in this age of technology.
     We have in clear and unequivocal terms stated our vision, which is to promote grassroots journalism through unbiased local coverage of news stories within our community. There is no doubt that we are out to pursue this our noble vision. Our maiden edition can attest to that fact.
   This responsibility of ushering a new level of development into our community should not be left to us alone. Our people should join hands with us, if we must be liberated from the underdevelopment and backwardness that is prevalent within our community. The needs and aspirations of our community must be projected for the entire world to hear our cry. We cannot afford to lag behind anymore. We cannot afford to suffer for so long again. We are out to serve as a mouthpiece that will fight for what belongs to us as a people. Criminals and other unscrupulous leaders in the government, town unions and others, who have found our community as a safe haven cannot have a hiding place anymore – they must be exposed, if we must grow and develop. Enough of our being marginalized, this is the time for us to speak up!
     The task ahead of us is herculean and as such, we are appealing for the assistance needed for us to further of our vision and mission. We have a mandate and we are very careful to pursue it. Our people must see us as a breeding place for ideas and opinions within our community.
     Serving the 45 towns that make up our community cannot be said to be an easy task at all as we are bent on covering events and activities taking place in each of the towns. None must be left uncovered, for that is why we as a newspaper was born.
      Definitely, a lot of support will be needed by us for this purpose.  Your support can go into the procurement of vehicles to ease our logistic challenges, equipment and manpower for effective and efficient production of our editions.
     Another important area of support needed by us is on the issue of information gathering. It is very obvious that we cannot be everywhere at the same time. That is why we are also soliciting for timely information which is the key to any media operation. We need people to let us know what is happening in their various towns, as that will help us carry out prompt reporting of events and activities within individual communities – that is our ultimate goal. We are poised to report our community to the world, and the world to our community.
    We are therefore, appealing and urging our people to embrace this worthy cause. We need the support of every member of our community to survive. As we have said earlier, which is a well known fact that no media survives by its cover price alone, even the national media cannot boast of that. It thereby became very pertinent for our people to invest their resources into this vision called The Ogene Newspaper. We need adverts and patronages from the business community, leaders of thought, and other well-meaning old Aguata people.
     The entire old Aguata as a community can boast of seasoned philanthropists, politicians, business people and others, who can trust us with their resources. We need them to survive as a media serving a particular cause. We are out to serve our people to the best of our ability, and we cannot serve effectively and efficiently if we are not supported by our people.
     As a new born baby, we must be given a chance to grow; we must be supported by our people. It is only then that we can efficiently fulfill our civic responsibilities of promoting the general welfare of our community and also being major stakeholders and players in the forces that will help build and celebrate our community by setting laudable agenda for the discourse of every member of our community.