By Mustapha Kamara
The Centre for the Coordination of Youths Activities, CCYA, with funds from UNESCO and the National Youth Commission, yesterday held a day’s engagement with various broadcast journalists on how to report the current Ebola crisis in Sierra Leone.
The training, which took place in Freetown, was also geared towards developing programmes that would aid the education of locals in various communities across the country about the disease.
CCYA’s Executive Director, Ngolo Katta, said that it was incumbent upon media practitioners to be educated about the Ebola virus disease “so that they, in turn, would be knowledgeable enough to replicate in their different communities what they have been taught through their various media outlets”.
He said the role of the media in the present crisis could not be overemphasized, assuring that his organisation would soon commence its radio programmes on different stations across the country.
National Coordinator, Independent Radio Network, Ransford Wright, whiles making a presentation on the topic “Media engagement as a tool for the fight against Ebola”, said the media had a significant role in the current bio-warfare.
He said “Media institutions, especially radio stations, should be very mindful about information they disseminate on their radio stations”.
Wright encouraged journalists to always endeavor to conduct research on Ebola and design proper radio programmes on it, adding that radio stations should broadcast Ebola-related programmes using the most common languages in their respective communities so as to enable everybody to accept Ebola messages and prevent themselves from contracting the disease.
He admonished journalists to consider themselves relevant in the fight to end Ebola in the country, noting that “the media is a power tool to impact behavior change”.
Participants thanked CCYA for the training, saying it would help to address lots of misconceptions about the disease and inform people with the correct messages. They promised to do their best in changing views about the disease.
© Politico 21/11/14
