….as Gov Otu reactivates Chronicle, urges staff on responsible journalism 

By Ike Uchechukwu, CALABAR 

Former Cross River State Governor, Chief Clement Ebri, has declared that the rise of digital technology does not spell the death of journalism or print media, as he charged the reactivated Nigerian Chronicle to synchronise both platforms for greater impact.

Ebri stated this on Wednesday during the commissioning of a state-of-the-art Government Printing Press and the reactivation of the Cross River State Newspaper Corporation, held at the corporation’s premises, Barracks Road, Calabar.

The former governor, who once worked at the Chronicle as a young journalist and later rose to Acting Editor, said the digital age, though transformative, should complement rather than kill print journalism.

Ebri insisted that technology should serve as a new vehicle for journalism rather than its executioner, charging the Chronicle to embrace digital platforms, social media and video while investing in investigative journalism and training a new generation of reporters.

“The world has changed. The media landscape has changed. The way people receive, consume and share information has changed. But change in technology does not mean the death of journalism, nor does it have to mean the death of print,” Ebri said.

He quoted an old saying to buttress his point, stressing that print remains vital despite the digital wave.

“I have heard it said that the faintest ink is better than the sharpest memory. There is considerable wisdom in that,” he said.

Responding to sceptics who question the relevance of print newspapers in a digital age, Ebri offered a simple illustration.

“Someone may ask, in this digital age, why print a newspaper when everything is already on the phone? My answer is simple. Try handing your grandchildren your phone thirty years from now and asking them to find today’s news.

” You may first have to explain where the charger is. But hand them a newspaper cutting, and they only need a pair of eyes,” he said.

He added that digital and print serve different but complementary purposes, urging the Chronicle to strengthen both.

“Digital is immediate. Print is archival. We should therefore not treat print and digital as enemies, they are not,” he said.

He said the pertinent question was no longer how to save the Chronicle, but how to reposition it to matter again, expressing confidence that the goal was achievable with collective support from government, journalists and the public.

The event also marked the restoration of the Chronicle’s library and archives, many of which were destroyed during the 2020 #EndSARS unrest, with Ebri appealing to Cross Riverians to donate old newspaper materials to help rebuild the institution’s history.

On his part , Governor Bassey Otu urged staff of the newly reactivated Nigerian Chronicle to practise accurate, responsible journalism and protect state media assets.

“It could be recalled that when I hosted the first media parley on assumption of office, I promised a free flow of information between government and citizens.

 “We upgraded CRBC’s transmission equipment, gave our offices a face‑lift and have now re‑equipped the Chronicle with state‑of‑the‑art printing machines.”

The governor noted the Chronicle had been moribund for about two decades and that the complex was looted during the 2020 ENDSARS protest. 

“We have ploughed scarce finances to reactivate the press; staff must now justify that investment through hard work and protection against vandalisation,” he said.

Otu asked the Editorial Board to create a Critical Response Initiative to counter misinformation and keep the public informed

 “Verify facts before publication, falsehood belongs to social media, not a conventional newspaper.”

 He urged the paper to publicise the administration’s milestones while separating propaganda from reality,’ Otu said.