Professionalism with an eye for global standard key to good content, says

The Registrar of Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria, (APCON) Alhaji Garba Bello Kankarofi, has called on media practitioners to understand that because content is a major sector of the electronic media, they must take professionalism, with an eye on global standards, very seriously.

Kankarofi said this while delivering a keynote address, ‘the importance of content in advertising,’ at the Electronic Media Content Owners Association of Nigeria (EMCOAN) Dinner held recently. The APCON boss stated that traditionally, the media has responsibility to inform, educate and entertain and to achieve these cardinal objectives; the operative word for the content person is professionalism. He therefore said that the professionalism demanded of the content person is one with eye on global standard, which could only be achieved through focus, training, exposure to knowledge beyond national boundaries, quick adaptation to trends in technology and understanding of consumers of media contents, whose cultural values have to be respected and re-enforced.

He also noted that advertising is a very important media content and professionalism in advertising in the Nigerian space is shaped by the extant laws of advertising and the code of advertising practice. He however urged members of EMCOAN to hasten to subscribe to advertising laws, rules and regulations because it is only when this is done can they benefit from active engagement as a player in the advertising industry.

Commenting on digital broadcasting, Kankarofi said “Digital broadcasting has become an issue following the proposal by government to grant migration from analogue to digital broadcasting. This must be seen as a challenge by EMCOAN. This body has to brace up to technological demands of the new system as well as be prepared to cope with increase in content as may be required. I have no doubt that you will meet the challenges of digital broadcasting.”

The President of EMCOAN, Mrs Deborah Odutayo, in her welcome address, after disclosing that dinner was meant to unwind and network with a view to move the industry forward, narrated how EMCOAN was started after a casual conversation among content owners at a forum in Ghana.

She stated that media content owners anywhere in the world are a vital part of the entertainment industry because without them, there would be no interest in the mass media. “And as our nation gears up for the giant stride of digitisation, it is of utmost importance that we come together to ensure the most successful transition.”

The chairman, Board of Trustees, Mr Wale Adenuga, requested the association’s partners to help it achieve better results. He called on advertisers to continue to support its projects and advertising agencies to be fair, saying while they seek out the best for their clients, they should also keep remembering to seek out what is fair for content owners. He also had some words for radio and Tv station owners, media monitors and content regulatory agencies demanding that they should be cooperative with his association. In between the speeches, there were performances and musical presentations.