#EndSARS-Lekki Coverage: Lai Mohammed Finally Petitions CNN, Describes Report As “Blatantly Irresponsible”

Related stories

U.S. Remittance Tax Casts Shadow Over African Economies

By Sonny Iroche A new bill passed by the U.S....

Akwa-Ibom Commissioner Defies Gov Umo Eno, Resigns, Says I Can’t Join Gov In APC

By Kolawole Ojebisi The commissioner for special duties and Ibom...

Trump Vs Musk: JD Vance Declares Support For US President Amid Online Row

By Kolawole Ojebisi US Vice President J.D. Vance has weighed...

Exclusive: Inside Details Of Sanwo-Olu’s Alleged Strained Ties With Tinubu

How Lagos Gov's Attendance of Achimugu’s 50th Birthday...

Revealed! The most beautiful city in Africa

Europe is home to several famous mega-cities, from London...

The federal government Monday made good its threat to formally petition CNN over  what it described as blatantly irresponsible and a poor piece of journalistic work by a reputable international news organization.

Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, in a letter, addressed to the CNN Vice President, responsible for Communications, Mr. Jonathan Hawkins,  said the CNN report did not only fall short of  standard journalistic practice, but also sought to fortify an already held piece of misinformation and fake news being peddled around about the Lekki, Lagos #EndSARS protest.

The minister who described as  most inexcusable and highly indefensible CNN’s failure to live up to the principles of  responsible and ethical journalism premised on the  basic fundamentals of balance, comprehensiveness, parity and fairness by rushing to air their own narrative without entertaining response from the government side in the entire report.Lai Mohammed and cnn

Read also:

Breaking! Lekki: ‘Massacre Without Bodies’, FG Flays CNN Over Report

Lekki Shootings: CNN Contradicts Sanwo-Olu, Reports Soldiers Fired At Protesters

Lekki Shootings: More Details Emerge On Role Of Nigerian Army, Sanwo-Olu At Lagos Panel

Lekki Shootings: CCTV Reveals Soldiers Arrived In Seven Trucks

Recall that the CNN had  aired its reportage  of the Lekki Toll Gate shooting of #EndSARS protesters entitled ” How a Bloody Night of Bullets Quashed a Young Protest Movement” on November 18, 2020.

But Mohammed in his letter to CNN maintained that the organization erred in its investigation by premising its entire report on “unverified footage “which it sourced from social media channels as it had no reporter on the ground during the  very night the protest broke at the Lekki Toll Gate.

He said: “In airing its ‘investigative’ report, CNN conveniently forgot that on October 23, 2020, it emphatically tweeted, from its verified Twitter handle, that the military killed 38 people when it opened fire on peaceful protesters on Tuesday, October 20, 2020. Almost a month later, the same CNN – after a supposedly exhaustive investigation – is now reporting only one death from what the world was made to believe was a massacre.

“Is CNN not embarrassed by this sharp climb down? Has CNN owned up to this and apologised for its faux pas?

“It is also interesting that while CNN obtained footage showing when the vehicles carrying soldiers left their barracks and arrived at the Lekki Toll Gate, it could not obtain any footage showing the bodies of those supposedly killed in the ‘massacre’.

Read also:

#EndSARS: Lagos Panel Views Lekki Shooting Video Captured By LCC’s CCTV

Breaking! Lekki: ‘Massacre Without Bodies’, FG Flays CNN Over Report

Lekki Shootings: Our Workers, Supporters Have Received Threats Of Attacks, Says Amnesty Int’l

Lekki Shootings: More Details As LCC Claims CCTV Stopped Working After 8pm

“After all, forensic ballistic experts will most likely testify that firing military-grade weapons into a crowd will not leave anyone needing a microscope to look for blood or bodies at the scene.”

While expressing its complete disapproval of the report and calling on CNN to effect corrective measures, Lai Mohammed said a comprehensive, robust and exhaustive investigation into its ‘investigative’ report on the Lekki Toll Gate incident is necessary.

According to him, this would enable CNN to determine, among other things, the veracity, authenticity, standard reportorial ethics and journalistic pattern of the entire reportage.

Hamilton Nwosa(head, Polling, Research & Data Desk)
Hamilton Nwosa(head, Polling, Research & Data Desk)
Hamilton Nwosa is an experienced, and committed communication, business, administrative, data and research specialist . His deep knowledge of the intersection between communication, business, data, and journalism are quite profound. His passion for professional excellence remains the guiding principle of his work, and in the course of his career spanning sectors such as administration, tourism, business management, communication and journalism, Hamilton has won key awards. He is a delightful writer, researcher and data analyst. He loves team-work, problem-solving, organizational management, communication strategy, and enjoys travelling. He can be reached at: hamilton_68@yahoo.com

Subscribe

- Never miss a story with notifications

- Gain full access to our premium content

- Browse free from up to 5 devices at once

[tds_leads input_placeholder="Your email address" btn_horiz_align="content-horiz-center" pp_msg="SSd2ZSUyMHJlYWQlMjBhbmQlMjBhY2NlcHQlMjB0aGUlMjAlM0NhJTIwaHJlZiUzRCUyMiUyMyUyMiUzRVByaXZhY3klMjBQb2xpY3klM0MlMkZhJTNFLg==" pp_checkbox="yes" tdc_css="eyJhbGwiOnsibWFyZ2luLXRvcCI6IjMwIiwibWFyZ2luLWJvdHRvbSI6IjQwIiwiZGlzcGxheSI6IiJ9LCJwb3J0cmFpdCI6eyJtYXJnaW4tdG9wIjoiMTUiLCJtYXJnaW4tYm90dG9tIjoiMjUiLCJkaXNwbGF5IjoiIn0sInBvcnRyYWl0X21heF93aWR0aCI6MTAxOCwicG9ydHJhaXRfbWluX3dpZHRoIjo3NjgsImxhbmRzY2FwZSI6eyJtYXJnaW4tdG9wIjoiMjAiLCJtYXJnaW4tYm90dG9tIjoiMzAiLCJkaXNwbGF5IjoiIn0sImxhbmRzY2FwZV9tYXhfd2lkdGgiOjExNDAsImxhbmRzY2FwZV9taW5fd2lkdGgiOjEwMTksInBob25lIjp7Im1hcmdpbi10b3AiOiIyMCIsImRpc3BsYXkiOiIifSwicGhvbmVfbWF4X3dpZHRoIjo3Njd9" display="column" gap="eyJhbGwiOiIyMCIsInBvcnRyYWl0IjoiMTAiLCJsYW5kc2NhcGUiOiIxNSJ9" f_msg_font_family="downtown-sans-serif-font_global" f_input_font_family="downtown-sans-serif-font_global" f_btn_font_family="downtown-sans-serif-font_global" f_pp_font_family="downtown-serif-font_global" f_pp_font_size="eyJhbGwiOiIxNSIsInBvcnRyYWl0IjoiMTEifQ==" f_btn_font_weight="700" f_btn_font_size="eyJhbGwiOiIxMyIsInBvcnRyYWl0IjoiMTEifQ==" f_btn_font_transform="uppercase" btn_text="Unlock All" btn_bg="#000000" btn_padd="eyJhbGwiOiIxOCIsImxhbmRzY2FwZSI6IjE0IiwicG9ydHJhaXQiOiIxNCJ9" input_padd="eyJhbGwiOiIxNSIsImxhbmRzY2FwZSI6IjEyIiwicG9ydHJhaXQiOiIxMCJ9" pp_check_color_a="#000000" f_pp_font_weight="600" pp_check_square="#000000" msg_composer="" pp_check_color="rgba(0,0,0,0.56)" msg_succ_radius="0" msg_err_radius="0" input_border="1" f_unsub_font_family="downtown-sans-serif-font_global" f_msg_font_size="eyJhbGwiOiIxMyIsInBvcnRyYWl0IjoiMTIifQ==" f_input_font_size="eyJhbGwiOiIxNCIsInBvcnRyYWl0IjoiMTIifQ==" f_input_font_weight="500" f_msg_font_weight="500" f_unsub_font_weight="500"]

Latest stories

NDN
Latest News
U.S. Remittance Tax Casts Shadow Over African EconomiesAkwa-Ibom Commissioner Defies Gov Umo Eno, Resigns, Says I Can't Join Gov In APCTrump Vs Musk: JD Vance Declares Support For US President Amid Online RowExclusive: Inside Details Of Sanwo-Olu’s Alleged Strained Ties With TinubuRevealed! The most beautiful city in AfricaElon Musk’s Fortune Plummets By $34 Billion As Feud with Trump EscalatesGov. Umo Eno: Why I Dumped PDP For APC[Video] Akwa Ibom: Gov Umo Eno Officially Defects to APC in Major Political ShiftOtedola Hails Dangote's Refinery As "Eighth Wonder Of The Modern Era"Tears as Mohammed Uwais, ex- Chief Justice of Nigeria, Dies at 89Trump Slams Musk in Explosive Fallout Over Policy ClashNo Untouchables, I'll 'Touch' Abuja Wealthy And Heavens Won't Fall -- Wike BoastsTears As Nigeria's Ex-Ambassador To US, Jubril Aminu, Dies At 85"Why Wike's Politics Should Be Studied At Universities," Says Ooni of IfeUsing FOI Act As Blackmail tool Not Activism But Sabotage -- NEITI Warns
X whatsapp