By Elempe Dele
The expectation of Rufai Oseni, Arise News TV Channel’s anchor by members of the rational public, not the usual friends is too high for him. Rufai is not a journalist.
He studied Animal Anatomy and Physiology at the University of Agriculture in Abeokuta and also studied at the Lagos Business School. He is a very bright mind, no doubt. He has been a guest lecturer in prestigious institutes like Cambridge and Sussex Universities. He has led training for senior executives. He is a mentor and presided over several technology conferences.
However, there is a question mark on his formal education in the field of journalism apart from his experience in several media houses.
First, journalism has its core codes and ethics all around the world no matter the differences in cultural traditions. The most common shared elements are the principles of Truthfulness, Accuracy, Fact-based Communication, Independence, Objectivity, Impartiality, Fairness, Respect for Others, and Public Accountability among others. Except there is a clandestine agenda or populist propaganda Oseni is pursuing, he seems not to be conscious of all these aforementioned ethical values of the journalism profession which is adjudged to be the fourth estate of the realm that serves as the watchdog and an integral part of democracy. In his duty as an anchor, Oseni finds it difficult to be objective, to be impartial, to be fair, and to respect others. He is particularly pessimistic and gives the idea of one pursuing an agenda. This obvious trait has been condemned by several scholars within the journalistic profession and outside the profession.
Just recently, Oseni had a very difficult time with one of the guests, Jesutega Onokpasa, on Arise TV which has sent ripples of questions about Oseni’s consistently unprofessional conduct as an anchor. This was the second time he had such a clash with the same guest. The first was when a guest, a lawyer, and a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, cast serious aspersions on the Supreme Court of Nigeria. Oseni entertained that illegality but was quick to reprimand Jesutega, who himself is a lawyer, for calling the other guest to order. That is not how to be impartial, that is not how to be objective, that is not how to be fair and that is not how to practice journalism. As a journalist(anchor) apart from knowing the nuances of the profession, one ought to also know the legal limits of guests on your shows. One of such character that Oseni entertains in his illegalities is Dele Farotimi. He makes very emotional and illegal statements on programmes with careless abandon and thinks them as the eternal truth. He finds a kindred spirit in pessimism with Oseni. However, this will be left for another day.
There are ways Television interviews are conducted, which are taught in elementary studies in journalism. Interviews can be filled with emotions depending on the subject. So hammering interviewees with ‘gotcha-style’ questioning or asking tough questions too much can make the guest feel uncomfortable. You must have it in mind that you are conducting an interview that will benefit your station, not an interrogation of a suspect. What Oseni does is interrogate his guests especially those on the other side(which shows his partiality) as if they are before the Inquisition.
Another very sour point in Oseni, when he interviews, is his inability to actively listen. As an interviewer, you seek information, clarification, stories, news…you are bound to listen more than talk even if you disagree.
The truth is, the ability, which Oseni does not possess in ample measure, to interview effectively and make your guest feel at ease is a very important part of journalism. This is so because, with compelling interviews, valuable information can be gathered. So you must build trust so that the information you seek can be given. An interviewee is likely going to express himself freely if he feels comfortable and the conversation is flowing. Oseni disrupts interviews and makes his guests feel they are at war with him because of their political affiliations. Yes, ask tough questions, hard-hitting questions, but do so with so much candor that will elicit answers from the guest. If they do not yield the desired results, rephrase your questions or move on to others. This is a valued skill as a journalist.
On the 30th of October, while interviewing Onokpasa, Rufai said and I quote:
“Patriotism means supporting your country at all times, but also the government when they deserve it. Mr. Onokpasa I put it to you that you came to misrepresent the facts as regards subsidy removal. President Tinubu announced subsidy on inauguration and that was effectively pulling out subsidy. So are you saying he didn’t remove subsidy, quoting the PIA law that has been there for a while is a misrepresentation of facts.”
The above is very poor and appalling coming from an interviewer and a supposed journalist. It is not only confrontational, it is not conversational and appealing.
He went on to interject the said Mr Onokpasa who was about to respond by saying “Let me finish please.” This is a subtle order for your guest you did not pay to appear on the program. Onokpasa would go on to accuse Oseni of raising his voice on him. Was it a mortal combat the audience was expecting to see or they were glued to your programme to gather information from the other side? Oseni must spell out what he wants actually.
Onokpasa, a lawyer, accused Oseni of practising sensationalism, which I quite agree with. He said he was rude to him, which an interviewer must avoid. “I am your guest. You will respect me.” At some point, Onokpasa threatened to walk out of the studio, and Oseni obliged him to do so if he so wished, something no journalist who knows the dos and don’ts of the profession will ever do. How do you tell your unpaid guest to leave your studio if he wants? How can you tell a guest that if he is not comfortable, he is free to walk out while laughing? Where is your sense of apology if he felt uncomfortable with your conduct?
I am aware a lot of persons outside the profession might not be able to understand my points as I speak from a professional perspective, however, the blatant partisanship and abandonment of professional objectivity and conduct must be discussed within the hallowed chambers of objectivity. And that is what Dr Ruben Abati seems to be doing to forestall the total breakdown of Arise TV.
One observation that must be noted is that Oseni, as an anchor, inserts himself into the narrative during interview sessions not as an anchor but as a celebrity and as the ‘voice of the people.’ But we recall his ‘Nigerian Attitude’ when he was apprehended in Lagos driving against the traffic laws.
Another of his uncomely attitudes is his appetite for preaching morals and good governance – making so many statements and attempting to put words in the heads and mouths of guests. “I put it to you that…” This he does very often instead of sticking to asking the necessary questions.
Larry King once said if it takes more than three sentences to ask a question, it is a bad question. It seems Oseni is oblivious to this.
I think Rufai’s style is aggressive and not necessarily unprofessional. He tends to be pushful and tries to stick with facts whether you like him or not. His style is like the Christian Amanpour of cnn or stephen sackur of BBC. You can only cage Rufai if you speak the truth and keep calm. Most of the people who have had issues with Rufai tried to lie and deceive the public. Watch his interview with Former Inec chairman Jega who caged Rufai , with sincerity and composure.
I think the writer of this article is emotional and biased in condemning Rufai, the fellow must be friends with Jesutega who did not comport himself well on national TV, he played Into the style and hands of Rufai. This writer did not watch the full interview of Jesutega or is too biased or emotional to give a fair view.
Jesutega was not well composed and tried to lie about the subsidy and economic situation ( tried to play legality vs morality) which in my view was Insensitive judging by the pains of a nigerian and clear gaffes and failures of this regime in that regard. It was Jesutega who tried to interrupt Rufai when he was asking a question, Rufai asked him to allow him finish and apparently Tega lost his cool. You will otice he greeted Abati and Ayo but did not greet Rufai at the start which means he came with beef for Rufai.
Rufai did not shout on him as Tega claimed but only said “let me finish” in a calm manner …when Tega lost his head , Rufai advised him to comport himself which reminded me of how Jega tamed Orubebe in 2015.
Rufai was very professional and calm. Jesutega disgraced himself and his legal profession which begs the question, the kind of characters what should come on national TV. Jesutega , Biodun Ajiboye and Priye silva ‘s spokesmen are all uncouth and lacking in wisdom, APC is doing itself disservice by allowing those people come on air and disgrace them by behaving like t**ts. They believe in shouting and interrupting and ATTEMPTS to Intimidate rather than celebral discourse.
I watched the interview from start to finish and the foregoing are my observations. I think the write up is based on emotions and not facts. Looking at the picture on this article it is abundantly clear the writer does not like the guts and persona of Rufai, which is ok. That you have personal resentment against the guy does not mean you should misrepresent the facts to the largely non reading nigerian population. Most nigerians dont read and dont have inquisitive minds, we just want to get by, as mentioned by Amechi, the writer among other is banking on our intellectual laziness to distort the facts of the interview. Rufai only slipped when Dr Abati tried to mediate and he kept talking , he later comported himself but Jesutega went on ranting and answering his own version of questions asked.
However, the issue I have with rufai and most anchors like suleiman , Maope , seun, Ayo (channels) is how they annoyingly interrupt their guests, claim there is no time and spend all the time asking questions. They like to hear themselves and ask questions with unduly long stories. We want to hear the guests not you the presenter. Rufai makes me so annoyed with interruptions and how he goes OK, OK, OK when a good point is being made, they all need a lot of training and quit trying to showcase how intelligent they are.
My 2 cents