Remo Stars FC of Ikenne owner, Honourable Kunle Soname has voiced a passionate appeal to Nigerian journalists to use calm expressions in reporting negative incidents that occur during football matches.
While admitting that journalists have a responsibility of reporting both negative and positive developments, Soname reckoned that the way words are used could portray a scary picture about the round leather game in the country.
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Sports247 reports that Soname stated further during a parley with sports writers that ugly incidents also happen in European countries, but pointed out that reports of such are not highlighted or overblown in a negative way by their journalists.
Soname added, “Football will not grow if we keep saying negative things about it. We say all sorts about football, but it’s not meant to be so. By virtue of your job, you must hold people accountable for what they do; but you need to be calm about it.
When they do what is wrong, you must report it, and when they do what is right, you must equally report it. That is your job. All these things do happen abroad, but they have a calm way to report it.”
He went on to explain why there is a need for caution in the reportage of various incidents that occur in football matches, especially due to what he believes is the need not to paint ugly pictures about the sector.
“There’s a way you can report a negative incident that would not portray the game in bad light. Instead of reporting something as robbery during a match, just say it plainly that there was a penalty which was not given.
There are ways you would say things that would not put the game in bad light. So, I want to admonish you, for the love of the game and for the sake of its growth, let our reportage be calm,” Soname appealed.
The football buff, who is also the chairman of ValueJet airline and Bet9ja gaming site, concluded with a charge to Nigerian sports writers to dwell more on hyping positive things about football in the country.
“Let our use of words be calm and mild when reporting negative incidents.Let our positive reports be better. Let’s turn up the volume when reporting positive things. That’s what they do in Eurioe,” stressed Soname, who is the majority share holder at Portuguese top-flight club, UD Fereinse.
He reasoned further that only positive reports would help Nigeria’s domestic football scene develop further and faster, but stressed that negative news items would bring it down
