NOBEL laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, has objected to the headline of yesterday’s front page story in The Nation newspapers titled "How I escaped Nairobi attack, Soyinka".
Calling the headline sensationalist, disrespectful and reductionist, he said it left a false impression on the minds of casual readers, and banalised both the purpose and tenor of the memorial reading session held in honour of the late Ghanaian poet, Kofi Awoonor.
His statement:
How disappointing and distressful to encounter in The Nation newspapers your sensationalist headline “HOW I ESCAPED KENYA TERRORIST ATTACK” – Saturday Sept 28th.
This purports to be an extract or summation of my contribution to the event dedicated to the passing of our colleague, Kofi Awoonor! To have that headline framed in a way that attributed such a sentiment to me is an additional affront – disrespectful and reductionist.
The circumstances of the Nairobi outrage, the grave issues surrounding this pattern of human negativity, and the stature of Kofi Awoonor in whose honour we were gathered – which constituted the core of my address – deserve worthier treatment than this.
You extended the same attention-grabbing headline into page 59, even though the now transmitted remarks cannot, by any standard of journalism, be held to justify such a lurid bunting. “Escaped attack!” – your journal is entitled to your own deductions, but it is highly immoral and unprincipled to attempt to attribute such sentiments to me.
Writers, and the cause of literature, especially at such an occasion, deserve better than this. The full text of my address easily indicts your choice – on whatever level – and with any reader of average literacy. However, you will have left a false impression on the minds of casual readers, and banalised both the purpose and tenor of that gathering. You will have sold a few extra copies of your paper but – is this all that journalism is about? Have we now abandoned all notion of ‘responsible journalism’ on the altar of sales figures?
