Tag Archives: Arise TV

NBC sued for fining TV stations

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Nigeria’s National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) and its acting director-general are being sued along with information and culture minister Lai Mohammed over fines the commission imposed on three TV broadcasters last week.

Lai Mohammed

The lawsuit has been initiated by the Socio-Economic Rights & Accountability Project (SERAP), along with 261 groups and individuals, over the N9m (US$23,600) fines imposed by the NBC, which is led by acting director-general Armstrong Idachaba.

The fines were imposed on Channels TV, AIT and Arise TV for allegedly using unverifiable video footage from social media to cover the End SARS protests that recently took place in Nigeria.

In the suit, which is before the Federal High Court in Abuja, the SERAP-backed group has urged the court to declare that the fines are arbitrary, illegal and unconstitutional and should not be enforced by the NBC.

The group consists of co-plaintiffs including Premium Times Services, the Centre for Journalism Innovation & Development, the HEDA Resource Centre, the International Centre for Investigative Reporting, the African Centre for Media & Information Literacy and Media Rights Agenda.

They claim the fines were imposed without fair hearing and are in breach of the broadcasters’ constitutional rights.

“The NBC, being a regulatory body, is not empowered by law to act as the prosecutor and the judge all at the same time,” said a statement from SERAP.

“We humbly urge the court to set aside the unlawful and unconstitutional fines imposed on independent media houses, and to uphold the sanctity of the Nigerian Constitution, Nigerians’ human rights, media freedom and the rule of law.”

The plaintiffs are seeking “an order setting aside the arbitrary, illegal and unconstitutional fines of N9m and any other penal sanction unilaterally imposed by the NBC and Mohammed on Channels TV, AIT and Arise TV, and on any other radio/television station simply for carrying out their professional and constitutional duties.”

They also argue that the NBC Act and the Broadcasting Code are oppressive and inconsistent with the constitution and international obligations, which guarantee freedom of expression, access to information and media freedom.

“If the NBC and Mr Lai Mohammed are allowed to continue to use these oppressive provisions against independent media in the guise of performing their statutory duties, the result will be authoritarianism and denial of freedom and liberty,” they stated.

The group also asked the court to nullify the N5m and other penal sanctions unilaterally imposed on 99.3 FM Lagos for discharging its duties.

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NBC fines channels over protest coverage

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The National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) has sanctioned three major Nigerian broadcasters for using unverifiable video footage from social media to cover the End SARS protests being held in the country.

Armstrong Idachaba

Fines between N2m (US$5,260) and N3m have been imposed on African Independent Television (AIT), Channels TV and Arise TV.

The End SARS movement is a series of protests against police brutality in Nigeria that is calling for the disbandment of the police unit known as the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS).

The NBC had warned last week that broadcasters must perform the role of peace agent by adhering to the principles of responsibility, accuracy and neutrality in reporting the protests.

Armstrong Idachaba, acting director-general of the NBC, warned that further sanctions would be harsher.

Non-profit legal and advocacy organisation SERAP has condemned the fines imposed by the NBC and is demanding that it withdraw them or face legal action.

A post on the SERAP Twitter page said: “We condemn the illegal fines of N9m reportedly imposed by the National Broadcasting Commission on Channels TV, AIT and Arise TV (3m each) over their coverage of the End SARS protest. We’ll sue the NBC if the unconstitutional fines are not rescinded within 48 hours.”

 

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Arise TV centre to offer election analysis

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Arise TV, the broadcast arm of newspaper ThisDay, has launched an Election Analysis Centre (EAC) in preparation for the forthcoming general election in Nigeria.

Idayat Hassan

The EAC opened on February 14 having been set up in partnership with the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD), the National Democratic Institute, online newspaper TheCable and other Nigerian media organisations.

In tandem with the EAC opening, a new TV programme titled #Decision2019 was launched recently in partnership with Arise TV. The EAC is situated in the Central Business District of Abuja.

CDD director Idayat Hassan said: “Together with the station, we shall televise the analysis centre on the flagship programme. This is to create a platform for impartial analysis using evidence and data to explain polls to the citizens.

“The programme will also inform voters about procedural matters and arrangements that are made for the conduct of the elections, serve as a non-partisan platform for INEC [the Independent National Electoral Commission ] to communicate its messages to the electorate.”

About 3,500 trained observers will be deployed to closely monitor the elections in all 36 states. According to Hassan, there will also be a GPS-enabled CDD election tracker to enable proper accreditation and voting processes as well as a fact-checking team to counter fake news during the elections.

The EAC is intended to be the one-stop shop for analysis and plans to give accurate reports on events before, during and after the election. Arise TV can be accessed in more than 56 countries.

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Aledeh cooks up Political Stew

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Celebrated broadcast journalist and former Arise Daily news anchor Sulaiman Aledeh is returning to TV with a political talkshow, titled Political Stew.

Sulaiman Aledeh

The move comes months after Aledeh left Arise and launched his own online news platform, Aledeh.com.

The show, which will focus on political issues in Nigeria, will air on Television Continental (TVC), although a premiere date is yet to be announced.

The show is expected to set the pace for political discourse ahead of the 2019 general election. According to Aledeh: “It will stand out from other political shows. We won’t be biased, we will not gag anyone, yet we will be firm.

“We are setting standards with some of the finest hands in the industry. For every guest we bring, the viewer must get quality for time spent watching.

“The presentation style will be fluid, breezy and sometimes tastily spiced. So, when you’re looking for those who haven’t been on any television show before, you’ll find them on Political Stew.”

Prior to joining Arise TV in 2017, Aledeh anchored various political programmes on Channels TV, where he worked for eight years as a news anchor, producer and co-host of Sunrise Daily.

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