- By Halimah Olamide
The management of the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism on Saturday named a prominent researcher and Harvard professor Biodun Jeyifo as the lecturer for the coming 90th birthday event of Nobel Laureate, Wole Soyinka.
A statement from the centre which was signed by its Director, Mrs. Motunrayo Alaka, said the event will be held on July 13th at the Muson Centre, Onikan Lagos.
According to the centre, the theme of the lecture is The Death of Truth? Realism, literature and journalism in an age of disinformation.
The centre said Jeyifo will be joined by Chidi Odinkalu, Lawyer and Civil Rights Activist; Odia Ofeimun, poet, author and political scientist; Kadaria Ahmed, journalist and media entrepreneur; and Chiamaka Okafor, a journalist. Umaru Pate, Professor of media history and Vice Chancellor, Federal University, Kashere, Gombe State, will chair the occasion.
“The theme emerged from a pressing need to examine how different forms of storytelling—be it realistic art, literary fiction, or journalistic reporting—contend with the complexities of truth in today’s world, which is increasingly saturated with disinformation. The theme also reflects on the responsibilities of writers, artists, and journalists in preserving and promoting truth,” the centre said
The Wole Soyinka Centre Media Lecture Series , according to the centre’s website, is an annual programme of the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ) aimed at examining varying topical issues that are related to the performance of the media on the health of Nigeria’s democracy and the country.
“The tradition of holding the event on 13 July started in 2009 to celebrate Professor Wole Soyinka, WSCIJ’s grand patron, on his birthday,:” WSCIJ said