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?
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