The Directorate of Research, Innovation and Development (DRID) of the Ghana Institute of Journalism (GIJ) has set Friday, February 18, 2022, for its maiden inter-faculty research seminar with a focus on “Collaborative Journalism; The Case of Fafaa FM in Dzodze.
Collaborative journalism is a practice which involves using a cross-entity approach to execute a journalistic endeavor. It encompasses news organizations working together with other non-news entities toward a shared journalistic goal.
Speaking at a faculty engagement ahead of the seminar, lead speaker and Dean of Faculty of Integrated Communication Sciences at GIJ, Dr. Modestus Fosu revealed a very intriguing and unique journalistic approach being adopted by Fafaa FM to collaborate with state institutions like the police, CHRAJ, NCCE, religious bodies, among others, to unearth facts and evidence against individuals who harass others with spiritual attacks in the community.
“The issue here is that in our laws you can’t take someone to court because you believe the person is invoking some spiritual attacks on you, there will be no evidence to support you, but the people believe it is real” Dr. Fosu said, adding, “that’s the kind of investigation Fafaa FM does, to really find evidence that will compel perpetrators to stop such activities.”
“And based on works that have been done where we have advocacy journalism, where we have various types of journalism which I’ll talk about, I see this as a type of journalism we haven’t discussed in Ghana”, Dr. Fosu added.
Dr. Modestus Fosu was of the view that collaborative journalism as being practiced by Fafaa FM in Dzodze is an “extreme form of advocacy, moving on to intervention”, indicating that “the intervention here deviates from the literature meaning of intervention, but rather providing solution to people who are under spiritual attacks.”
With regards to the expectation of participants, Dr. Fosu indicated that participants should expect a step-by-step analysis of the research endeavor which includes research questions, methodology, and his discovery relative to the topic and urged journalists and media practitioners to be present to share their knowledge for a collective decision on whether collaborative journalism is the way to go.
Dr. Fosu used the opportunity to appreciate the massive initiatives being undertaken by DRID, the research directorate of the Institute. He commended leadership for such innovative dialogue where academia interacts with practitioners to bring about positive change in the media fraternity.
Meanwhile, the Director of DRID, Dr. Este Sikanku, has expressed high optimism towards the event. He indicated that, “the directorate seeks to bring lecturers and students together in a conducive atmosphere to discuss research related issues while improving research culture in GIJ.”
“This is to also enable faculty to share their research work with the University and the general public,” he added.
Emmanuel Kwarteng & James Kwesi Avedzi