The Lead Partner of CMC Connect (Perception Managers), Mr. Yomi Badejo-Okusanya, has urged student journalists and Public Relations practitioners to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools to craft compelling stories but warned against relying on them too heavily.
Mr. Badejo-Okusanya (fondly called YBO) said this while delivering a lecture at the monthly professional forum of the Nigerian Institute of Journalism (NIJ), Ogba, Lagos, on Wednesday, June 19.
Speaking on the theme, ‘PR in the age of tech and AI’, the PR guru said, “You find a situation whereby people are not doing enough. Due to the availability of generative AI tools like ChatGPT, Meta AI, and Gemini, students just want to ‘garbage in and garbage out’ which will give mediocre results.
“AI won’t take the place of human beings. It’s an enhancement tool which means you still have to do your work. “
He also asserted that writing skills remain important prerequisites for practicing PR.
“The problem we’re having in PR today is that not too many people can write and tell compelling stories. Great PR practitioners are often those who have passed through journalism.
“Despite the relevance of generative AI tools such as ChatGPT, trend analysis and fact-checking are skills paramount to writing compelling stories,” he added.
With over 30 years of experience covering advertising and marketing, Mr. Badejo-Okusanya is also the President of the African Public Relations Association (APRA).
According to YBO, some of the challenges of using AI in Public Relations include maintaining authenticity, ethical considerations, data security, and privacy.
However, he predicted that the rapid adoption of high-tech in the Nigerian media space would activate influencer engagement.
“There are AI tools you can use to channel your media material to the right audience. The adoption of these tools will change the way we practise PR especially with the use of various social media platforms,” he added.
The lecture also included a practical session, during which students were guided in the art of effective prompt generation, fact-checking, source citation, and ethical considerations regarding the use of generative AI tools.
In his contribution, the NIJ Provost, Mr. Gbenga Adefaye, told the students, “except all you want to do is run errands at media houses, you must be a good writer and literate in technological trends as they relate to media practice.”
The Provost presented Mr. Badejo-Okusanya with an award of recognition and lauded his contributions to Public Relations consulting in Nigeria.
The NIJ monthly professional forum is an interface session that is integrated into the students’ activities to bridge the gap between academia and industry, preparing them for successful careers in journalism and communication.
