“In 1,000 words or fewer, tell us about yourself. You should include information on your immediate family, significant events in your life; what led to your interest in journalism; your experience in journalism, if any; and what you hope to gain through your work in the Department of Mass Communication. You may also want to write about what else interests you, bores you or moves you.”
Whenever I have had to teach a freshman journalism class or a beginning graduate class at the University of Lagos, I invariably gave the above assignment on the first day of class. There is nothing original about it, of course; it is almost word for word, one of two or three assignments by which the writing ability of applicants to the Graduate School of Journalism, Columbia University, is judged.
The results of this borrowed exercise, usually quite revealing, range from the cute and contrived to the sincere and spontaneous. Each individual comes through in his or her uniqueness, but there is always a point of convergence. That point is the answer to the question, “What led to your interest in journalism?” A few names come up: Gbolabo Ogunsanwo, Dele Giwa, Raymond Ekpu, Dan Agbese, Sonala Olumhense. Some of the older students cite Peter Pan (real name Peter Enahoro) of the old Daily Times.
But Dele Giwa is named on every list. Practically all the students cite him as their reason for entering journalism. They want to be able to write like him, move in high society like him, be famous and influential like him, be a star like him and, of course, be successful like him.
©By Olatunji Dare, The Guardian, October 28, 1986
