Professor of journalism, Kwame Karikari, has noted that so much ignorance prevails in the Ghanaian society.

This, he said, places a huge responsibility on journalists to up their game in churning out factual reports that will improve the lives of the people on a daily basis.

Professor Karikari was speaking at the maiden edition of the MTN Ghana Bright Media Awards held in Accra at the Alisa Hotel on Friday 11th March 2022.

The event was organized as part of the MTN’s 25th Anniversary celebrations.

Prof Karikari who is a former Board Chairman of the Graphic Group of Communications Limited, in his address said the initiative is “coming around this time in our quest for improving the boundaries of our press freedom, it is an important gesture, to say I want to contribute to public communication that is enlightened, that is educative.

“We live in a society where so much ignorance prevail, we live in a society where people need a lot of information, factual information, information that will improve their lives on a daily basis.”

He further indicated that award should challenge journalists to do their best in the line of their work.

“Just within the last few weeks, Ghanaians have been grappling with the problem of professionalism in journalism. We have all been privy to the issues that occasioned the spate of arrest that the new IGP has initiated about some journalists who had fallen foul allegedly to the very disturbing law called publishing false news and other arrests concerning security issues.

"Every journalistic award, however it is conducted, is a challenge to journalists," he said.