Q&A with International Nigerian Journalist Ali Abare

For more than a decade, Ali Abare has covered local, regional, and international news from his native Nigeria. After earning a degree in ​Mass Communication and Media Studies from the University of Jos, he started his career in political reporting at Peoples Daily in Abuja, Federal Capital Territory. Just a few years later, he expanded his storytelling to the globally renowned Associated Reporters Abroad (ARA). 

Now, Abare leverages his international expertise to source and edit stories for Peoples Media Limited, contribute content to The Sun Publishing Limited, and consult on media production for Nasarawa State Government House. 

Q: Of the many changes taking place in the media industry, what recent shifts have had the biggest impact on your day-to-day?

A: Chatgpt. Lots of folks out here are abandoning their responsibilities to Chapgpt. Artificial intelligence is making some of our colleagues lazy. They merely hand over their creativity and essence to Chapgpt. I am alarmed at the rate journalists are exploiting this new device to create their stories and even reports. 

Q: What components of reporting are more difficult than they used to be (fact-checking, seeking sources, keeping readers engaged, etc)?

A: With the advent of social media, readers hardly make out time to read detailed reports when they can merely flip through dozens of titbits on the go on the blue app.

Q: Have you embraced any digital tools (for example, Twitter, TikTok, web scraping, HARO, Hemingway, etc) in your reporting in recent years? If so, which ones? 

A: I find it easier to share my reports on Twitter, known now as X. 

Q: On a scale of 1-10, how concerned are you about AI’s impact on journalism? If you’re very concerned, what impacts worry you the most?

A: AI has greatly impacted journalism. My major source of concern is the absence of that essential humanity.  A reporter is human and can relate effectively to his environment.  AI can only produce intelligence without the emotions necessary to create reality.

Q: Is there anything you’re particularly optimistic about for the future of digital reporting?

A: Digital reporting has come to stay. It gives the power of globalization to journalism. Its instantaneous nature is also a big advantage. 

Q: What keeps you up at night as a journalist in 2023?

A: Writing that story.