The Language of International Media

I just   read 2 reports about the recent explosions in Lagos on the Internet.
The language some of these reporters use  completely pissed me off, again....

First and foremost my heart goes out to the unfortunate souls who have lost their lives .
I would have thought by now some of these Global media  houses would be a little  responsible in their reporting or is there just a completely different agenda when it comes to reporting about countries like Nigeria.

Here is the report :-

LAGOS (Reuters) - A pipeline explosion on the outskirts of Nigeria's biggest city Lagos killed about 100 people on Friday, a Red Cross official said.

Vandals were tapping into the pipeline to steal oil when the blast erupted, setting fire to about 500 jerrycans full of oil, Abiodun Orebiyi said.

"We've been able to confirm about 100 dead. We could not discover any survivors or injured people. We are searching for them," he said.

Police spokesman Haz Iwendi earlier said nobody had died in the explosion of the pipeline, which is owned by state company Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). Iwendi later called back to say the information had been wrong.

A dilapidated port city home to an estimated 13 million people, Lagos has been hit before by devastating explosions. A blast at a munitions dump in 2002 killed more than 1,000 people.

Here are my irritations

1)A dilapidated port city home to an estimated 13 million people, Lagos has been hit before by devastating explosions. A blast at a munitions dump in 2002 killed more than 1,000 people.

Lagos is the smallest state (Minus FCT which is considered a separate entity)  in Nigeria with close to 20 million people living in it , I would be the first to admit yes it is a "Dump"  but where  is the need for adding this dilapidated bullshit in the mix, there are newer parts of Lagos that are not dilapidated and run down so why mention this at all ?

Baltimore City , Maryland in the US is a dilapidated port city but i never hear it being described as this in News reports .

2)I read someplace else the people described as scavengers - (such irresponsible reporting)
Ive seen news reports of people scavenging food in war torn parts of the world , I've seen people scavenge discarded cigarette butts on the streets and in ash trays,  but please someone drilling holes in oil pipelines to sell at a higher price by the border is not a scavenger , Call him vandal, a thief, an opportunist or as we say in Naija oil bunkerer .

But Scavenger, in my opinion is using a word in a way that borders on racism and No responsible media should condone this, unless......

NB: I think other foreign media houses should emulate the BBC .
(BBC also reported like this in the past but have improved remarkably)

Just tell the story .

Comments

[obokun]

We like your blog and would like to invite you to view a manifesto setting out how Nigeria can be improved. Posted by Renegade Eye.
Please, by all means, take a swing in the comments, too.

[Charles Mba]

"My people do not vandalise pipelines, it’s a professornal cartel that does that." OBA Mobadenle Oyekan, the Onilado of Ilado.

[David WIlson]

in one report i read someone called these people 'greedy' - that hit me the same way, i would say they might be desperately poor, and they are probably (righteously) angry that their resources are taken by foreigners and then squandered and then returned to them as global warming, but greedy? hardly