Nigeria’s major media organisations have urged the Federal Government and the National Assembly to urgently intervene to protect local journalism from the growing dominance of global digital platforms.
In a statement issued on Monday, the Nigerian Press Organisation (NPO) warned that unchecked control of Nigeria’s information space by foreign technology companies threatens press freedom, democracy and national cohesion.
The NPO, which brings together newspaper proprietors, editors, broadcasters, online publishers and journalists’ unions, said global platforms now dominate digital advertising, control information distribution through algorithms and monetise Nigerian news content without adequate reinvestment in local media.
According to the organisation, the weakening of professional journalism has implications beyond the media industry, including rising misinformation, threats to electoral integrity and increased social instability.
“Press freedom depends not only on legal guarantees but on economic viability,” the NPO said, warning that financially weakened newsrooms are unable to sustain investigative journalism or hold power to account.
The body called on the Presidency and the National Assembly to adopt a Nigerian-designed legal framework that recognises journalism as a public-interest activity and corrects imbalances between digital platforms and news producers.
It noted that regulators such as the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission and the Nigerian Copyright Commission already have powers to enforce fair market practices.
The NPO said failure to act would deepen public distrust, weaken democratic institutions and further erode Nigeria’s information sovereignty.
