Nigeria, May 11 -- There is a dangerous trend among some Nigerian youths today. In the desperate pursuit of monetisation, online relevance and social media followership, many bloggers and content creators now spread falsehood, malign innocent people and damage reputations without evidence or conscience.

In the era of traditional media, there were gatekeeping mechanisms. Editors, fact-checkers and legal departments carefully scrutinised stories before publication to avoid libellous reports and misinformation. Journalists understood that publishing falsehood could destroy lives and attract legal consequences.

Unfortunately, social media has weakened those safeguards. Today, anyone with a smartphone, internet access, and a TikTok or Faceb...