Shola Oshunkeye marks 70th birthday with a colloquium

Friends, professional colleagues, and family members gathered at the 70th birthday colloquium of Shola Oshunkeye, veteran journalist and Chief Executive Officer of The Creat Online, on Thursday, 23 April 2026.

He used the occasion to publicly present his book, Byline & Backbone: A Lifetime of Big and Impactful Stories, a collection of his notable works and the efforts behind them.

The reviewer was Dr. Lasisi Olagunju, Editor of Saturday Tribune, while Dele Momodu delivered the keynote speech. Among dignitaries present were former Governor of Ogun State, Olusegun Osoba; journalist and former media adviser to former President Muhammadu Buhari, Femi Adesina; the Aare Onakakanfo of Yorubaland and national leader of the Odua People’s Congress (OPC), Gani Adams; the Owa Obokun of Ijesaland, Oba Clement Haastrup (represented); and the Òràngún of Oke-Ila, Oba Adedokun Abolarin.

In the words of Momodu: “Today, the landscape has changed dramatically. We live in an age defined by speed and immediacy. Information travels faster than ever before, but often at the expense of depth and reflection.

“The pressure to break news has, in many cases, replaced the commitment to understanding. The pursuit of virality has overshadowed the responsibility of accuracy and empathy. In this environment, human intervention has gradually been pushed to the margins,” he said.

“In losing these voices, journalism risks losing its moral anchor. Human-interest journalism remains the foundation of meaningful reporting. It is through such stories that we develop empathy, understand the complexities of our society, and preserve the lived experiences of our people.

“Without it, journalism becomes mechanical and distant, stripped of the very essence that gives it relevance and purpose. There is an urgent need to reclaim the human dimension of journalism. This requires a conscious return to storytelling that is rich, nuanced, and deeply rooted in the realities of the people. It demands investment in depth, in research, and in narratives that go beyond the surface,” he added.

The panelists, coordinated by Funke Egbemode, discussed human-angle stories. Tony Onyima, former Editor-in-Chief of The Sun newspaper, said the shift is evident in newsroom priorities, noting that “more than 70 per cent of news content is about politics.”

Mayor Akinpelu, another panelist, submitted: “The stories themselves have not disappeared but have migrated to new platforms. I don’t really agree that there is a decline in human-interest stories; the platform has changed.”

In his response, Oshunkeye advised journalists: “You know, it’s the power of conviction. You have to have patience, you have to have perseverance, you have to endure, to be able to do this job.

If your ambition is to make money, then please, you can go and do so in another industry, because in journalism, the only thing you will make is your name.”