By FATIMA MOHAMMED-LAWAL

Registrar of Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Prof. Is’haq Oloyede, has described the unbundling of Mass Communication in the nation’s tertiary institutions as untimely.

Oloyede stated this on Tuesday in Ilorin while speaking at the 15th anniversary of 89.3FM, a radio station owned by University of Ilorin.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the programme had as its theme: “The Future of Radio, AI and the Transformation of Broadcasting”.

Oloyede, who said that specialisation should be restricted to post-graduate level, opined that Nigeria had not reached the stage for the unbundling of the course.

According to him, the country has many graduates looking for jobs, stressing that narrowing down their opportunities to particular disciplines may limit their chances of getting employed.

“We need to be broader, given the level of our under-development. It is important to keep Mass Communication at the undergraduate level,” he said.

Oloyede described radio as a form of mass media and sound communication contributing significantly to development of the society.

“The intention of the radio is to improve the night economy of a community, especially Ilorin. Some people are night workers, while some are insomniacs,” he said.

The JAMB registrar said that the country’s night economy had kept dwindling and needed attention, adding that radio could be used to fill the gap.

He said that the major role of the radio station was to disseminate educational programmes and information to students in and around the institution.

Also speaking, Vice-Chancellor of the university, Prof. Wahab Egbewole, lauded the radio station for its achievements since its establishment 15 years ago.

Egbewole also commended Oloyede’s visionary stance which resulted in the establishment of the station during his tenure as vice-chancellor of the university.

He pledged that the university would ensure that the radio station continued to develop and excel, even in the face of all odds.

“There is need for navigating, repositioning and going back to the approaches employed.

“The university will continue to identify with issues that challenge and proffer solutions to the community,” he said.

Also in her lecture, the Vice-Chancellor of Thomas Adewumi University, Oko, Prof. Francisca Oladipo, submitted that Artificial Intelligence (AI) could enhance radio communication.

Oladipo, who viewed radio as a powerful medium, said with the with emerging technology, it could reshape the industry.

According to her, radio broadcasting is diverse, dynamic and, through AI, can provide opportunities for personalisation and interaction with presenters.

“There is integration of podcasts. The radio provides accessibility, real time information, local focus, companionship and discovery platform,” she said.

Oladipo further stated that AI could be employed in script writing and fact checking.

She urged the university to use the station to generate contents for revenue yielding and teaching purposes.

Earlier in his opening remarks, the institution’s Director of Corporate Affairs, Mr Kunle Akogun, said that the radio station had become a force to reckon with.

Akogun said that the station had made waves in all areas of broadcasting, while effectively serving as one of the public relations outfits of the university.

He said that the radio station was established on Aug. 13, 2009 to provide a window to the larger community about what the university was doing as well as set standards for socially-responsible entertainment.

“It is to serve as a laboratory for training and simulation of activities and prepare students for careers in the media industry.

“It will also educate, inform, entertain and boost community development,” he said. (NAN)

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