It seemed our father's generally had an unanimous agreement to always switch to the Nigerian Television Authority's (NTA) news once it was 9 p.m., and if we were lucky, we were not chased home. I used to wonder what made my dad sit down to listen to the news every day when we could actually watch more interesting programs like movies that would intrigue us. We had no choice as children but to accept the rule of the head of the family—that's my dad—and watch the NTA news together.
Thankfully, technology advanced, and gradually the black and white television began to receive color, or perhaps we were able to afford a colored television. Over time, we procured a video player, and cassettes became the order of the day. I used to visit a shop to borrow cassettes at affordable prices, and soon enough, I became a regular customer. The television set was an object of competition between myself and my dad: I wanted to watch movies, and he wanted to listen to the news. The annoying part was that he could sleep off while watching the news, and the exact moment you attempt to change the channel, they will open their eyes as though they received a tap on their subconscious that their rights were about to be whisked away. I hated the news, even though it was eye-catching. I could not figure out its importance or relevance to me.
Adulthood has exposed me to life, and I have had to watch as many movies as I wanted. The movies gratified my mind and made me appreciate the culture and traditions of other people. I learned quite a lot from other people's movies.
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The irony of life is that I have had an unrivaled interest in listening to the news for three years now. After waking up, I tend to listen to the 7 a.m. breakfast news on the same NTA that I once considered a nuisance. I began to wonder what I saw in the news that always drew my attention. It was both good and bad. Good because I enjoyed being informed; bad because the contents were mostly depressing and hurtful. As much as I wanted to stay informed, I began to see myself get deformed by constantly listening to the news, my heart racing fast with the news of one calamity or another. Perhaps I had begun to view life in a newer dimension, which probably made me less interested in what's happening around me. Nonetheless, I still love to get information about my environment, far and near.
This attitude equally translated to me listening to the radio when going to work, as the stereo is often tuned to the news section every morning. At least, I'm certain the news comes from verified dailies as reported on the stereo, even though I know there could be inconsistency in some of them.
Thank you for reading through my tale of passion for the news. I would love to have your comments and contributions.
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