7th August, 2019
Award-winning Nigerian investigative journalist and BBC correspondent, Ruona Meyer has received an Emmy nomination for her documentary, Sweet Sweet Codeine.
Ruona J, Meyer went undercover to investigate the people behind Nigeria’s cough syrup crisis and the documentary has broken several records since BBC Nigeria released it a year ago.
The document has won and been nominated for many awards. Most recently, it was nominated for an International Emmy in the ‘News and Current Affairs’ Category.
Reacting to the 2019 Emmy nod, Ruona Meyer tweeted: “Guys, I am still taking it all in but…here goes: Sweet Sweet Codeine has just got an #emmys2019 NOMINATION for News and Current Affairs, the FIRST for the BBC World Service and #Nigeria! CONGRATULATIONS, Team Africa Eye!”
Guys, I am still taking it all in but…here goes:
Sweet Sweet Codeine has just got an #emmys2019 NOMINATION for News and Current Affairs, the FIRST for the BBC World Service and #Nigeria!
CONGRATULATIONS, Team Africa Eye!— Ruona J. Meyer (@RGAMeyer) August 6, 2019
The documentary exposed the horrors of the opioid crisis that Nigeria is facing, as well as the corrupt forces behind it. The actual documentary hit 2 million views on Youtube.
The documentary prompted the Nigerian government to announce a reactionary ban on Codeine after months of trying to restructure and streamline its response to the codeine epidemic.
The 71st Annual Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards, honoring the best in TV programming, will be handed out Sunday, Sept. 22, and will be aired live on Fox starting at 5 p.m. PT from the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. A host has not yet been announced.
The ceremony will be in conjunction with the annual Primetime Emmy Awards and is presented in recognition of technical and other similar achievements in American television programming, including guest acting roles.