The Death of Preparation: What Omotola’s Viral Interview Reveals About Modern Journalism

*Has modern journalism lost its way?

By Bamidele Johnson

One morning, as part of the 15th anniversary of The NEWS Magazine, there were media interviews lined up with members of the founding team, our Editor-in-Chief, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, walked into the boardroom to meet a journalist who had been waiting. My office, which I shared with Demola Adegbamigbe, was right next door. In about the length of time an elite athlete would dispatch 400 metres, Onanuga was back. His face, frigid at the best of times, was animated with disgust.

“We need to save this job of ours,” he said with muted rage.

The problem? The interviewer’s first and only question was: “Who is Bayo Onanuga?”

That was enough. He ended the interview immediately and walked out, leaving the interviewer to do whatever he wished. He had a point. Even if he were not well known, it was the interviewer’s job to find out who he was speaking to before showing up. That is basic journalism; when that is missing, everything else falls apart.

Years later, not much has changed. If anything, things have become looser. The latest example played out at the Miss Nigeria 2026 patrons’ dinner, where a now-viral interview with Nollywood actress Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde went off the rails almost immediately.

Now, asking someone like Omotola to state her name to a Nigerian audience makes no sense. It is like asking a river to confirm it is wet; everyone already knows. To her credit, she did not shut it down immediately. She corrected him and tried to guide him. It was a second chance, yet he ignored it and repeated the same approach. The lifeline was wasted.

At that point, it stopped being awkward and became something else entirely. It was clear the problem was not nerves; it was a lack of preparation. Some people have called her arrogant, branding what she did a “diva moment.” That is not an accurate reading of what happened.

“I’m currently live here with…” the interviewer began, and then stopped, expecting her to complete the sentence for him. In other words, he wanted Omotola to introduce herself.

Arrogance is refusing correction. What she offered was guidance. What she got in return was the same mistake again. An interviewer’s job is simple: introduce your guest properly, set the tone, and show your audience why the person matters. Instead, this felt like a random street vox pop session smuggled into a formal event.

Then she walked off, choosing not to continue a bad interview. The interviewer then tried to grab her to stop her from leaving. “Don’t touch me,” she said. Quite right, too. You do not fix a failed interview by grabbing the person as they leave.

What is interesting is how some people rushed to defend the interviewer. It is as if expecting preparation is now too much to ask. But the truth is straightforward: having a camera or a social media account does not make someone a journalist.

Journalism requires effort. It requires knowing who you are speaking to. Omotola did not embarrass the interviewer; he did that himself. She simply refused to be part of it. The lesson is clear: these days, access may be easy, but standards are not.

-Bamidele Johnson is a veteran  Nigerian journalist, media strategist, writer, and communications professional.

-Culled from nBg Africa