Worried by the continuous spread of fake news and its effects on the society, media professionals and communications scholars have called for responsible use of social media to prevent the growing cases of fake information. 
   
According to them, fake news has a direct link to the pervasiveness of social media and digital technology.   Speaking at the lecture held in honour of Doyin Mahmoud, the founding Head of Department of Mass Communication, University of Ilorin, the Weekend Editor of The Guardian, Dr Kabir Alabi Garba, expressed concern that social media have become veritable channels for the spread of fake information. 
   
Garba, who spoke on the theme: ‘Cultivating the next generation of engaged citizenry: The media’s role in empowering young people,’ said the advent of social media, which has made everyone to see themselves as journalists, is aiding the spread of fake news. 
 
Garba, who was represented by Abiodun Fagbemi, noted that information disorder lends credence to the submission that social media have become veritable channels for the spread of fake information.
  
He said: “It appears everybody is now a journalist with the advent of social media but we try to let them know that a journalist is one who is trained to sieve information, know the information to release and the one not to release. You don’t release information that would set the society on fire, that is the essence of training, which every potential journalist should have. 

He, however, underscored the importance of social media, saying it has reshaped worldwide communication significantly, increased the speed of news spread, and connected the world stronger than ever. 
   
To mitigate the fake news challenge on social media networks, he enjoined students of journalism and trained journalists to see social media as a weapon to protect and advance their professionalism by spreading verified information. 
   
He explained that having the knowledge of the media is an indispensable tool of the 21st Century, which would enhance the capacity of young people to deconstruct and analyse media messages.
 
Another guest speaker, Alhaji Saadudeen Salahudeen, who spoke on ‘Making the best of your studies as a communication student: Opportunities and prospects,’ counselled the students on mentorship, saying having a professional to look up to in the media industry would guide one in the right direction.
     
While extolling the legacy of Mahmoud who died in 2009, Salahudeen advised trained journalists and students of journalism to take their studies seriously and uphold the ethics of the profession.
       
Also, a lecturer in the department and former Commissioner of Information in the state, Raheem Adedoyin, described the late Mahmoud as a journalist whose impact spread across the field of journalism and teaching. 
   
He said, “We are celebrating the life and times of an icon who taught quite a number of us. And it is in remembrance of his good deeds that this lecture was instituted. Mahmoud was well groomed as a journalist who did well, it is important we take home the virtues of good training, discipline and professionalism. 
   
He, however, noted that the phenomenon of fake news cannot go away easily because those who are not trained as journalists are practising freely without hindrances.