Journalist Albert has been trending on Twitter for the past two days for all the not so good reasons. Who is Journalist Albert, you might ask. We know, we weren’t sure about him too until ace journalists Nana Aba Anamoah together with Bridget Otoo and Serwaa Amihere decided to read his Twitter CV to us.
No, he doesn’t report for a TV or radio station. And no he doesn’t write in any newspaper you’ll ever come across. Journalist Albert is an online commentator (for lack of a better description) whose medium of choice is Twitter. We cannot deny that his tweets are more of opinions rather than facts but his social media presence is present enough to have caught the eye of renowned Ghanaian journalist.
Journalist Albert is what some would call an ‘Agenda Boy’- a master troll. His tweets usually follow an abrasive and mostly biased take on media personalities, political discourse and current affairs. For the most part, Journalist Albert remained within the confines of Twitter until he decided to take a leap out of the virtual into reality.
Journalist Albert auditioned for GHOne’s Next TV Star, a reality show searching (as the name implies) for the next big ‘Thing’ on television. Unfortunately, upon meeting the shows judges Journalist Albert had a reckoning when he was met by the judges Nana Aba Anamoah, Bridget Otoo and Serwaa Amihere who have all faced some scathing commentary from his Twitter persona.
What ensued was a verbal confrontation which has had social media abuzz with recognising the effects and consequences of cyber-bulling and trolling.
For us, everything that happens is a learning opportunity.
So, here are 7 life lessons we learnt from Journalist Albert’s audition with Nana Aba, Bridget and Serwaa.
1. Always have a burner Twitter account.
Yes, if you want to agend then be smart enough to agend without showing your face. Create a burner account for that alter-ego you know you don’t want people to see. This also applies to folk looking to get employed. These companies are checking more than just your LinkedIn profiles. Look sharp.
2. If you do good, you do for yourself.
Nobody send Journalist Albert. He decided to go and audition. All we will say is next time let your good deeds shout for you and your bad deeds? Well, gag them like the money our grandma’s wrap in cloth if you can.
3. Learn to have shame small.
Shame is good sometimes. For real, sometimes shame helps. This could all have been avoided. Now look at Journalist Albert. See how we are all getting second-hand shyment for him.
4. Be brave and be bold.
Inversely, we cannot deny that Journalist Albert boldness is to be commended. This gentleman went into the glass house that he throws stones at on a daily. If that isn’t boldness and bravery then we don’t know what.
5. Social media is real (sometimes).
It seems like social media is mostly just packaging– smoke and mirrors. However, the things we say on social media can affect people and in turn lead to consequences. Clearly, the end result of this whole situation is an example.
6. An apology can save you headache.
Maybe, just maybe if Journalist Albert had apologised during the audition all this brouhaha could have been avoided. Maybe oo. Either way, boys and girls, please, learn to apologise when you offend someone.
7. Some bad situations have silver linings.
Right now Journalist Albert is the talk of the town. While it’s mostly for the wrong reasons there is always the opportunity to spin it around into a positive teachable experience. We are sure Journalist Albert will definitely learn from this and do better.
