Let’s be measured in our utterances on politics and religion - Arnold to showbiz pundits, hosts

Entertainment critic and pundit, Arnold Asamoah-Baidoo has admonished his colleague journalists in the entertainment industry to be measured in their discussions about politics and religion.

He noted that it is imperative for journalists to be cautious in their remarks about politics and religion because they are delicate issues that could trigger emotions and lead to unnecessary attacks.

The entertainment critic who condemned the recent attack on United Television (UTV) during the United Showbiz program applauded the leadership of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) for showing remorse and apologizing to the station and the general public after it was affirmed that the thugs were affiliated to the party.

"We as media personalities, journalists, and analysts, should be measured when it comes to discussions pertaining to politics and other things. It is very important because one thing triggers the other.

"So inasmuch as we are condemning what happened, we as individuals on media platforms should be measured in how we communicate especially when it comes to issues about religion, politics, gender, and in recent times LGBTQ. These issues are tense to the extent that if you are not careful it could arouse a lot of emotions, so it is important for us to be guided in our discussions,” Arnold advised during the United Showbiz program which GhanaWeb monitored.

He further noted that It is important for the nation to condemn acts like these because it is not palatable and shouldn’t be tolerated in the public domain.

He commended the party chairman of NPP, Stephen Ntim for apologizing to the station and urged the management of UTV to make sure culprits are dealt with accordingly.

“For the NPP party chairman to apologize to the station shows that they’ve shown enough remorse. For this not to happen again, I hope that the management of Despite Media will take this issue on to serve as a deterrent to some other guys who would want to do the same to other stations, and shouldn’t end because they’ve apologized,” said Arnold Asamoah.

It would be recalled thugs said to be affiliated with the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) stormed the studios of UTV and abruptly halted the live broadcast of United Showbiz.

Approximately seven minutes into the show, which was broadcast live on GhanaWeb, voices of agitation could be heard in the background as host MzGee introduced the program. The evident confusion on the host's face was followed by an extended break in production before the program was eventually taken off the air.

Numerous reports that emerged after the sudden interruption of the production suggested that the show was disrupted by a group of men who entered the studios with hostile intentions.

According to the reports, the agitated individuals had entered the studio with the apparent aim of confronting Kwame A Plus, who is a regular panel member on the show.

Subsequent videos shared on social media depicted a chaotic scene within the UTV studio, with several men calling out for A Plus.

"We are waiting for A Plus today... A Plus has to explain to us why he tore our paper from the NPP party. We are here, we are waiting for A Plus. We are protecting our party property," one of the men is heard shouting in the studio.

Watch the video below

.@ArnoldBaidoo offers advice to media panelists and show hosts, emphasizing the importance of being mindful in their discussions#UnitedShowbiz pic.twitter.com/0XWmo3mDKE

— UTV Ghana (@utvghana) October 14, 2023