By Our Correspondent
Lagos, March 28, ’26 (TNZ) The Governing Council of the University of Lagos (UNILAG) has elevated two top lecturers in the Faculty of Communication and Media Studies (FCMS) to full-fledged professors.
TheNewsZenith reports that a veteran journalist and former editor in several Nigerian newspapers and magazines, Dr Ibitayo Samuel Popoola, is among the two new professors.
Also elevated is Dr Theresa Ifeoma Amobi, who joined the services of the University of Lagos in November 2006 and rose through the ranks to become a full-fledged professor.
TheNewsZenith reports that the duo are among 50 associate professors promoted to full-fledged professors across all faculties in the institution, as contained in the official newsletter of the University Campus News, issued on Friday.
Forty-five senior lecturers also benefited from the avalanche of promotions, elevated to associate professors.
Prof. Popoola is currently the faculty’s Postgraduate Coordinator and Head, Department of Mass Communication.
He has published widely in local and foreign journals, including several chapter contributions in local and foreign textbooks across the world.
Popoola authored many authoritative textbooks which are commonly found in many higher institutions offering mass communication, media studies and journalism.
Some of them are: Introduction to Government (2001), GSM as a tool for news reporting in Nigeria (2003), Public Relations, Advertising and Promotions (2005), among others.
An expert in Political Communication, Popoola left active journalism to pursue an academic career in 2001 and joined Unilag in 2002 as an Assistant Lecturer.
Read Related News:
- Foundation supports 16 indigent UNILAG students with N60m
- National Honours: Dept felicitate 4 Unilag Mass Comm alumni
- UNILAG Mass Comm in double celebrations
- Video: Why free education no longer feasible – UNILAG VC
- UNILAG VC advocates policy adjustment for world-class varsity system
Subsequently, he rose across the ranks from Lecturer II, Lecturer I, Senior Lecturer, Associate Professor and now a professor.
TheNewsZenith recalls that when he was in the journalism field, Prof. Popoola was at different times a Staff Writer, Political Correspondent, Political Editor, Assistant News Editor, News Editor, Deputy Editor and Editor.
TheNewsZenith reports that Prof. Amobi teaches communication research, communication theory, film studies, multimedia, new communication technology, international communication, and critical writing and review, among others.
Her areas of expertise include health communication, information disorder, broadcasting, multimedia, and digital journalism.
She has extensive international linkages as demonstrated in her appointment as a member of the Media Advisory Group of Africa Check, Fullfact and Chequeado Fact Checking Organisations domiciled in Africa, the UK and South America, respectively.
She is an independent researcher and consultant for Africa Check, and Media Ecosystems Analysis Group, a US-based organisation whose core activities include health discourse research focusing on misinformation in global health communication and media discourse analysis. In 2012/2013.
She conducted groundbreaking research funded by the Lagos State Government Research Council on how the government can leverage mobile and social media to engage with citizens.
This research led to the development of a digital hub/platform for government-citizen engagement on various issues.
Some of her other activities include serving as a member of the jury of the Google Media Initiative and the International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN) projects to fund fact-checking organisations worldwide in their efforts to counter Misinformation during the COVID-19 period.
She has also served as a member of the jury of the Africa Check yearly fact-checking awards and the Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) College of Screeners since 2016 and 2019, respectively.
She is an Associate Member of the Nigeria Institute of Public Relations (NIPR), a Senior Fellow & Member of the Governing Council of the Nigeria Institute of Social Media Analysts (NISMA).
Before joining the University of Lagos, Amobi had a two-year stint at the Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma, where she taught some journalism courses between September 2003 and September 2005
In August 2025, Prof. Amobi, then an Associate Professor, was appointed as the pioneer Acting Head of the Department of Journalism, Broadcasting and Media Studies, in the new Faculty of Communication and Media Studies. (TNZ)
Do you have a flair for Citizenship Journalism? Share stories of local happenings with TheNewsZenith on WhatsApp: +2348033668669. For more scintillating news, visit our website: www.thenewszenith.com. Also follow us on YouTube: www.youtube.com/@thenewszenithOnline, Facebook: www.facebook.com/@thenewszenithonline & Tiktok: www.tiktok.com/@thenewszenithonline
