A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Segun Showunmi, has criticised Mehdi Hasan, a journalist with Al Jazeera, over what he described as a hostile interview with the Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Media and Policy Communication, Daniel Bwala.

 

In a post shared on X on Sunday, Showunmi argued that Hasan’s approach went beyond tough questioning and crossed into personal attacks.

 

According to him, journalism should focus on serving the public interest rather than the personal agenda of an interviewer.

 

“Hostility is not journalism. Mehdi Hasan take note. There is a clear difference between tough journalism and outright hostility. One serves the public interest. The other serves the ego of the interviewer,” Showunmi wrote.

 

The PDP chieftain’s remarks have since sparked discussions online, with supporters and critics debating the tone and style of the interview as well as the role of journalists when questioning public officials.