Khadijah Aliyu
In every newsroom, behind every headline, and beneath every breaking story lies a quieter story one rarely told. It is the story of the emotional weight journalists silently carry.
While stress is a natural human response to pressure and rapid change, for many in the media, it has become a constant, heavy companion. And in journalism, that stress often comes with deeper layers: stigma, guilt, and the invisible scars of trauma.
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A veteran journalist, Bash M.Bash, understands this reality too well.
With years in the field, he describes moments when the pressure to report the truth clashed with the emotional toll of witnessing tragedy.
“I can absorb anything, as long as I believe in my job and know that I have something valuable to give to the public in terms of service delivery. I understand that stress is a very serious issue.”
Across Nigeria and particularly in Kano journalists say their daily routines are shaped by relentless deadlines, the urgency to verify information, emotionally draining interviews, and assignments that expose them to scenes most people hope never to witness.
A Conflict reporter, Muhammad Abdulsalam, described how the job often pushes reporters into danger.
“As a professional, when an incident occurs, you have to step out of your house, move around the city, and see what is happening. But in doing so, you do it at the risk of your life you may go out safely, yet there’s always the chance you might not come back.”
Muhammad Ya’u, a journalist who once reported amid active conflict, recounted the harrowing experience of covering a bomb blast.
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He described how he navigated the chaos, prioritising the story and the truth over his own safety, only to face the lingering emotional aftermath long after the incident.
“A market was bombed, and several people lost their lives. The trauma has stayed with me i will never forget that day,” he recalled.
Others face challenges not just from conflict, but from rural and grassroots reporting.
Longton Ibrahim Yakubu highlighted the emotional and physical strain of working in remote communities, often with little support, safety, or understanding from the public about what journalists endure.
According to Dr Aminu Shehu Ibrahim, a consultant psychiatrist at Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital (AKTH), journalism has quietly become one of the most mentally demanding professions.
He explained that journalists, like security personnel, regularly witness human suffering yet their trauma often goes unacknowledged.
“Journalists tell everyone else’s story,” Dr Ibrahim noted, “but they rarely stop to confront their own emotional pain.”
He urged media houses to prioritise mental health and called on journalists to seek help when needed, rest sufficiently, and recognise early signs of burnout before they escalate.
As the pressures of the modern media landscape intensify, fueled by digital competition and the race to break news, mental health experts say it is time for society to turn the spotlight on the well-being of those who keep the public informed.
The stories they tell shape the nation, but the stories they carry inside are the ones that need attention now more than ever.