Abstract The study aimed to find out the level of vaccine hesitancy to COVID-19 vac cines in Nigeria and determine whether social media is facilitating the spread of anti-vaccination messages about COVID-19 vaccines and the extent of vaccine hesitancy which is attributable to use of social media. The researchers used the cultivation theory to explain how frequent use of social media for information about the coronavirus pandemic has influenced users’ attitudes towards the COVID-19 vaccine. A survey was conducted which produced quan titative data from 300 respondents using the multi-stage sampling technique, with the questionnaire as the instrument to elicit data on how social media in fluenced respondents’ decision on getting immunized. Findings showed that he sitancy is high in Nigeria. It revealed that social media is facilitating the spread of misinformation about the COVID-19 vaccine. The researchers found out that hesitancy is attributable to social media because social media was the lead ing information source (45%) that enabled respondents to make the decision not to take the COVID-19 vaccine. This study recommends that governments, the NCDC, the NPHCDA, the health industry and the media must use social me dia, alongside traditional media to propagate vaccine campaigns to negate the misinformation spreading online.

Abstract This paper focuses on the journalistic practices of the Australian media and explores how the public interest profoundly influences the legal and ethical decisions made by the media when reporting on sexual harassment. The “pub lic interest” usually refers to a wide range of democratic interests such as the health, safety and welfare of citizens as a collective, and is a primary consid eration for the media when deciding which information to disclose or with hold from the public. This paper examines the dependency and dialectic between the public interest and the ethical and legal regimes of Australian journalistic practice, and provides insight into how the news media, thorough consideration,can make appropriate reporting decisions deemed to be in the best public in terest when covering news related to sensitive topics such as sexual harass ment. In this regard, this paper draws on some recent news stories on sexual harassment in Australia since 2020 and provides a comprehensive analysis of them.