NECCI PR Roundtable 26: Experts Call For Transparency, Human Oversight In AI-Driven Communication
Public relations practitioners and communication experts have called for greater transparency, accountability and human oversight in the deployment of artificial intelligence (AI), warning that the growing spread of misinformation and manipulated content poses a threat to public trust and democratic discourse in Nigeria.
They made the call at the 26th edition of the NECCI PR Roundtable, held recently at Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos, where stakeholders from government, business, technology, academia, the media and the public relations industry examined the growing influence of algorithms and AI on public communication.
The roundtable, themed “Algorithmic Influence and Public Relations: AI, Information Integrity and the Ethics of Democratic Discourse in Nigeria,” featured discussions on how organisations could leverage emerging technologies to improve communication while safeguarding credibility and public interest.
During a panel session moderated by Chizor Malize, Managing Director of the Financial Institutions Training Centre (FITC), speakers highlighted the growing challenge of distinguishing credible information from AI-generated falsehoods, stressing that technology must complement, rather than replace, human judgement and professional integrity.
Abdullahi Aliyu Maiwada, Deputy Comptroller and National Public Relations Officer and spokesperson for the Nigeria Customs Service, said technology, data analytics and social listening had become essential tools for managing institutional communication and responding to public concerns.
Maiwada explained that his communications team included information technology professionals and data scientists who monitored online conversations, assessed public sentiment and evaluated the performance of the agency’s digital engagement.
He said the approach had become particularly important in tackling fake news and impersonation, citing an instance in which a statement allegedly issued in his name was generated using AI.
According to him, monitoring online sentiment helps the agency understand emerging narratives, identify misinformation and determine appropriate responses to issues affecting its reputation and stakeholder relationships.
He added that admitting mistakes and providing evidence-based explanations were important to maintaining credibility, particularly when addressing contentious issues.
The customs spokesperson’s observations highlighted the growing need for public institutions to develop the technical capacity to identify manipulated content and respond to misinformation before it gains wider circulation.
Another panellist, Hassan Abdul, Lead Consultant and Chief Executive Officer of Drawbridge, noted that AI had significantly changed content development by making it easier to generate messages and tailor them to different audiences.
He explained that communicators could use the technology to understand the different needs, interests and characteristics of audience groups and develop messages that resonate with them.
However, he warned that the ability to generate content on a large scale had created a more difficult challenge for the communication industry: establishing trust in the information being disseminated.
According to him, audiences are becoming increasingly discerning and more likely to question content that appears fabricated or lacks authenticity.
He stressed that while AI could help organisations communicate faster and more efficiently, practitioners must ensure that the information they produce remains credible and capable of earning public confidence.
The discussion also underscored the importance of human oversight in the deployment of AI, with a panellist warning that the presence of a human operator alone was insufficient without the relevant knowledge and competence to assess the technology’s output.
The panellist argued that professionals overseeing AI systems must understand the subject matter and take responsibility for the decisions and information produced through such systems.
The position reinforced the need for public relations practitioners to combine technological competence with sound professional judgement and accountability.
Otunba Bimbo Ashiru, Group Chairman, Odua Investment Company Limited, also emphasised the importance of integrity in building trust between citizens, government and institutions.
He argued that public confidence could not be sustained where official statements lacked consistency or where institutions failed to demonstrate transparency in their dealings with citizens.
Ashiru maintained that trust must be earned through responsible conduct, openness and a willingness to question the actions of public officials and institutions.
His remarks reflected a central concern of the discussion: that technological sophistication alone cannot resolve the credibility challenges facing public communication.
Communication professionals must also demonstrate integrity in how they develop messages, engage audiences and respond to public scrutiny.
The concerns raised during the panel discussion echoed those expressed by former Minister of Education, Oby Ezekwesili, who warned that AI and algorithmic systems could make deception, political manipulation and the manufacture of public opinion easier.
Delivering the keynote address at the roundtable, Ezekwesili challenged public relations practitioners to examine the ethical implications of their communication strategies and determine whether emerging technologies would be used to strengthen democratic discourse or manipulate public perception.
She noted that persuasion was an established part of public relations practice but warned that the profession crossed an ethical boundary when reputation management became an attempt to manipulate reality or manufacture public consent.
“There is a thin line between persuasion and deception, between managing a reputation and manipulating reality, between strategic communication and manufactured consent,” she said.
Ezekwesili expressed concern that AI had reduced the cost and increased the speed at which misleading content could be generated and circulated, citing cloned voices, fabricated videos and artificially generated online supporters as examples of technology being used to create false impressions of widespread public agreement.
She also warned that social media algorithms were creating increasingly fragmented information environments in which Nigerians could receive different accounts of the same events based on their interests and online behaviour.