When Everything Looks Like Content

I saw a young woman crying, begging and wandering around near UNIZIK Junction  Awka. She was neatly dressed, which made the situation even more unsettling for me and other passersby. Some people felt sympathy. Others laughed, pulled out their phones, and dismissed her with comments like:“She looks too decent for this. She is probably creating content. How can a grown woman, dressed like that, be crying and begging young men for money unless she’s on hard drugs? That is when everything looks like content!

That moment reflects a disturbing shift fueled by content culture in Nigeria. The internet gave young Nigerians opportunities to create, entertain, and earn a living. But the race for virality has pushed many people toward reckless extremes. We now regularly see staged kidnappings designed to test public reactions, fake giveaways that end in stampedes, pranks that simulate assault in public spaces, and skits that mock mental illness or disability for laughs.

The consequences are serious.
1. Public trust is collapsing
When every public breakdown is suspected to be scripted, genuine distress gets ignored. Nigerians are becoming conditioned to scroll past pain, assuming it’s “just content.” Victims of abuse, depression, or sudden hardship risk being filmed instead of helped.

2. Empathy has become monetized
Suffering is now a content niche. Tears, panic, humiliation, and chaos generate engagement, so people manufacture them. Audiences, constantly exposed to staged emotions, become cynical. Compassion is reduced to a currency traded for likes and views.

3. Our national image suffers
These videos don’t stay local. They spread globally and shape how outsiders perceive us — as a society where trauma is staged for clout and public order is secondary to engagement. That perception affects tourism, partnerships, and the dignity of ordinary Nigerians who are simply trying to live honest lives.

4. Legal and physical dangers are increasing
Law enforcement agencies have arrested skit makers for inciting panic. Some creators filming fake thefts or kidnappings have been attacked by mobs. One poorly judged prank can lead to detention, injury, or even death. The line between “content” and “crime” is thinner than many realize.

5. Mental health is being trivialized
Real psychological conditions are turned into entertainment. When emotional breakdowns are constantly faked for content, it becomes harder for people with genuine mental health challenges to be taken seriously or seek help without stigma.

Awka is growing rapidly, and growth demands responsibility. We need stronger ethical standards for content creation, platform accountability, and public education about responsible media culture. Creativity should never come at the expense of truth, dignity, or public safety.

As for the young woman near the UNIZIK Temporary site crying and begging for arm — was she acting, or was she genuinely in crisis? The fact that nobody could confidently tell is the real indictment.

If she is struggling with mental health challenges, she deserves intervention from healthcare professionals, the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, or any compassionate individual willing to help. But content culture has conditioned us to doubt first and care later.

This nonsense has to stop!

By Sylvia Tochukwu-Ngige
Founder of https://sylviangige.com
Where women’s power meets real life.

Links:
1. https://www.who.int/nigeria
2. https://www.npf.gov.ng`
3. https://www.nfvcb.gov.ng`