THE MEDIA LIFE OF YINKA CRAIG

Yinka Craig was an Iconic broadcaster and one of Nigeria’s shining lights in Sports journalism, a television host, an articulate compèrè and a detribalised Nigerian.

He was an amiable man who distinguished himself in his chosen career, for close to 40 years and who, in the process became a mentor to many.

Early in life, Craig had planned to study Sociology preferably to the Ph.D level in the United States and stay there as a lecturer, but fate had his path cut out for him in broadcasting.

 He joined the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation (now Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria) in 1967 as a studio operator. He rose to the limelight as a sports commentator and analyst in the 1980s while on the staff of the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA).

A very well-informed commentator, he was one of the most travelled broadcast journalists of his time. Craig later confessed that he had to give up sports analysis in order to diversify his talents. That decision brought out the best in him as a multi-talented professional.

Following his voluntary retirement from the NTA in 1990, he went into packaging private corporate documentaries just as he was involved in information technology (IT) and computer operations, through his marketing communications outfit, Yinka Craig and Associates.

 He remained actively involved in television programming and soon became famous for his presentation of Newsline, a highly regarded news magazine feature on television.

Later, Craig also served as the main anchor of AM Express, an early morning show that is laced with freshness and originality. Craig impressed viewers with his encyslcopaedic grasp of varied subjects and inimitable presentation style.

He never quite realised his dream of studying sociology or obtaining a Ph.D; although in later life he had tried to return to school, he was a self-made man who developed himself so well and rose to the peak of his career.

 A jolly good fellow from a popular family in Abeokuta, Ogun State, he was always at ease playing the guitar, the piano or the sax. In no small measure did he add value to the entertainment sector in the country. As the attestation goes, he was a charming, nice person to relate or work with.

Widely regarded as a role model, Craig, a man of many parts, lost his spirited battle of over 18 months with cancer of the lymphatic systems at a clinic in Rochester, Minnesota in the United States of America on 23^rd September 2008.