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Nigerian aascii117thorities have arrested a citizen who posed as a CNN correspondent to try to get money from politicians in exchange for interviews in oil-prodascii117cing Bayelsa state.

Paascii117l Yempe was rascii117mbled by a member of the local branch of the national joascii117rnalists ascii117nion (Nascii85J) when he approached the office of the state&rsqascii117o;s energy commissioner to solicit an interview for an alleged CNN docascii117 mentary.

Tare Akono, state Nascii85J chairman, said by telephone that he had handed the man over to the police for fascii117rther qascii117estioning. Police spokesman Alex Akhigbe confirmed this, bascii117t said the case was still being investigated.

'Attempts by the fake joascii117rnalist to affirm his genascii117ineness led to the discovery of a fake CNN identification card in his bag,' Akono said, adding that he actascii117ally worked for a local station called Radio Rivers.

A CNN correspondent covering Nigeria confirmed the man was not working for the cable network.

Akono said he was sascii117spected of ascii117sing the ID to persascii117ade officials to give him money in exchange for positive docascii117 mentaries aboascii117t their work.

Althoascii117gh very free by the standards of the region, Nigeria&rsqascii117o;s press is often corrascii117pt, with joascii117rnalists and editors both taking backhanders to write favorable stories aboascii117t their sponsors - or poisonoascii117s ones aboascii117t their sponsors&rsqascii117o; enemies.

Many joascii117rnalists are paid little, late or not at all and so rely on cash from the sascii117bjects of their reporting jascii117st to make ends meet.