News
State of the media in Kenya: launch of the national assessment report on media development
Originally published on 3 March, 2023.
Through the support of UNESCO, Maseno University undertook the nationwide assessment to produce the report whose research was done based on the UNESCO Media Development Indicators (MDI). The indicators serve as a standard measure to show the levels of media development in different countries.
The report is the fruit of two years of work carried out by the Department of Communication and Media Technology at Maseno University and offers a series of recommendations aiming at supporting policy makers and media development actors to improve the media sector in Kenya. From the report, it was highlighted that only 23% of female journalists are reporters and that 19% of stories and sources in the news represent women.
Dr. Charles Nyambuga, Senior Lecturer and Lead Researcher of the report highlighted the challenges that his team underwent in the process of collecting data countrywide. ‘It was a tedious exercise and we had to cover the whole country,’ he underlined.
The launch, which attracted over 70 participants from diverse backgrounds—media and journalism students, journalism and communication educators, and representatives from civil society organizations in Kenya—was graced by Prof. Guy Berger, former UNESCO Director for Policies and Strategies for Communication and Information.
The Windhoek Declaration was Africa’s gift to the world. It spoke to Africa’s commitment to media freedom, pluralism, and independence. The report can help journalists to tell the story of Kenyan media and assist in understanding the environment that upcoming and current journalists are working in.
He further challenged Maseno University, the Director for Freedom of Expression and Media Development at UNESCO and the represented universities, to prepare a simplified summary of the report that could be used to train journalism students and be given to the media, policy makers and other stakeholders.
This report was prepared through the support of the UNESCO International Programme for Development of Communication (IPDC), which is the only multilateral forum in the UN system designed to promote media development within developing countries, countries in transition, and countries in conflict and post-conflict situations.
Kenya is the 20th country in the world to undertake the exercise, following the path of nine other African countries.
