[kictanet] [ke-internetusers] Kenya communications(amendment)Bill: Is media overacting?

[Mike Theuri]

Dr. Ndemo,

Hopefully the media realises the greater negative impact to Kenyans were the
bill not to be implemented. That is not to dismiss the media's concerns but
also to ask that they continue to engage in constructive means of reaching a
middle ground, meaning that both the media and the
Government/Parliament/Public will need to yield some ground in order to
strike a compromise.

The end of impunity will place the country on a better path going forward.
The resolve to do so will face challenges but hopefully that resolve shall
prevail. On the other hand it is not clear what consequences the Media
Council imposes on errant members of the profession that does not amount to
wrist slapping. For example it is well known that the legal professional has
the consequence of being struck from the roll of advocates which has
financial consequences for those it is imposed upon. If the media council
were to impose deterrent penalties for infractions of inappropriate content
and reckless misconduct, the media would exercise the same caution in does
in not libelling individuals capable of taking them to court. The media has
a social and collective responsibility to ensure that it does not present
content that contributes to a decay in society. The ball is in the media's
court to prove how they deal with errant members and if they fail to do so,
it leaves society with little but no option to come up with a means to do
so. As inferred to in a separate post, some of the inappropriate content the
media has created would draw crippling fines in some of the world's most
open societies.

On Mon, Dec 15, 2008 at 12:04 AM, <bitange at jambo.co.ke> wrote:

> Mike,
> Thank you for your objective views.  You know very well that there are
> thousands of youth out there who have patiently waited for this bill to
> allow them trade on-line.  Now Media calls theirs.
>
> The outcomes of the Kriegler and Waki would hopefully deal with political
> impunity.  Who will deal with media impunity?  In my view we must push
> this Bill to ensure that electronic media does not continue to corrupt our
> children's minds.
>
> Ndemo.
>
>
> > Dr. Ndemo,
> >
> > I hope that the media note that they are on the wrong path and move to
> > change their approach. In hindsight they might realize that the issues at
> > hand could have been tackled differently.The media's most recent actions
> > only make it more difficult to resolve the very same issues they are
> > protesting.
> >
> > The Nation's editorial perhaps represents the divergence in views between
> > the media owners, their supporters and responsible journalists who may
> > have
> > seen that things are steering in a dangerous direction. As the matter
> > drags
> > on, various elements will try to take advantage and jump onto the
> > bandwagon
> > to further certain agendas. It is this catalyst that is worrisome, as
> > there
> > is the possibility that just as the media issue has somehow been tied to
> > economic issues, the media issue could easily be misused by those who
> have
> > little to do with the media.
> >
> > The country has many volatile problems that should not be exploited, some
> > of
> > those jumping onto the media bandwagon may be seeking to detract from
> > matters facing them, others have personal agendas in mind that can only
> > progress if they are disguised as media and economic issues. The media
> > hopefully is looking at these issues in a responsible manner, will
> > exercise
> > diplomacy and engage the Government in a civil way as the best way to
> > resolve the impasse. There are many Kenyans suffering today from matters
> > not
> > within their control, it is a dangerous thing for the media to act in a
> > way
> > that could easily stir these masses to non-civil action as measures are
> > being taken to alleviate these problems. The media has a corporate
> > responsibility in ensuring that it exhausts all civil means of ensuring
> > the
> > matters are resolved.
> >
> > It is encouraging to know that the Government is open for discussion, but
> > there is only so much that the Government can do on legislative matters.
> > The
> > Government can draft, prepare and adjust laws but it cannot pass the same
> > in
> > parliament. The media must do more on its own in approaching not just key
> > leaders but ultimately the legislators who actually vote to pass the same
> > laws.
> >
> >
> > On Sun, Dec 14, 2008 at 5:11 PM, <bitange at jambo.co.ke> wrote:
> >
> >> Thanks Theuri,
> >> Since Government is open for discussion, diplomacy would yield better
> >> results.  I have seen their action plan which by the way violates cck
> >> licence agreement it is not the best rout to take.  Having spent all
> >> weekend
> >> using public resources (frequencies) to propagate violence, they should
> >> at
> >> least wait to hear from cck.
> >>
> >> If you read today's Nation editorial on how to end impunity including
> >> media
> >> impunity you wonder if they are the same people inciting the public to
> >> violence.
> >>
> >> Ndemo
> >> Sent from my BlackBerry(R)
> >>
> >> -----Original Message-----
> >> From: "Mike Theuri" <mike.theuri at gmail.com>
> >>
> >> Date: Sun, 14 Dec 2008 13:19:01
> >> To: <bitange at jambo.co.ke>
> >> Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions<kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke>
> >> Subject: Re: [kictanet] [ke-internetusers] Kenya communications
> >>        (amendment)Bill: Is media overacting?
> >>
> >>
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> >>
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