[kictanet] Role of the Media in Kenyan Elections

[bitange at jambo.co.ke]

Edith,
I assumed that your opening statement quoting me was in reference to
government.  That is why I explained the policy interventions that the
government has put in place to enable freedom of expression.

While we have the necessary legal framework, we the people are held back
by lack of a common value system.  These laws that we borrowed have some
underlying assumptions that we often miss when we try to enterpret them. 
Politicians must be honest and come out clearly that they are the basis of
IEBC problems (which in my view have been covered widely by media in a
responsible manner).  We all know that Voter Registration was to start in
September.  We all know that party nominations should have been finished
by November.  Let us not ask media to deal with issues in the abstract
form without analysisng why we have problems everywhere.

In the media for example we need to foster competition by creating more
media ownership but we often find ways to kill such moves.  Take for
example Digital Migration where CCK has given out 150 licenses for
broadcast.  Some of these channels are to address issues that the current
media ignores.  Jane for example who is on this list took up a channel to
provide education to the most disadvantaged groups in society such as
maids who work more than 15 hours a day.  The elite through consumer
groups found their way to court citing protection of the poor.

A liberalized media and availability of broadcast channels will benefit
mwananchi since quality of content and niche markets (focus on thematic
areas) is what will be key to success.  This is the only way of changing
the local media ownership landscape and putting pressure on what we get to
see and hear from Media.  We are our own greatest enemies when it comes to
reforms.

If I understood the actions of media correctly, they were trying to avoid
being used to propagate party propaganda by allowing time to analyze
through the issues.  Nowhere in the world media allows what we did in 2007
where we aired raw propaganda.  We need to do more analytics just like
most advanced countries.  The change in their strategy is good in
fostering the growth of our media.  They therefore need to suppress raw
content and give us detailed analysis of what will foster development.
This is the balance I was talking about.

If you have read today's Nation, indeed foreign media has admitted that
they came to see us spill blood.  Do not be cheated by Michela Wrongs on
the failings of the local journalists.  We shall fail in our
responsibilities if our media do as they are expected by their foreign
counterparts.

I can write a book on our collective failures and the unfortunate habit of
trying to place blame elsewhere.  Let us take responsibility and help this
country grow.  Media has shown that they can be indipendent and
responsible.


Ndemo.



> Bwana Ndemo,
>
> Why do you say " The problem therefore is not the government.  The problem
> is US (sisi)." I did not talk about government. I talked about the media.
> why are you afraid?
>
> My argument was about OVER self-regulation of the media that they seem to
> operate at two different EXTREME ends in two different elections. You
> refer to it as "Freedom...................vs.................Suppression".
> This time the Kenyan media struggled, really struggled, to maintain a
> balance between these two extreme ends.
>
> We must maintain a balance and not "silence" people with false peace
> calls.
>
> Bwana Ndemo, where do you place your current campaign to fight cyber
> haters - who have gone overboard (and it needs to be tamed) and to crack
> down on international press along the continuum you used
> "Freedom...................vs.................Suppression"?
>
> Edith
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: bitange at jambo.co.ke [mailto:bitange at jambo.co.ke]
> Sent: March 11, 2013 7:08 PM
> To: Edith Adera
> Cc: bitange at jambo.co.ke; KICTAnet - Media Editors Forum; KICTAnet ICT
> Policy Discussions
> Subject: Re: [kictanet] Role of the Media in Kenyan Elections
>
> Edith,
> Answers to your questions lie in the Communications Amendment Act 2009 and
> the Media Act 2007.  The two legal instruments were meant to streamline
> the Broadcast sector in this country and enable self-regulation of Media,
> diversity of opinion and a pluralist broadcast regime.  Nowhere in these
> legislations that you find government curtailing freedom of speech.  Many
> people including David were opposed to the implementation of these laws.
> The subsidiary legislation supporting these laws were borrowed from The
> UK's communications regulator as well as from the Federal Communications
> Commission in the US word for word.
>
> The problem therefore is not the government.  The problem is US (sisi).
> Like you put it for Ghana we speak not with facts but opinion.  Rumour
> spreads faster than anything in Africa simply because we do not have the
> culture of verifying things.  There is nothing wrong in promoting peace if
> everybody seeks to understand the balance between freedom (liberty) and
> supression.  In Britain for example, News of The World was closed down by
> the government.  Was this suppression of speech?  Every British citizens
> understood that the News Corp had become irresiponsible.
>
> For sure I know the Government wants to know (and I have been asked as to
> what may have gone wrong) exactly what went wrong with the IEBC systems.
> The Ghanaian and Nigerian ones too had problems.  If you recall, the
> systems were procured at the last minute even when IEBC had expressed
> desire to go manual due to lengthy procurement processes.  The
> manufacturer hurriedly tried to meet the short deadlines.
>
> Even in this forum we are making opinions as if they are facts.  It would
> help if we have some analyst give us the facts upon which we can advance
> our opinions.  If you watched the US elections carefully, they were more
> into analytics and building trajectories that helped citizens understand.
> Take for example four constituencies say, Kilome, Rarieda, Mathioya and
> Konoin.  Knowing the trend in these constituencies, we could have very
> easily built a trajectory for all neighbouring constituencies using
> average turnout and registered voters.  This will give you better insight
> to ask intelligent questions that will make great news than the way we
> handle such issues to the extent media would think it is propaganda.
>
> My point is that we had far too much data to make great stories that do
> not point to violence or hate message.  No mews media that can dismiss a
> good argument and especially when it is different fresh and logical.  In
> essence convert data into information.
>
>
> Regards
>
>
> Ndemo.
>
>
>
>
>> Listers,
>>
>> For the 2007 elections, Bwana Ndemo is on record here (KICTANET)
>> condemning the role of the media in fueling the violence.
>>
>> In 2013, the media played a different role. If you now reflect back -
>> deep and hard - it occurred to me that  the over-rated, over-hyped,
>> over-done "call for peace" was actually a "tool of oppression"!!
>>
>> Why do I say this? Many a Kenyans found themselves speechless and
>> voiceless....you were not given a chance to speak your mind, to
>> question, to freely air your opinions or liberally reflect on the
>> going ons.  You were promptly slapped with the "peace call" which
>> immediately silenced you! Why should I feel silenced by "a call for
>> peace"? Our national anthem talks of "peace and liberty", what
>> happened to "liberty" during this period?
>>
>> Most Kenyans locked themselves in their houses, scared stiff of the
>> unknown. Reflecting back it was truly a "silence tool".
>>
>> In my view, what is going on in Kenya is God's birth of a NEW KENYA.
>> It is NOT (and I repeat NOT) about THE WINNER or THE LOSERS (Do NOT
>> get me wrong
>> - I don't mind about that). It is about laying a NEW FOUNDATION for
>> Kenya that is built on TRUTH (RIGHTEOUSNESS) and JUSTICE, especially
>> during this Jubilee period (50 years of our existence as a nation as
>> we enter into the next 50 years - the next Jubilee).
>>
>> From now on, and as our national anthem aptly states, JUSTICE will
>> truly be our SHIELD and DEFENDER.
>>
>> Sustainable peace (not FALSE PEACE) is built on the foundations of
>> TRUTH
>> (righteousness) and JUSTICE.
>>
>> Reflective Edith
>>
>> Quote: I should like to be able to love my country and still love
>> justice (Albert Camus) _______________________________________________
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