1The Media ObserverJANUARY- MARCH 2015

BSERVERWatching the Watchdog

Debunking Fake News

A Publication of the Media Council of Kenya Issue 27 , 10 July 2018

Issue 27, 10 July 2018

Editorial

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Dear Scribe,

Behold Issue no. 27 of the Media Observer.

This issues comes to you with a lot of question marks regarding the media sector and especially the country’s mother-media house, the oldest of them all – KBC. This comes at a time when discussions are still on-going about Kenya’s media viability. For example, what are the best sustaining models for the media sector in Kenya and Africa at large – fully profit driven, community driven or state sponsored?

Article 33 (4) of the Constitution of Kenya provides for the establishment of a state-owned media, which is free to determine independently the editorial content of their broad-casts or other communications; be impartial and afford fair opportunity for the presentation of divergent views and dissenting opinion.

This is already realised in the Kenya Broadcasting Corporation – whether the depth of this provision is attained is a question that has been raised by the main article herein. Questions

continue to linger as to why the no. 1 broadcaster has remained a state-broadcaster as opposed to a public oneas mandated by these provisions. Furthermore, it is noteworthy (not to say saddening) that the Corporationis on a bended knee, but not in prayer. It is ailing. The Observer worries that every effort to treat this ailmentwill lead the taxpayer to an even bigger debt and little result. What should be done? Should the ailing albatross be let go?

In another hard article, the Observer wonders why editors are fascinated by “pointless stats”. Why arejournalists not questing certain pointless realities – for example, why is GDP growth in Kenya not translating into reduced poverty? Does trickle-down economy really, well trickle or is it just another fabrication of capitalism with neither tail nor head?

You will read these and many more on this issue of the Media Observer.

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Should the ailing albatross be let go?

Revelations last week that KBC is on its deathbed are not news. In fact, it is a miracle the broadcaster is still breathing. The corporation has been ailing for ages.

But who cares? Does KBC really add value to the lives of Kenyans? Suppose KBC was shut for a month, how many people – besides staff and their families - would realise it is off air? Who will miss those mostly colourless broadcasts?

KBC managers appeared before the Senate ICT committee and painted a picture of an institution that should immediately be closed and its buildings partitioned as stalls for selling mitumba. Or Broadcasting House land should besold to a Nigerian pastor to put up a mega-church to setKenyans ablaze with Holy Ghost fire.

Here is what the national broadcaster looks like:

KBC is groaning under the weight of a humongous loan it got from Japan way back in 1989, which has now ballooned to over Sh40 billion. That was 30 years ago.

The corporation is unable to remit statutory charges to relevant authorities. It has not paid Sh205 million to Kenya Revenue Authority despite deducting the money from its employees.

KBC management says the broadcaster spends Sh180 million every month on recurrent expenditure. But it makesonly half of that: Sh90 million. Further, the corporation has not paid Sh127 million for satellite operations.

Deductions from employees are not remitted to SACCOS. Nor does KBC remit staff pension contributions. The managers told the Senate committee they want to restru-cture the corporation. Good heavens! How on earth are they going to do that given the above facts?

KBC suffers from two terminal problems: shoddy mana-gement and inadequate funding.

Long after liberalisation of the airwaves in the mid-90s, KBC still remains a state broadcaster, not a public broad-caster. It tries to be the mouthpiece of the government. Now government gets coverage from every media house. Plus, there aren’t many people around here who are going to sit down and listen to or watch state mandarins preaching at them day in day out.

KBC’s content is as delicious as the cat meat samosas of Nakuru – with a cold beer. The expansion of the industry due to breath-taking innovations in ICTs has sharpened competition. But the honchos of Harry Thuku Road have never heard of that word.

In May, KBC was hit when a court ordered the broadcasterto pay lawyer Suyianka Lempaa Sh2 million for unlawful sacking. Lempaa is a former KBC reporter.

With inadequate funding, huge debts and shoddy management, KBC cannot attract and retain top talentin a very competitive industry.

The broadcaster’s desperate situation arises from a deeper issue. Public broadcasting in Africa in the wake of media liberalisation and ICT innovations faces serious problems. Current debates on this subject suggest that this model of broadcasting is obsolete.

Public broadcasting is based on an ideology of state controlof information. There are strong arguments for this. But under capitalism, all over the world public broadcasting suffers.

The state in Africa (and throughout the Global South) doesn't have the money to fund public broadcasting to keep pace with the competition in a neo-liberal capitalist market.

Moreover, some key politicians in Kenya and Africa are media owners, so they have no interest in supporting vibrant public broadcasting.

All indications are that KBC’s best days are long gone – perhaps forever?

Issue 27, 10 July 20182

Issue 27, 10 July 20183

Student riots: media should focus on diagnosis, not symptoms

A wave of student riots triggered the closure of at least five high schools in Nyanza, the media reported last week. Students from all five schools, namely, Ng’iya Girls, Maranda, Maliera,Ambira and Kisumu Girls are all now cooling their heads at home.

Did the media report complete stories why the students are rioting? No.

“Why Kisumu Girls High School students went on a rampage,”said a Daily Nation headline last Tuesday. The story gave two reasons for the student rampage: one, that Muslim girls werebeing forced to attend Catholic mass -- that would be serious infringement on religious freedom; and two, that the admin-istration refused to allow interaction with other schools.Now, why would teenage girls insist to meet other schools?

The same Tuesday, the Standard reported that at Ng’iya Girlslast Monday evening, Form Three students were protesting mistreatment by their boarding mistress; that the principal held a meeting with them and hinted at replacing the accused official, which made the girls shout in celebration. However, other classes mistook the shout as a cue for the beginning of a strike and promptly started mayhem. Now, why would students in this school be so itching to go on strike, waiting forthe slightest cue to go mad?

The next day, Wednesday, the Star reported that Maranda boys went on strike because they wanted better meals and sleep. They couldn’t take anymore going to bed late in the night andhaving to wake up as early as 3am. What? Did those boys go toschool to sleep? Who needs the WHO-recommended eight hours of sleep for optimal performance?

At Ambira Boys High School, the Star reported Thursday that boys burned down a dormitory with all their property in it.The writer, Lameck Baraza, did not bother to tell us why.

At Maliera Boys Secondary, Citizen Digital and the Standard reported on Friday that students attempted to set the library on fire because they wanted a new Scania bus and entertainment every weekend. Why do they want a new bus, and Scania to be specific? And entertainment every weekend? Are they serious?

Oh, and Citizen added that the boys wanted to go back home to meet with their counterparts from other schools, including Ng’iya Girls and Maranda Boys that had been recently closed.What? The boys wanted to meet with girls from Ngiya? Hormones again? Wait was the rioting a fashion wave and the boys were feeling left out?

By Sunday, reports were coming in on six more schools rioting or on the verge of rioting in the west of the country alone: Usenge Boys High School in Siaya, Chulaimbo Boys Secondary and Otieno Oyoo Mixed Secondary in Kisumu, Moding Mixed Secondary in Busia, Eshibinga Mixed Secondary in Kakamega and Letein Boys High School in Kericho.

Let us put this into perspective. You have riots in 11 schools in one week. Five of these schools are in one county, Siaya. In every case, the students make sure the riots are serious enough to trigger school closure. And in every case, the media is reporting symptoms of an evident pattern of problems in high schools.

Does anyone die of stomach-ache? Did you ever hear itsaid that Onyango died of diarrhoea? Or vomiting? Stomach-ache, diarrhoea, vomiting, each are symptoms of something that a doctor needs to diagnose.

Okay, the Nation reported on July 5 that panic over exams is to blame for unrest in schools, according to Education PS Belio Kipsang. But why would anxiety over exams escalate to a pattern of riots in multiple schools, in one week? Clearly, these kids are not enjoyingschool. The common denominator, it appears, is that their minds and bodies do not want to be in school. But why?Do we, perhaps, have deeper national issues that infect our public high schools and colleges with a systemic rot, which year after year after year Kenya is failing to address?

Failure by media to focus on diagnosis spells shallow journalism.

Issue 3, 22 January 2018 Issue 27, 10 July 20184

Fascination with pointless stats

Some numbers make sense. Others don’t. Wepukhulu has four wives. Everyone gets that. Inflation dropped by 3.2 per cent in the first half of the year. What is that? What happ-ened exactly? The economy grew by 5.7 per cent. What grew? What sense does that make to people reading ‘meat wrappers’ or listening to news on radio?

Business reporters write a lot of such stuff. Officials in designer suits, business people, development experts all churn out numbers that mostly don’t make sense. The numbers suggest either things have got better or worse. But you would have a hell of time figuring what improved or got worse.

The job of Kenya National Bureau of Statistics is to create numbers out of almost anything. Last week, they released their latest economic survey. A report about that in Citizen Digital was headlined, “Economy bounces to 5.7pc in first quarter.”

The economy expanded by 5.7 per cent in the first quarter of 2018 as compared to 4.8 per cent over the same period in2017, the report said.

“Growth in the economy was supported by improved performance of the agricultural sector that bounced back from a slump of one per cent in 2017 owing to a prolonged drought to 5.2 per cent.”

The report spoke of a “recuperating agricultural industry”, “impressive turnaround”, “trade, manufacturing and real estate all bouncing back”, “impressive overall growth”, etc.

Does this describe the reality of most Kenyans today?Of course not.

And that is what underlines the importance of a commentary by Alex Awiti in the Star last week. It was headed, “Povertydefies growth in GDP.” All journalists should read it.Africa is witnessing unprecedented growth, Awiti wrote.

“Economic growth is impressive. Ghana, Ethiopia, Cote d’Ivoire, Senegal and Djibouti are among the top 10 fastestgrowing economies in the world. Rwanda and Tanzania are in the top 20. Moreover, about two-thirds of Africa’s economies are growing faster than the global economy.”

But what is the daily reality for most African people? Is this growth reflected in the living conditions on the continent? No.

According to the World Poverty Clock report, Africa remains the poorest part of the world. Seven of the poorest nations are in Africa. Over 430 million Africans live in extreme poverty, out of a population of about 1.3 billion.

In Kenya, 30 per cent (14.7 million) of an estimated 49.7 million people live in extreme poverty. Put simply, over 14 million people struggle to get basic things like food.

Awiti poses an important question: Why is GPD growth not translating into poverty reduction and an overall increase in prosperity?

“Africa’s growth story, viewed alongside its enduring poverty, is a powerful indictment ofthe notion that GDP growth trickles down. There is no such a thing as trickle-down,” Awiti writes.

In other words the wealth is concentrated in the hands of a few. Even if the economy grew by 20 per cent annually for, say, ten years, as long as there are no deliberate efforts to distribute the wealth fairly, poverty will still persist.

“While Africa has made considerable progress in building physical infrastructure, includingroads, railways and expan-sion of power generation, very little has been achievedwith regard to investments in people,” Awiti writes.That means investing in food justice, water and sanitation, housing, healthcare, education – putting money intopeople’s basic needs. That requires breathing life into the Constitution’s stipulations on economic and social rights.

It is now an established fact that poverty is not merely about economics – it is a question of justice.

Journalists should rethink their fascination with numbers that show false prosperity. Rosy headlines like “Economy bounces to 5.7pc in first quarter” mean very little.

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MyGov’s fake news about Tolgos

“Governor says no to Sh100 million homes plan”. That was the lead story of the government weekly, MyGov.

“Elgeyo Marakwet county assembly set aside Sh100 million for the official residence of both the governor and speaker which Governor Alex Tolgos has now rejected, saying he would not assent to a budget which will cut back on develo-pment spending,” the paper reported.

“Governor Alex Tolgos said he was ready to forego his rentfrom July next year, as stipulated by an October 2016 Salaries and Remuneration Commission circular, as long as the development funding remained intact,” the report filed by a KNA scribe said.

Such a sensible governor! A rare politician.

But wait, is this the truth? According to the Standard on Monday, July 2 (p.8), Elgeyo Marakwet assembly “thwarted plans to build official residences for the governor andspeaker.”

“This means Governor Alex Tolgos and Speaker Philemon Sabulei will continue living in Eldoret town, some 30km away, and commute to work daily in Iten town,” the paperreported.

Apparently, there are no suitable houses in Kenya’sathletics capital.

“The Budget and Appropriations Committee had proposed to allocate Sh100 million to build the residences but MCAs re-allocated the funds to devel-opment.”

On June 27, the Star carried a story titled, “Ward reps shoot down Tolgos home budget”.

“Elgeyo Marakwet Governor Alex Tolgos will continue living in the neighbouring county after MCAs yesterday rejected plans to build a governor’s residence,” the paper reported.

“Earlier this month, the county assembly Budget and Appropriation committee proposed to allocate Sh100 million to build the official residences of the governor and assembly speaker. But the assembly declined to allocate the funds ahead of the tabling of the 2018-19 budget tomorrow.”

So, where did the KNA reporter get the story publishedby MyGov last week?

Time to!

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What was the source of the story?

Do not believe everything you see in the media. Some of the stories are just that – stories.

On Tuesday, July 3, the Star carried a story titled, “Captain Irene Koki to fly Uhuru on KQ's maiden US flight.”

“Africa's first female Dreamliner captain, Irene Koki, will fly President Uhuru Kenyatta to New York on KQ's inaugural flight to the US,” the paper reported.

Said who? No matter.

“The Kenya Airways pilot became one of the most popular captains in Africa after landing at Nairobi's Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in the airline's fourth Dreamliner,” thestory went on. And on.

But who or what was the source of the story about Koki?

Readers were instead swamped with details about KQ’s direct flight to the US. Clever.

The next day, The Standard picked up the story. “Celebrated Captain Koki Mutungi to fly Uhuru in KQ’s maiden US flight,” the headline read.

“Celebrated Kenyan pilot Captain Irene Koki Mutungi will be the lead pilot during Kenya Airway’s maiden non-stop flight to New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport fromNairobi,” the paper reported.

“Mutungi, 42, will once again make history after she became the first African female pilot to become certified as a captain of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft.”

Again, who said Koki will fly the maiden non-stop flight? The Standard did not say. Instead, it went on swiftly,

“The ultra-long-haul flight, unique to Kenya Airways network, will require 4 Pilots and 12 Flight attendants as well as 85 tons of fuel each way, making it an exceptional operation. The airline will operate its Boeing 787 Dreamliner with a capacity of 234 passengers,” a statement by Kenya Airports Authorities (KAA) read.

On Thursday, Koki posted on Twitter, “Thank you for all your kind words and congratulatory messages. I’m truly overwhelmed but KQ has not yet selected who gets to do the inaugural US flight. It was a press assumption after a media event I recently attendedwith the US Secretary of Trade. I hope I get the honor though.”

Now you know. Not everything you read, hear or watchin the media is the truth.

Issue 27, 10 July 20187

PEN COP: The grandmother of sentences

1. The study identified the key factors leading to low product uptake including; reluctance to implement innovative, business unusual measures to attract large private and public potential issuers to list at NSE; perception that other regulatory barriers still override the relatively lower cost of raising funds through the capital markets compared with bank lending rates; adverse macroeconomic environment; absence of a simplified product development, launch and subscription strategy for newer sophisticated products; emerging competition from other quick return investments such as real estate, mobile money products, and betting; reputation risk exposure for potential issuers to post-offer/listing price correction following professional valuation; and the absence of a clear action plan towards compensation/restitution of bond investors whose funds remained locked in Chase and Imperial Banks, which has dampened the confidence specifically in the corporate bond market. (KBC, July 3)

2. The governor’s office gained Sh7 million for the purchase of motor vehicles to aid in revenue collection as the county assembly shot down a proposal to hire enforcement officers while it lost Sh5 million for peace building and conflict resolution which the assembly said is a function of the national government. (MyGov, July 3, p.3) What is being said here?

3. President Kenyatta made these remarks when he flagged off Cuban doctors who had been undertaking an induction course at the Kenya School of Government. (MyGov, July 3, p.2) He flagged off doctors?

4. The Cuban doctors were flagged off to their respective areas of jurisdiction with the President appealing them to deliver the much-needed services to the people of Kenya populace, and urged Kenyans to embrace and support them for effective service delivery. (MyGov, July 3, p.2) Again “flagged off ” in the same story! What “areas of jurisdiction”? What’s “the people of Kenya populace”?

5. No one knows what is contained in the forthcoming 2018 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education exams, Education Cabinet Secretary Ambassador Amina Mohamed has said. ((MyGov, July 3, p.8). Absolutely no one? Not even the people who did the final proof reading or printing of the exam papers? They printed the papers blindfolded?

6. Grief as families of Gikomba fire begin to identify bodies. A headline in the Star on July 3, p.3. Families of Gikomba fire? Who might those be?

7. Airtel Kenya in partnership with Computers for Schools Kenya and the County government of Kisumu has Tuesday launched it’s Free Internet for Schools Programme in Kisumu; having provided free internet connectivity to 30 schools. (KBC, July 3)

8. Mohammed claimed that Jamal punched him on his left ear leaving him hard of hearing for some days, stepped on his left leg with metallic boots repeatedly and also stabbed him on his back with a small knife after attending evening prayers. (Citizen Digital, July 3.) What has attending evening prayers got to do with the assault?

9. Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i has revealed that 31 fake work permits have been nabbed and three brokers masquerading as work permit issuance officials arrested so far in the ongoing work permit verification exercise. (Citizen Digital, July 3) An awkward sentence with “work permits” used thrice!

10. The legislators pressed the PS to name the owners of the tested consignments but Tum was, however, adamant saying they could not. (Citizen Digital, July 3)

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Issue 27, 10 July 20188

FAKE NEWS: Do you know Raila’s new job? 11

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The Ministry of Defence has dismissed as fake reports of new appointments in the top ranks.

A blog alleged that Germany blamed Raila Odinga for their loss at the World Cup. Of course there are many things one can blame Raila for, but the outcomes of World Cup matches? Sounds stranger than fiction.

Did the President tell off Murkomen? Reading through the content of this story, Uhuru Kenyatta only made general comments and did not mention the Elgeyo Marakwet senator as claimed.

Of articles with a sensational headline and different content…The blog’s headline says Baringo Senator Gideon Moi said he will not vie for presidency come2022. But the content of the article is totally contrary to the headline.

Issue 27, 10 July 20189

FAKE NEWS: Do you know Raila’s new job? 15

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An explosion in Nairobi? Who heard it? A post on a Facebook page claimed a matatu in Nairobi had exploded along Ngong Road. A Google reverse image search indicates the incident happened on August 10, 2016.

An old picture of Kenyan musician Size 8 in hospital has been shared online. The photo was lifted from a 2017 post.

What is this appointment of Raila? This article congratulates the former Opposition leader Raila Odinga on his appointment as the Top Government Representative. Funny job.

The article claims that Deputy President William Rutowas demoted and some of his responsibilities apportioned to Raila Odinga.

Issue 27, 10 July 201810

19 Media personality Njambi Koikai has been raising funds for her medical bills. Some sick fellas have created fake social media accounts asking people to send money. Njambi has warned social media users to be careful.

FAKE NEWS: Do you know Raila’s new job?

110 Kenya National Bureau of Statistics is again said to be advertising 2019 census jobs. However throughtheir Twitter handle the KNBS has flagged the information as fake.

111 Spooky claims that a man in Eldoret fainted upon meeting his wife who died two years ago are false. The incident was first reported in a Nigerian blog and not Eldoret.

He “was an extraordinary human being with an encyclopaedic knowledge of Kenyan political history. His passing is agreat loss to the Star but also to all his friends who will greatly miss his humour, warmth and intellectual curiosity.”

WILLIAM PIKE, Radio Africa Group’s director of convergence, mourning veteran print journalist Mathew Gathigira who died on Tuesday, July 3.

VIEWPOINT

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