How does a Journalism graduate cope with today’s competitive media industry?

Kiss FM Big Breakfast Presenter Caroline Mutoko.

The journalism profession in Kenya has undergone some major changes in the past decade.Due to the liberalization of the media industry in Kenya, many radio and TV stations opened up. The number of publications that serve various niche audiences have also increased. It is perhaps for this reason that many journalism colleges have sprung up in major towns around the country. Journalism is among the professions that young people love the most to pursue. One of the reasons that the profession is popular among Kenyan youth is that it is considered a glamorous profession. The opportunity to hob nob with public figures, celebrities, being seen on TV everyday, your voice being heard on radio, your article being read in the newspapers is something that many youth relish. The downside is that a mere pursuit of fame can make one to be quite narcissistic.

It comes us no surprise that top journalist rake in a lot of money and are seen driving flashy cars. For the purposes of this article, a news anchor, radio host and writer are all considered journalists. It now appears that for one to join the profession (TV and radio especially), they must have released a song, be a comedian, participated in a celebrity talent search among other similar pursuits. If you need to be hired as a news anchor, then beauty is becoming a strong gauge, and being light skinned can prove to be a great asset if one wants to be a TV anchor.

And the examples are quite telling.
Many of the current TV and radio personalities do not have a background in journalism. For instance, Caroline Mutoko, the no nonsense KISS FM breakfast presenter, has a background in economics. She can however be excused since her employers have invested heavily in her training. Capital FM former owner, Linda Horst, reportedly took her abroad for further grounding in journalism, and when she switched over to Kiss FM, there was a protracted legal battle between Kiss FM and Capital. Eric Omondi, a comedian, is now a presenter at Radio Jambo, Sanaipei Tande was a TPF contestant and she eventually ended up getting a job at Kiss FM. Angela Angwenyi (Easy FM) participated in a  talent search , Jalang’o (Kiss FM) and  Cleopas Awinja( QFM) are comedians. These are just some examples of presenters that do not have a background in journalism.

One of the disadvantages of the profession  is that it is very hard to restrict the barriers of entry. Professions such as medicine and law are closed professions and without a valid certificate, you won’t practice. With the coming of the internet these days, anyone can start their own blogs on areas that they feel they are an expert at. One aspect that can make the profession regain its image is to possibly make it a postgraduate course. For instance, if you wanted to report on health matters, then you would have to pursue a medical related profession before enrolling for a journalism course. But this will only change if the employers are willing to try out new talent. At the moment, the recycling of the news anchors and presenters goes on unabated as if there is no new talent that is coming up. And many journalists across the world are in deed trying to raise the level of journalism to be as respectable as literature; which is considered a cousin to journalism. Hopefully, the state of journalism in the country will change to reflect this perspective. 

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