Last week’s issue of the government newspaper MyGov led with a story about narcotic drugs at the Coast. It is a big, old problem. “Regional commissioner warns drug peddlers, says time over,” the headline read.
This story, running to nearly 20 paragraphs, was about one person: County Commissioner John Elungata.
He said. He vowed. He declared. He announced. He further said. He asserted. He urged. He directed. He warned. He cautioned. He contended…
There was only one other voice in the story – granted a short paragraph.
On February 12, the Standard and Nation carried a story about the AU summit in Addis attended by African heads of state and government. President Kenyatta chaired a session on commemoration of the 400th anniversary of the Transatlantic Slave Trade.
The news reports were about “he said” from start to finish. Apparently, President Kenyatta addressed the session and no one else spoke.
The single voice story is the bane of Kenyan journalism. It is there on TV, radio, online. Everywhere.
Kalonzo Mtu wa Mkono said. His Handshakeness Raila said. Vitisho Mingi said. Weston Singh said. Waziri Mtalii said…
How is it possible that a news report about a two-day conference has the voice of only one person?
The lone voice story is the specialty of state media and PR units. It goes back to the days of President Moi.
Half of state radio KBC’s news bulletin would be about what Moi said at an event. He said. He emphasized. He underlined. He warned. He…
This is lazy journalism. Press release journalism. News conference churnalism. Obsession with big people.
Sometimes the single voice story might seem unavoidable. But in reality, no newsmaker says anything that no one else has spoken or can speak about; something totally without context. The perfect news.
The problem we have is that a reporter records some newsmaker and reproduces that as news. There are no alternative perspectives. The matter is not the subject of debate. Nobody has said or can say anything else about it. Really? It is distortion of reality.
Back to the story in MyGov about the Coast County Commissioner. Were there ways the story could have been enriched? Certainly. Many groups/stakeholders are involved in the drugs problem at the Coast whose voices could give fresh perspectives. Studies have been done about the problem. Etecetera.
The lone voice story should be trashed. Every news story can be enriched, providing broader perspectives on the subject under the spotlight.
