Month: May 2022
Enigma Kalonzo and the lost art of cultivating reliable sources in corridors of power
No one saw it coming. Deputy President William Ruto unveiled his running mate, Mathira MP Rigathi Gachagua, on May 15. The next day, Azimio presidential…
Watchdog or lapdog? Fourth Estate should flag campaign lies, not trumpet them
Hii ni ile season ya kuoga na kurudi soko. It’s an art perfected for centuries by members of the oldest profession and adopted by politicians….
Governor Mutua running for Parliament: fake news or not?
So, is Machakos Governor Alfred Mutua running for Mwala parliamentary seat or not? According to The Star, that is fake news. Because Mutua denied it….
Self-plagiarism is a silent killer of professional journalism
By Dex Mumo It seems self-plagiarism has become the order of the day among media houses. Isn’t it common to see one story being republished…
How media flunked accuracy test with ‘Kalonzo locked out’ and ‘Karua is the one’ stories
By Kodi Barth The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission did not lock Wiper Party leader Kalonzo Musyoka out of the presidential race, yet. And Azimio…
Fake news peddlers step up campaigns imitating well-known brands
By Lucy Mwangi and Jacob Nyukuri The MCK desk investigates incidents of misinformation, disinformation and mal-information, between May 21 – 27, 2022. The recent trend…
News as fiction: When facts should not get in the way of a good story
Wiper resolves to drag Kalonzo back to Azimio (Nation headline, May 24, p.1). Same story inside: Kalonzo nudged back to Azimio (p.6). Drag: pull (someone…
Behind Magoha seated on mtungi, People Daily uncovers ticking time bomb
A video clip of Education CS Prof George Magoha sitting on a yellow mtungi lit up social media on May 17. The CS had stopped…
Martha Karua, manufacturing consent and media distortion of ‘herstory’
Azimio La Umoja presidential candidate Raila Odinga named his running mate, Narc Kenya party leader Martha Karua, in a televised event at KICC on Monday,…
What’s the news? Stories that made no sense, wasted readers’ time
At least three recent, prominent stories wasted valuable space in print. First, a Star story that the late prominent Uasin Gishu businessman and “chairman” of…