Kenya’s Indy Media

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• Reader Comments (2)

  Page 1 of 1 pages

  In a loosely related note, I mention that Peter Gabriel has co-founded a group called “Witness”, that distributes digital videocameras so as to make it more possible for instances of human rights abuses to be recorded and distributed via internet. Their website includes access to their “Hub”, at which you can upload or view relevant content.

  Material that gets 30 seconds of attention at best from, say, CNN or BBC, can be seen at length at The Hub. Naturally, most of what you can view will never make the 11:00 Report.

  Most recently featured, as you’d guess, are videos of the Tibetan protests, and not just the stuff that the directors at the 24-hour news purveyors are allowed to put up. Other content that isn’t found among Today’s Top Vetted Stories is accessible via their browser function.

  www.witness.org

  Posted by Kuya on Mar 18, 2008 at 1:36 AM

  A comment from Simiyu Barasa, the Kenyan writer quoted in this article:

  Great article, just shows the power of the Independent media that is not driven by commercial concerns which most often makes for the slanted news that we get in the so called ‘mainstream media’.

  The only thing I wish to encourage all those in the various independent media projects especially in Kenya is to move beyond making their channels just another outlet for the local citizen (mwananchi) to complain and rant against establishments in a hopeless show of
  being victims without offering the mwananchi news that can help them uplift their situation. That is what is called developmental journalism, which Independent media in Kenya ought to try more (the main stream
  already has enough talk shows and vox pops that moan and groan about how the government church, IMF, America etc should do this should do that as if people in their individual ways cant make a change in thier lives however small and make their lives better).  Journalism that shapes news, events and a people, rather than continue getting shaped by occurences.

  I am glad that Shomba patrick is planning to do a film on reconciliation after the post election violence, now that is an example of a media creating a situation the people need, rather than reacting to a bad
  situation. And also glad that the Slum TV guys are actually promoting self help initiatives, as well as the theatre practitioners.

  Just a thought, is there a possibility for the Slum TV and others to try out a concept like Pirate TV where they ride on the airwaves of more established TV stations to reach a wider audience? Of course in Kenya
  that would be faced with lots of legal litigation, but I believe (is it?) in Italy they actually did fight the system and proved that the need for public
  information is greater than the need to censor dissemination of information through licensing hurdles. All this requires efficient organisation in seeing all possible roadblocks, but if in Italy it came to be recognised that there can be a co-existence between the so called Pirate TV stations (where citizens caught on the wave starting their mini
  stations since all you need is a camera and a radio transmitter) and the mainstream media. You Tube, free ware, fim download sites etc are built on the same philosophy, that sometimes what we think is illegal
  can actually be to mutual benefit to all sides (and thus be made illegal!)

  Posted by meeshellchen on Mar 27, 2008 at 7:42 PM

  Page 1 of 1 pages

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