Kenyan Community Radio: Players, Production Processes and Participation
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Kenyan Community Radio: Players, Production Processes and Participation A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Dr Phil) in Media Studies awarded by BIGSAS at the University of Bayreuth By Rose Nyakio Kimani Research Area (B): Knowledge, Communication and Communities in Motion Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Jürgen E. Müller Prof. Levi Obonyo (Mentor) Dr. Ulf Vierke (Mentor) July 2017 STATUTORY DECLARATION I hereby affirm that I have produced the thesis at hand without any inadmissible help from a third party or the use of resources other than those cited; ideas incorporated directly or indirectly from other sources are clearly marked as such. In addition, I affirm that I have neither used the services of commercial consultants or intermediaries in the past nor will I use such services in the future. The thesis in the same or similar form has hitherto not been presented to another examining authority in Germany or abroad, nor has it been published. Bayreuth, 24.07.2017 Rose Nyakio Kimani ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS My appreciation goes to the individuals and institutions that have been a part of this journey. I acknowledge Kenya’s National Commission for Science, Technology and Innovation (NACOSTI) and Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD) for providing the scholarship that enabled me to undertake my studies. The Bayreuth International Graduate School of African Studies (BIGSAS), University of Bayreuth and Chuka University have each provided administrative, networking and other support, without which it would have been infinitely more difficult to take on and complete this project. I also thank the backbone of this project: my research contributors. The individuals and organisations who availed their time and effort to be interviewed, to provide documents, to fill in questionnaires, to secure programme copies, and to allow me to watch them at work. Without them this research would not have been possible. My research assistants at each location, who did an excellent job of questionnaire administration with minimal supervision, and specifically Peter Kibe for both questionnaire administration and data input. My deepest gratitude especially goes to both the people working in and living around Kangema FM, Koch FM and Mugambo Jwetu FM for their role as the research focus. On the academic front, I appreciate the people who have walked alongside me on this journey and provided different kinds of support. I mention only a few here: My supervision team – Prof. Dr. Juergen E. Mueller, Prof. Levi Obonyo and Dr. Ulf Vierke, for the feedback and fruitful discussions that shaped my work. Academic seniors including but not limited to Prof. Dr. Ritzer, Prof. Dr. Fendler, Prof. Odhiambo and Dr. Maseno, for insightful comments and perspectives. Friends, both near and far, and BIGSAS colleagues, for companionship, laughter, draft-reading, perspective and critique when needed. And last but certainly not least, my family: words are not enough to encompass what an anchor your constant support has been. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS STATUTORY DECLARATION ....................................................................................................... ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................................ iii TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................................... iv TABLE OF FIGURES ................................................................................................................. viii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS .......................................................................................................... ix 1 THE KENYAN MEDIA LANDSCAPE AND COMMUNITY BROADCASTING ........................ 1 1.1 Introduction: The Kenya Media Landscape ..................................................................... 1 1.2 Defining Community Broadcasting ................................................................................. 3 1.3 A History of Kenyan Community Radio ........................................................................... 4 1.4 Situating the Study: Constraints facing Kenyan Community Broadcasters ....................... 6 1.5 Research Focus .............................................................................................................. 7 1.6 Research Questions ....................................................................................................... 8 1.7 Research objectives ....................................................................................................... 8 1.8 Research Contexts ......................................................................................................... 9 1.8.1 Kangema RANET FM, 105.2............................................................................................. 9 1.8.2 Koch FM ........................................................................................................................ 10 1.8.3 Mugambo Jwetu FM ..................................................................................................... 10 1.9 Research Design .......................................................................................................... 11 Design Limitations ......................................................................................................................... 11 1.10 Significance of the Study ............................................................................................. 12 1.11 Conceptual Framework ............................................................................................... 13 1.12 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 17 2 MEDIA AND SOCIETY: PARTICIPATION, SOCIAL (RE)FORMATIONS AND POWER NEGOTIATIONS ............................................................................................................... 20 2.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................ 20 2.2 Society and the Media ................................................................................................. 21 2.2.1 Global Trends and Media Policy.................................................................................... 23 2.2.2 Media for Development as a Kenyan State Policy ........................................................ 25 2.2.3 The Place of Culture in Media Roles ............................................................................. 27 2.3 Content and Content Production Practices ................................................................... 28 2.4 Audiences, Communities, and Publics .......................................................................... 34 2.4.1 Communities or Publics? ............................................................................................... 35 2.4.2 Publics and Counterpublics ........................................................................................... 37 2.5 Why Radio .................................................................................................................. 40 2.5.1 Negotiation of the Public and the Private ..................................................................... 42 2.5.2 Transformations of Radio.............................................................................................. 43 2.5.3 Radio in Development ................................................................................................... 45 2.6 Community Media as Alternative Media ...................................................................... 46 2.6.1 Towards a Definition of Kenyan Community Radio ...................................................... 50 2.6.2 Participation in Community Media ............................................................................... 52 2.6.3 Community Media and Power ...................................................................................... 54 2.7 Media, Participation and Power ................................................................................... 57 iv 2.8 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 59 3 METHODOLOGICAL CONSIDERATIONS, CHALLENGES AND APPLICATIONS................. 61 3.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................ 61 3.2 Rationale for Selected Radio Stations........................................................................... 62 3.3 Data Collection and Analysis Methods ......................................................................... 67 3.4 Quantitative Methodology: Survey .............................................................................. 73 3.4.1 Questionnaire Design and Administration .................................................................... 73 3.4.2 Sampling considerations ............................................................................................... 74 3.4.3 Kangema FM ................................................................................................................. 75 3.4.4 Koch FM ........................................................................................................................ 76 3.4.5 Mugambo FM ...............................................................................................................