Githeri Media Nonsense Should Cease

Reporters take pictures of Police officers as they get ready to disperse a crowd in a Demo. Picture/Getty Images.

Sometimes back, I had a discussion with a friend on the Kenyan Media. It was more of an argument because I felt it was not justifiable to refer to the Local Media as ‘Githeri Media’. Having gone through media school, I cannot literary sit and watch as people tarnish my profession. I did not take it lightly and still do not take it lightly with people castigating the local media day in day out.

If what I was taught in college is true, the Media is a reflection of the society, it mirrors the society in which it operates. I have always said if you find any fault in the Media then basically don’t blame the media, blame it on the society, because media does not operate in a vacuum.

As a professional I have watched in silence as people slowly take this prestigious career to the grave. But not anymore.

Listen here folks, Journalists deserve their respect too. A report by the Human Rights Watch (HRW) revealed that the ability for Journalists to report and comment freely continues to be undermined in Kenya. Such cases as the attack on Citizen TV’s Stephen Letoo and NTV Cameraman Robert Gichira last year as they covered a scuffle at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport involving opposition lawyer Miguna Miguna is one of the many physical attack witnessed towards media players in recent times.

But if you thought the attack on media is barely physical only, then you need to go to the social media sites to see the bile we have for our Media houses. I recently came across one such post by the Infamous Hessy wa Dandora after the death of Caroline Mwatha- the human right activist who died from a suspected botched abortion. The writer referred to the media as ‘Githeri Media’, a term that is now often used by every Tom, Dick and Harry to discredit media reports that do not fit their layman description of News.

Journaists hold a Demonstration to advocate for Media Freedom. Photo/Getty Images.

If you have never been a reporter, then probably you can never understand what these Journalists go through; bombs and bullets, hatches and machetes- if you are a reporter and on the front lines the odds of you facing someone wielding a weapon destruction is high. From death in cross-fire to targeted attacks and Murder to daily insults on social media, being a reporter in Kenya is now becoming a life threatening career.

While fear ripples along with the dust when life-threatening events occur, the media braves not only the possibility of being killed, tortured or mistreated but also the possibility of their families not seeing them again. This is because the World needs to know the truth. This is because someone has to do the job as ugly as it looks. The scribes do this because sometimes there is no choice but to face your fears and in doing so tug on the strings of hope, to call out allies and to bring out voices of people who cannot articulate their troubles as well.

This courage however is being undermined by some Kenyan simpletons masquerading as Media critics.  I will tell you for free, next time you start critiquing Kenyan Media, just look at the million things you never would have known was it not for the media you so much love to hate.

Felixkinyua35@gmail.com.