The Media Council of Kenya (MCK) has called for continuous improvement of content production models to respond to the changing needs of audiences.
MCK Chairman Mr Maina Muiruri advised editors at the ongoing Kenya Editors Guild Annual Convention 2021 to understand the needs of their audiences in order to effectively communicate their messages.
“Sometimes media puts out content that we think is good for their audiences, but the feedback says otherwise. This calls for investing in research on audience preferences and fact- checking to ensure that the content put out is verified and appropriate”, said Mr Muiruri when he made a presentation titled: Media industry overview: A media for the citizen?
“As MCK, we envisage decreased regulation to ensure media has all the space it needs to serve its audience. However, this space that we protect comes with responsibility and this requires accountability on the side of media”, he added.
Mr Muiruri said the Council is at the forefront in pushing for amendments to the Media Council Act to align it to the expanding and changing media space.
“The industry proposals are now before Parliament, which has a framework for public participation. We are looking forward to that opportunity where all media stakeholders including KEG will be invited to give their views”, said the MCK Chairman.
He added that the Taskforce on the Kenya Media Policy Guidelines that was constituted by the Ministry of ICT, Innovation and Youth Affairs has adequate representation from within the industry and called for support to the team ensure it gives Kenya a robust media policy.
“We trust the team to address the emerging and prevailing issues in the industry”, said Mr Muiruri.