The Media Council of Kenya (MCK) and the Media Owners Association (MOA) will collaborate to ensure a safe and sustainable media environment in Kenya.
At a meeting between Media Council CEO David Omwoyo and newly elected officials of the MOA led by their chairperson Agnes Kalekye, the two parties agreed to start by pushing for a comprehensive media policy framework for Kenya to ensure predictability and certainty in the operating environment.
The Council and MOA will also collaborate with other media stakeholders to restore a working relationship between government and media while protecting the editorial independence of media outlets.
“The main aim is to ensure the balance between media holding government to account while also providing government officials sufficient opportunities to communicate their policies and plans to Kenyans”, said MCK CEO Mr Omwoyo.
He further stated that the Media Complaints Commission (MCC) was established to determine and solve media related disputes and urged media houses to utilise it to achieve impartial, speedy and cost-effective settlement.
“Multiple libel cases against media houses would be reduced if the Media Complaints Commission handles all media disputes. By media houses refusing to comply with the rules of the MCC, they expose themselves to long legal processes”, he said.
The MOA chairperson affirmed the media’s commitment in highlighting matters of public interest, including government initiatives.
“The media is ready to provide government with adequate coverage and not only highlighting shortcomings but we have had a challenge in accessing comprehensive messages from government”, said Ms Kalekye.
She added that the Association will hold a joint meeting with newsroom editors, owners and government officials to discuss modalities of restoring a working relationship that guarantees media freedom while at the same time providing the government with the necessary platform to communicate its agenda.
She commended the Council for its efforts to bring together media sector stakeholders to address industry challenges, adding that more will be achieved through such collaborations.