- Mental health problems are a dark reality in our newsrooms with many silently enduring the challenges that come with it.
- Today, many journalists and staff have to survive for months without pay, pushing them into depression or unethical practices
Image: ELKANA JACOB/FACEBOOK
The saddening story of Nasibo Kabale, who was a young and promising journalist and now living on the streets, should serve as a timely wake-up call to stakeholders in the media industry.
That she fell from being a respected media personality to being homeless is heartbreaking.
However, her case symbolises the reality that is riding high in our newsrooms, where many journalists are facing serious work and life challenges but have no one to tell their story.
Mental health problems are a dark reality in our newsrooms with many silently enduring the challenges that come with it.
Today, many journalists and staff have to survive for months without pay, pushing them into depression or unethical practices that compromise their dignity.
The challenges in our media industry are not new, as this has been the norm with little happening to come up with amicable solutions.
Indeed, the Kenyan media ecosystem continues to suffer from multiple long-term and systemic shocks that negatively affect the landscape for independent journalism and press freedom.
Many of these issues can be traced to the country’s financial and economic crisis, which has severely weakened the media market.
The economic precariousness of journalists in Kenya caused by low wages and weak industry protections leaves media professionals vulnerable.
Economic weaknesses in the media market likewise expose media to capture by vested interests.
While the country benefits from a small but highly professional group of independent and investigative media publishing vital public interest journalism, the media landscape still extensively lacks systemic support.
The Kenya Union of Journalists (KUJ) has in the past advocated for a National Remuneration Policy to transform Kenya’s Media Industry.
Media experts had advised that such a move would make a difference in the media, especially concerning the compensation of journalists which has always been a contentious issue.
Compared to the sectors where the Salaries and Remuneration Committee sets remuneration rates according to job groups, the journalism sector does not have a national remuneration policy that guides how journalists should be paid in Kenya.
When journalists are not well remunerated, they may resort to negative ways of making money, which can compromise their journalistic integrity and credibility.
These negative ways include accepting bribes, fabricating stories and working for political interests and all these expose them to danger.
Some of the young female journalists even end up falling prey to untrustworthy sex pets who want to exploit their struggles.
We understand that with the emergence of digital trends such as social media, most media houses hire and pay different categories of journalists according to their influence where media houses look at command on various social media platforms.
Media houses must however still be responsible for ensuring their journalists are well cared for by implementing the basic guidelines set by the government to protect workers.
The Media Council should also come up with policies that will see transparency in media ownership in an accessible and regularly updated ownership registry for all forms of media, including beneficial ownership.
The media on its own should support the pending establishment of a completely independent self-regulatory Media Council to enhance adherence to journalistic ethics, ensuring that the composition of this body is pluralistic and representative.
The media houses should also work with unions and associations, engage with journalist unions and industry associations to advocate for policies that improve journalist pay and working conditions, such as tax breaks for media organisations meeting specific wage standards.
Elcana Jacob is a criminologist, security expert and communication consultant