Media and Civil Society Strengthening

Embracing the Future: Uganda Media Week 2023 Explores Public Interest, AI, and the Evolution of Journalism

Set to take place from November 9th, 2023, the 5th Uganda Media Week Conference, hosted by Media Focus on Africa Uganda, promises an illuminating journey into the future of journalism. Under the theme “Public Interest, AI, and the Future of Journalism,” this conference is poised to revolutionize the landscape of media.

The event will convene a gathering of distinguished experts, influential voices, and industry insiders, fostering discussions around crucial topics. Panel discussions will explore the role of effective reporting in strengthening democratic accountability, creating an inclusive internet environment for women in media, deciphering the implications of AI in the realm of journalism, and confronting online gender-based violence.

Uganda Media Week 2023 is not just a conference; it’s an avenue for transformative conversations and knowledge exchange. Brace yourself for engaging dialogues that offer critical insights into the future of media and journalism in Uganda.

For more information please reachout to us via ruth@mediafocusonafrica.org

or Call +256393248341

Training Rural media Outlets and Female Practitioners on Media Viability

With support from DW Akademie, MFA trained representatives from Radio Pacis, Voice Of Karamoja, Mama FM, Voice Of Toro, Speak FM, Elgon FM, Etop Radio, Unity FM and Crooze FM.

Management across the different departments and women in media To deliver three online trainings teaching Media Viability and Innovation to 10 rural media outlets with a special focus on female media practitioners. To promote and increase women’s skills in the use of new media technologies and to reach more audiences. Social media training for 20 participants (journalists, talk-show hosts, marketers and social media managers etc) using social media to grow audiences and increase revenues.The target audience for the project were; community media managers, female media practitioners and female journalists and innovators. The module included a basic needs assessment survey conducted by MFA. In addition, a pre-and post-

survey was conducted for training to understand the knowledge and level of expertise of participants. The pre-survey allowed us to identify the large gaps in understanding Media Viability (MV); lack of knowledge and skills to include digitization; severe lack of gender sensitivity in reporting and lack of women in the overall business structures and culture in and overtly male dominant media landscape. As a result of the outcomes of the survey, it became apparent that the digital transition in Uganda has been a very slow. Small and medium size rural based media houses were struggling to adapt and integrate technology. Furthermore, it clearly identified the huge skills gap and lack of knowledge for media managers and practitioners from top to bottom. The digital disruption on top of Covid 19 impacted radio stations negatively especially financially as well as operations. Stations had to adapt to remote work and work from home but didn’t have the capacity, resources and equipment to facilitate the needs of their staff.

Overall, the topics covered in training were new to the vast majority of participants which created an excitement and hunger to learn new skills and increase their knowledge.

Online sessions were based on human centered designed thinking and prototyping.
The basic structure of the training were trainer and trainee centered including PPT and video presentations, print media, Q and A, feedback sessions and practical group work, knowledge sharing and examples of innovation from other media.
The online training consisted of eight bi-weekly virtual sessions using Zoom video conferencing.
WhatsApp was used as a secondary group communication tool and follow up for trainers, participants and project management. The WhatsApp group is still active at the request of the participants to allow ongoing networkingand have access to trainers. All training was interactive and held synchronously in plenary and small groups for practical work focused on developing strategy and finding solutions. The online training included elements of A-synchronous work that individuals had to complete as offline assignments.

Training also included introduction and use of various free digital collaboration and communication tools such as; Jam board, Menti.com, Padlet, Canva, Google Forms. Participants were introduced to free audience survey tools such as; Survey Monkey, Type Form, Google Forms and various other forms that include analytical capabilities.

Participants were introduced to various free video editing, audio editing, photo editing and text tools to support them in becoming more effective and efficient in their daily work and support working remotely.

Overview:

The invitation for stations to participate in this series of training was met with a high level of excitement and expectation for learning new skills and creating financial sustainability. The initial online briefing to introduce the training had a total of more than 50 participants in attendance including station managers and departmental managers across the board. The training that was conducted were planned for 20 participants but we ended up with 40 people on day one. Participants stayed consistently throughout the training with an average of 36 participants daily.

Group sessions were highly interactive and engaging and offline work was done with much enthusiasm and zest. All training consisted of 50% women with a high level of participation from female media practitioners in addition to the only women owned radio station manager; a 2nd female station manager in addition to 4 women in senior management positions. The formal and informal feedback from participants were overwhelmingly positive. Participants expressed an eagerness to continue to learn more. The pre-and post- survey decidedly showed most of the topics covered were largely new to them. Participants managed to obtain more than sufficient knowledge,

For information and skills to pursue the subjects further and apply them in their daily work. Several of the managers communicated their eagerness to use the tools and models introduced during the course of the training such as audience research, content development, empathy mapping to understand the needs of their audiences through developing personas, the use of a content calendar and the knowledge and ability to adapt their business model using the business model canvas. Furthermore, as training was happening participants started sharing new knowledge and tools to staff at their own radio stations.

Participant Feedback: (comments from each of the eight training sessions)

From Joshua Imalingat: I came to this training with so many questions about this animal called Media Viabilitybut now things are getting more interesting. Very impressed with the fact that Community engagement is at the core of what we do and that Data is the new currency.

From Bettie Mujungu: This is really resourceful for our specific programs on the radio and online audiences. I see how much content we have generated on just one person’s story. And usually in our communities there same issues of address.

From Hellen Aguyo Okello: the training was resourceful, linking content to social media and relating this to income generation stood out for me.

From Joshua Imalingat: Well I would only want to thank you for taking us through the steps because I suppose on my side I would said it is the first time am seeing such a thing as taking us through the entire process of organizing a zoom meeting. Often times we have just landed in…boom intro.. expectations and kaboom… we move on. nothing like this. It Hasn’t been a waste of time for time. I will be available for all the sessions.��

From Egonda Emmanuel: wow this is great guidance for online meetings. You really opened up my mind. Am thinking online meetings are the way to go asopposed to F2F meetings. Online meetings however require total concentration. Covid appears to be a blessing in disguise with the way organizations are communicating and meeting. Thanks.

From Betty mujungu: the audience engagement, Empathy Map and persona. it's been a really engaging session
From Agnes Etadu: Thank you Eva for this wonderful Training, for me today what stood out is various business models we as a radio station can adopt to generate revenue for the station. But importantly I took a lesson from your quote this morning "Go to the organization with an idea of how to solve their problem" not the other way round
From Emmanuel: If media managers take this presentation serious, we can actually help our organizations to take on their competitors both business wise and improving listenership numbers. Thanks Eva for this presentation.
From Kajumba Gorret: CONTENT DEVELOPMENT IS THE BEST THING BUT NEEDS TIME AS IT IS A PROCESS.
From Dorothy Ainembabazi: I believe that audience research is good to go. I hope companies and radio stations can pick up.
From Aaron Olao: I enjoyed the first session when you delved on content creation before thinking of money.
From Catherine Apalat: The in-depth persona analysis was my Aha moment.
From Kajumba Gorret: importance of engaging audience
“I can see now that Blogging and Vlogging can be done by women and men. Social Media can be used for more than just personal posting.” Dorcas.
“I am dearly impressed by the different tools I can use to generate funds for my media house and individually as well. Thanks team” Emmy Daniel Ojara
“The business model stood out for me today, but i think by putting it into practice things can work out well.” Gloria Lalam
I am so glad that every end of the training day, I have new knowledge added. Joe Wacha
From Joseph Akiiso: With this knowledge, we are more focused and will discuss with senior management based on facts in order to argue our cases.
From Joshua Imalingat: Eva this is great. I think I will never be the same again. with this training and all these tools Iwill be a digital expert soon.

Impact

10 radio stations, 30 radio presenters’ skills and knowledge in producing content on women were strengthened.

Media Monitoring Report Launch: Advancing Gender Equality in Political News Coverage

Wamunyu, W. & Maleche, H. Gender and Media in Kenya speaks at the launch of the media monitoring event held at Jacaranda Hotel in Westland on April 28 2023.

A recent media monitoring report launched by Wambui Wamunyu reveals a significant gender gap in political news coverage, with women being underrepresented as political news sources, content producers, and analysts. The report highlights the need for more diverse and inclusive media coverage and provides recommendations for achieving gender equality in politics.

The media monitoring report launch event, which took place on April 28, was attended by esteemed guests, including media representatives, politicians, civil society activists, and gender equality advocates. The report, which analyzed media coverage of political news over the past Kenya general elections, revealed that women are vastly underrepresented in political news coverage.

According to the report, about 40% of political news sources were women, and female experts and analysts were also underrepresented. Additionally, the report found that women’s perspectives were often marginalized, with their voices and opinions not given equal weight as those of their male counterparts.

In light of these findings, the report provides recommendations for improving gender equality in political news coverage. The first recommendation is for editorial decision-making to include deliberate efforts to involve both genders as political news sources, content producers, and analysts. This can enhance coverage by recognizing diverse perspectives and spaces.

Another critical recommendation is a review of campaign finance structures and mechanisms to enable equal opportunity for both genders in funding their electoral campaigns. This includes policies related to the financial support political parties provide to candidates and expenditure limits on electoral races.

During the launch event, the speakers emphasized the need for collaboration between media organizations, civil society groups, and political stakeholders to implement these recommendations effectively. Achieving gender equality in political news coverage requires a collective effort from all players involved.

Read the full report below.

General in Elections 2022G1

Training and Dialogue wrap-up

We had successful regional dialogues – reporting on digital inclusion. 96 journalists from the 3 regions participated (Lira 40, Gulu 31, Arua 25). We believe there will be a digital revolution in news dissemination in these areas. Also note that they were from different districts as follows; Agago, Dokolo, Amolatar, Nwoya, Gulu, Lira, Arua, Nebbi, Paidha, and Moyo

Media Focus On Africa partnered with @CIPESAUG via #ADRF fund

The Fight against GBV in Uganda

We had a successful dialogue on GBV in Jinja city. Media Focus On Africa Uganda is using edutainment, media and dialogues to fight GBV against women and girls and to promote women’s rights at the grassroot levels of the most affected communities . With support from Urgent Action Fund, MFA has partnered with ADOVIC , a community based organization for facilitate the dialogues.

MS PRESIDENT: SEASON 2

After successfully producing and airing Ms President Season 1, Media Focus on Africa launched a bigger and better Season 2. The second season had 20 episodes series and was aired on both television and 5 local radio stations to ensure maximum reach and engagement with the community.

What is Ms. President?

Ms President is an entertaining, educating, and thought-provoking Reality TV show that seeks to portray to a national audience the capacity and ability of women to lead effectively. The objective of Ms President is to change Kenyans’ perception and attitude towards leadership by women in communities and in the country. Learn more about Season 1 here.

Why is Ms President important?

Women are usually not found in leadership positions. In many of our communities in Kenya, they are not generally perceived to have the skills, knowledge, or social status needed to bring about meaningful change.

Kenya’s constitution provides for equality in representation between men and women. However, in political leadership, women are significantly underrepresented. Following the 2017 election, female MPs make up only 22% of the National Assembly, 31% of the Senate and only 6% of the Governors.

Ms President Season 2 has contributed to Enhancing Women’s Participation in Political Leadership and Decision Making in Kenya via a multi-media program complemented with community dialogue and capacity strengthening for key stakeholder groups. Coming in the backdrop of the 2022 election made Ms President Season 2 relevant and timely. Through the TV series, Ms President 1 introduced to the national audience young, fresh, intelligent and ‘presidential’ women from across the country many of these women have thrown their hats into the ring and are seeking various elective seats during the 2022 general election. Others have been appointed into senior public service positions e.g. CAS Nadia Abdalla of the Ministry of ICT and Youth.

Just like with Ms President Season 1, the centrepiece of Season 2 was the reality TV series. Ms President 2 that introduced to the national audience another crop of intelligent, articulate and ‘presidential’ women from diverse backgrounds with an eye on the 2027 general election and for appointment to senior public service positions.

The Impact of Season 1 and 2

Ms President Season 1 and 2 have had a significant impact on the political participation of women in Kenya. The show has encouraged young women to take an interest in politics and consider leadership positions as a viable career path. It has also promoted the importance of gender equality and women’s rights, challenging the traditional patriarchal system that dominates politics in Kenya.

Through the show, women from all walks of life have been given a platform to express their opinions, share their stories and showcase their leadership skills. This has not only helped to increase the visibility of women in politics but has also challenged the stereotypes and biases that have limited women’s participation in politics.

55% of the contestants reporting that the show has provided them with leadership opportunities that were previously unavailable to them. Nadia Abdalla, Mombasa County contestant, was appointed as Chief Administrative Secretary in the Ministry of ICT and Youth, while Betty Adera, Nairobi County contestant, is now President of KANU Political Party Women Congress, a member of the One Kenya Alliance (OKA) technical team, and Patron of the Young Women’s Forum in Africa by the Africa Youth Trust. Linet Mavu, Taita Taveta contestant, was appointed by the President to the Intergovernmental Relations Technical Committee. Additionally, many Season 1 contestants are currently running for various MP and MCA positions.

The program received endorsements from various top government officials and international dignitaries, including the President of Kenya H.E. Uhuru Kenyatta. The show was even nominated for the best TV documentary/TV show/TV reality category of the 9th Edition of the Kalasha International Film and TV awards in 2019. The program was also awarded the Best Women Empowerment Initiative at the DIAR Awards 2023.

MS. PRESIDENT SEASON 2 LAUNCHED

Media Focus on Africa has in a colourful event launched the second season of Ms. President Reality TV show, opening applications for all women who are community leaders across Kenya.

Ms President is an entertaining, educative, and thought-provoking Reality TV show that seeks to portray to a national audience the capacity and ability of women to lead effectively. The objective of Ms. President is to change Kenyans’ perception and attitude towards leadership by women in communities and in the country.

Speaking at the event, the chief guest Hon. Racheal Shebesh, Chief Administrative Secretary, Ministry of Public Service & Gender said that having training is a gateway to a great opportunity. She called on political parties to support women and give them opportunities and platforms that are meant to push them to great leadership roles.

‘I was once one of the chosen few to be sponsored to attend a political training for young leaders. It propelled me to who I am today.’ She said.

Ms President 2 will introduce to the national audience another group of women of different backgrounds, who are intelligent, articulate, and ‘presidential’, with an eye on the 2027 general election and for appointment to senior public service positions.

Among the invited guests were Season 1 contestants who are already great change-makers in our society. One notable example is that of Hon. Nadia Abdalla, who through Ms President show was appointed Chief Administrative Secretary in the ministry of ICT and Youth by Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta.

Speaking at the launch, Acting High Commissioner for Canada, David Da Silva called on aspiring women leaders to have courage and step out.

‘’To all aspiring female leaders, I urge you to put yourselves out there. It is not easy given the challenges you will face along your journey but it is worth it.’’ He said.

H.E Henriette Geiger, the European Head of Delegation to Kenya joined the meeting virtually. She thanked all the supporters of Ms President and stressed the need to push for women’s representation in various leadership roles.

Echoing Her Excellency’s remarks, Rukaya Mohammed, UN Women Country Director said that women were underrepresented in the political landscape and that there was a need to continue pushing for the implementation of the two thirds gender rule.

Politics in Kenya is characterized by low representation of women in decision-making despite women constituting 50.5% of the Kenyan population.

Women’s political representation is still below the constitutional threshold of 33% and further below the UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target of 50%.

Do you believe you have what it takes to be the next Ms President? Who are we looking for?

Are you a Kenyan woman? Aged between 20-60 years & living in Kenya? With a diploma

or higher qualifications? An excellent communicator? Agile & creative? Are you a leader

actively involved in your community? Do you have the vision to transform your community?

Do you believe in women leadership?

If you you have all these qualities, please click on the link below to download the application form. Here you will also find details on how to submit the form once you have filled it.

www.shorturl.at/jovDL or www.rb.gy/0afkus

WHY VIRAL SOCIAL MEDIA CONTENT IS BAD FOR JOURNALISM

Opinion: Who these days doesn’t have guilty pleasures such as watching endless videos online when you are supposed to be sleeping or working?

My favourite are cat videos, babies, pets, and animals. The creators of these videos have become the new e-entrepreneurs and social influencers.

To journalists, viral social media content continues to reshape the ways news is to be packaged. The redefinition of what makes content engaging has put stress on news media to repackage items to fit a new type of consumption.

Journalism vs entertainment

The media has evolved at a speed that journalism is still working at catching up with. One of the conspicuous changes has been the exponential expansion for the production of online content. This has opened the playfield to an uncontrollable number of players. This content is directly competing with journalism.

While the expansion of platforms has created space for diversity, the playfield has been made grossly unlevelled. Journalism in some regions of the world has suffered a colossal slump as a result.

The cost of producing quality journalism remains considerable. Conversely, producing social media content is relatively cheaper and without the need for time-consuming gatekeeping or editorial quality checks.

Changing tastes for audiences

Social media transformed the way audiences consume content. Online audiences developed traits such as impatience, constant use, consumption on the move, and the luxury of infinite choices.

These traits turned the audience into an insatiable beast that constantly nibbles bits of information. In return content creators produce shorter and entertaining content.

The word ‘Viral’ was reborn.

It must be viral to show impact?

Numbers are the new definition of impact. The drivers of impact have become quite obscure if journalism is to retain its depth and analytical values. Viral content has proved to be driven by entertainment value, bizarre elements, scandalous nature, or emotional appeal.

It’s all about click baits.

Daily journalism may not match these standards. It is not every good piece of journalism that will contain one or all of the qualities of viral content.

This makes the average reporter’s work remain flat amid bubbling social media viral posts that are dumbed down to attract numbers. The ability of news and feature stories to engage is now being judged against entertainment on social media.

Additional costs for journalism

Facebook’s addition of sponsored content has made it further challenging for unpaid for news content to compete.

Legacy media may still boast of a large following on social media. This is largely inherited from their dominance in the pre-digital era. Upcoming and alternative media still find it difficult to amass a following online without considerable budgets on social media advertising and branding.

Even for legacy media, social media has been an additional cost. There needs to be trained personnel, repackaging of long-form journalism to short form as well as necessary apps and software.

The cost of retraining journalists to write and produce for social media is considerable. There has also been a shift in work culture, such as the need to use mobile phones for journalism. All come at a cost.

Preserving long-form journalism in the digital space

The sacred space of journalism has always been under threat. Media freedoms must be continually fought for.

While the digital space was hailed to provide a leeway for alternative voices which would have been an addition to press freedom and freedom of information and expression, the trend is changing fast.

Digital may soon be just like mainstream. Many good pieces of journalism get drowned in the sea of ‘viral’. The ‘viral’ virus has infected journalism and a cure is needed.

All the funny videos online are good for audiences, people need comic relief. However, the truths and perspectives that journalism offers are the lifeblood of our democracy and freedoms.

A new social influence audit

Journalism has to redefine its social media influence.

An audit of followers, comments, and real-life impact may give fair indicators of how a story is performing. The metrics for other social media content should not be used to judge journalistic engagement.

UGANDA MEDIA WEEK 2020

The 2020 Media Dialogues lasted a period of 7 days and included open discussions on ‘Scientific General Elections – Key issues for journalists’ followed with training sessions on: ‘Fake news and disinformation in times of elections – Fact Checking and verification’ and ‘Upholding independent journalism in scientific elections – principles of effective elections reporting’ held on Monday 7^th September, 2020, in Gulu district. Over 30 participants attended.

CONVALESCING NEWS MEDIA CREDIBILITY DURING COVID 19 TIMES

Analysis: “Coronavirus” and “COVID19” pandemic are now key words in most of our conversations. It is almost impossible to write a news story without finding how it links to the pandemic. Business news, politics, and sports all have to be hinged on the global health crisis.

Reporter’s scripts across the globe have been synchronised into numbers of infections, deaths, and recoveries. Governments have become a key source of news and in many instances the only source. Journalists have to rely on frequent press briefing from the political leadership and their appointed bureaucrats. In Kenya as many parts of the world, the frequency of news bulletins increased as per the need of governments to release new information to the public. Social media became awash with misleading information and soon lost its glimmer as the alternative or the channel of dissent.

The complexity and uniqueness of the pandemic did not only present global health systems with shock but journalism alike was thrust into an unorthodox space for storytelling. The strict rules of lockdowns, curfews, social distancing, and disruption of public transportation isolated news sources from the reach of journalists. Frontline medical workers, convalescents, and quarantined people could have been alternative and additional sources. However, the public health guidelines in place delayed a reach to these sources and some instances cut them out completely from being part of the story.

At the same time, many newsrooms adopted working from home while only skeleton staff went to work physically. The demand for information on COVID- 19 meant little time to do in-depth journalism. Scientific knowledge of the virus has not been within quick access due to the novel nature of the disease. This further thinned out sources of information for journalists.

Government departments seemed to the last source standing. While this gave a sense of authority to the information released to the media, dissenting voices became a target. Individuals who raised contradicting views were easily branded as fake news mongers and at times met with a harsh response.

The most recent survey from Infotrack, a Kenyan research firm, revealed that news media trust came second to the government while social media dropped to the bottom with only 35% of respondents crediting the platforms’ trustworthiness.

Journalism has endured a tough terrain with eroding trust and blame for overfeeding audiences with bad news. Many may argue on the point of what makes news. Universally, bad news is news. A section of audiences got fatigued with the bleak news of the virus. News media became a victim of backlash for a population suffering from fear and anxiety over the unbearable impact the pandemic has on their lives. It is fair that at a time like this, the masses need relief from bad news, but journalism doesn’t have to be tasked with the search for solace. At the core of the craft is to hold power to account to alert audiences of any deviations from the course of the public good. Naturally, this is packaged as bad news.

Timely and truthful information from the news media is vital for triggering change. In countries where the media operates freely, journalism is often hailed for provoking change in public matters of governance and accountability. The Coronavirus continues to present our world with unrivalled obstacles. The social and economic lives of entire countries and individual citizens have been thrust into deep uncertainty. The media and journalism industry will not grope its way of out the challenge but has to take off the blindfold and fearlessly reclaim its trust and duty to the audiences.
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By Frenny Jowi, Project Officer at Media Focus on Africa