Kenya’s entertainment and arts journalists have installed an advisory board, marking a milestone for the scribes who report the creatives sector at a time the world is paying more attention to talents.
Among those installed are prominent figures from performing arts, media regulation, creative industry, and cultural policy, and public relations.
They are Thomas Kwaka—well known as Big Ted—, a cultural diplomacy champion; Christine Nguku of the Media Council of Kenya; Marion Op het Veld, well known as Mama Sarakasi; Angela Ndambuki, IFPI regional director for sub-Saharan Africa; Kamuzu Banda, a PR expert; veteran journalist Njoki Karuoya; and Donald Otoyo, director of the Permanent Presidential Music Commission.
The Entertainment and Arts Journalists Association of Kenya (EAJAK) noted that the board unveiled on August 16 will strengthen professional standards in entertainment and arts reporting across East Africa.
The team was unveiled at Alliance Française in Nairobi and celebrated as a landmark moment in the evolution of arts, culture and lifestyle journalism.
Big Ted is well known in the entertainment industry having worked as a DJ and sound engineer before moving to State House during President Uhuru Kenyatta’s regime.
Nguku is a respected TV journalist who was a news anchor with KTN for several years, becoming a household name.
Marion, the executive chair of Sarakasi Trust—an acrobats team— has worked in the arts, culture and entertainment sector since 1981, according to her LinkedIn profile.
Banda, who is the executive director of TimSky Media and a member of the Public Relations Society of Kenya (PRSK), reported the arts and culture for Nation Media Group before crossing over into PR.
Karuoya also worked as a writer at NMG for a number of years, writing special interest features, many of them on the arts and entertainment.
Ndambuki, a lawyer and performing artist, is the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) regional director for sub-Saharan Africa. Previously, she was CEO of the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Performers Rights Society of Kenya.
As other professional associations, the team will the vehicle for refining cultural reporting, building professional networks, bridging the gap between media and the creative economy, and creating pathways for journalists eyeing this specialisation.
In a statement, the association said: “This diverse board combines experience in diplomacy, media governance, creative entrepreneurship, law, music policy and strategic communication. It is the perfect blend to guide EAJAK’s mission.”
It added: “Together, we’re not just covering the creative economy — we’re helping to shape it.”
