At the just ended media councils summit in Arusha, scholars and practitioners had three days to go through a carefully selected list of topics aimed at furthering journalism excellence in Africa.
The Tanzania city hosted the 2nd Pan African Media Councils Summit and the first ever meeting of the Network of Independent Media Councils in Africa under the theme, ‘Advancing Media and Communication Regulations for Journalism Excellence in Africa’.
To unpack the theme, the specialists assessed the role of media in regional integration, the topic that is giving East African Community (EAC) countries and their partners sleepless nights.
Media regulation and independence featured prominently as the conference looked at models of policing the industry, the place of Artificial Intelligence (AI), data and digital rights, policy, innovation and investment.
They also looked at AI in news and content management, ethics and accountability for journalists at a time new technologies are fast expanding the boundaries of journalism, communication, and public relations.
Here, A Plain is looking at the list of the top scholars, regulators, and journalists who represented Kenya at the event that ended on Wednesday.
David Omwoyo:
A panelist at the summit, Omwoyo is the CEO the Media Council of Kenya, the independent media regulator and media development institution. He is a journalist, writer, and editor. A holder of a master’s degree, Omwoyo who is an alumnus of the prestigious London School of Economics is pursuing a PhD in Organisational Leadership at Columbia International University.
Maina Muiruri:
A moderator at the talks, the career journalist and communications expert worked at The Standard for 18 years, rising through the ranks before becoming the managing editor of The People Daily that he transformed into Kenya’s first free-distribution newspaper.
Holding a master’s degree in International Studies and a Bachelor’s in Political Science, he was the chairman of the Media Council of Kenya (MCK) from 2019 to 2022. A media consultant, he teaches journalism at two universities.
Immaculate Kassait:
One of the panelists at the summit, Kassait is Kenya’s first data commissioner with 12 years experience in public sector governance, training, strategy and compliance. Before being named the commissioner, she chaired the task force that midwifed regulations that operationalised the Data Protection Act.
An Advocate of the High Court of Kenya, Kassait holds a master’s in Business Administration from USIU-A, a postgrad diploma in law from Kenya School of Law, and a first degree in law from Makerere.
Nancy Booker:
Prof Booker is the Dean at the Aga Khan University’s Graduate School of Media and Communications. An accomplished academic, researcher, university administrator, and media practitioner with more than 25 years of experience, she has taught and published extensively. The don is trained in the art and practice of leadership development at Harvard University.
Sitting on several company boards, including that of Nation Media Group, she is the vice-president of the African Journalism Educators Network.
Judie Kaberia:
An award-winning journalist, Kaberia is passionate about public policy, human rights, gender equality, justice and accountability. Kaberia is a 2015 Fellow of the respected Edward R. Murrow Programme for Journalists (Washington DC).
A holder of a master’s degree in New Media, Governance, and Democracy from the University of Leicester, she is a mentor of the US Embassy mentorship programme for female journalists, a consultant with Thomson Foundation, Media Council of Kenya, Deutsche Welle Akademie, UNDP, and the Aga Khan Graduate School of Media and Communications.
Victor Bwire:
One of the moderators at the summit, Bwire is the director of media training and development at the Media Council of Kenya, a director at the East African Press Councils, and a member of the Network of Independent Media Councils in Africa.
A trained journalist and a communications expert, he is a content moderation and freedom of expression specialist, who has worked as a journalist and writer for the Daily Nation, The Standard, and People Daily.
Zubeida Kananu:
Kananu is a broadcast journalist with more than 18 years of experience who has worked as a field reporter, editor, and a public relations expert. She is the president of Kenya Editors Guild where she leads the search for editorial independence, media accountability, and protection of press freedoms.
She holds a master’s in governance, peace and security studies; a first degree in peace and conflict studies; and, a diploma in journalism.
Churchill Otieno:
A journalist of more than 21 years experience, Otieno is an expert in print media, digital media, and communication with a focus on sustainability, editing, and investigative journalism.
The president of the Africa Editors Forum, he headed the Kenya Editors Guild between 2018 and 2023. Otieno holds an MBA and a master’s in communication studies.
Leo Mutisya:
Mutisya is the manager, press freedom and advocacy at the Media Council of Kenya. At the Arusha summit, he was the lead rapporteur.
