Journal Articles

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Browsing Journal Articles by Author "Matu, Nguri"

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    Challenges Kenyan Television Journalists Face in Spotting Fake News
    (Journal of Development and Communication Studies, 2020) Matu, Nguri; Mutugi, Kabucua John; Nyamboga, Erneo Nyakundi
    A fake news story can travel half way across the world as the truth puts on its socks. There are myriads of challenges facing journalists in spotting fake news hence its wide proliferation. Fake news has become a prominent subject of enquiry especially following its alleged influence of the 2016 general elections in US. Unfortunately, research on fake news has focused on social media, politics, elections, and economies. Few studies have focused on the challenges that TV journalists face in spotting fake news prompting this study. The specific research question was; what are the challenges facing television journalists in spotting fake news in Kenya? The study adapted a relativist-constructivist/interpretivist ontology and epistemology, qualitative approach and multiple case study methodology. Data was generated through in-depth interviews, direct observation and documents review. The study used purposive sampling to generate data from 16 journalists. Data was then analysed in themes and presented in narrative form. Key findings were that in spotting fake news, journalists faced challenges like; loss of viewers, lack of authoritative contacts, sources who gave fake news for personal, business, political, and economic benefits, ability of fake news to camouflage real news, speed of fake news, typologies of fake news, live reporting, inexperienced correspondents and interns, and social media. The study concludes that the challenges facing journalists in spotting fake news were majorly based on sources, technology, education, skills and training, and its typology. The study therefore recommends that editorial boards invest in experts to train journalists on styles, architecture, propagation and use of fake news, inoculation of journalists and audiences, raising fake news literacy levels, and use of technology based approaches like reverse search and fact checking sites.
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    To Be Charged Again: Spotting of Fake News by Televion Stations in Kenya
    (African Journal of Education, Science and Technology, 2021-05) Matu, Nguri; John, Kabucua; Nyamboga, Erneo Nyakundi
    Fake news is a major threat to credibility, trust, and speed of real news owing to its ability to spread fast, camouflage real news, spur ethnic conflicts, sabotage businesses and mislead voters. While there is empirical evidence that dissemination of fake news on social media and enactments of anti-fake news laws are on the rise globally, most of the empirical studies on fake news continue to focus on its political impacts and presence on social media. News television stations work under the premise of trust, credibility and speed now threatened by fake news hence the need to explore how they spot it. The specific research question was: How do news television stations in Kenya spot fake news?. The Gate keeping theory aided conceptualization of this study. The study adapted a relativist-constructivist/interpretivist philosophical paradigm hence qualitative approach and multiple case study method. The target population comprised of reporters and editors. A sample size of 16 participants from two television stations was selected using purposive sampling technique. Data was generated through in depth interviews and observations. Data was analysed thematically and presented in narrative form based on themes. The findings show that television stations spot fake news through counterchecking and verification, instinct, delays, online reverse search, calling the source, evaluating source’s credibility, chains of gate keepers, and editorial social media groups. Despite the numerous spotting practices fake news had permeated and aired on television resulting in court charges, fines, apologies and sacking of journalists. This study concludes that practices of spotting fake news by television stations in Kenya are incoherent, informal and weakly anchored on policy documents thus insufficient. Therefore, recommends that editorial boards establish standard and well documented practices for spotting fake news to arrest its growing threat to trust in news and journalism.