This week we went
through the Primaries for the National Resistance Movement. The
coverage by local media channels was impressive. There are shows
every morning both on television and on the radio where the hosts
dish out bits of news are presented printed press.
Different channels
have chosen different approaches to this coverage. This is in a
sense the effect of digitization. We have a lot more people trying to
cash in on the expansion of the spectrum. One of the vast open
spaces that is yet to be filled in out politically sensitive
environment talk radio and the emergence of 'celebrity' hosts. The
way the Americans work that space is by creating exclusive spots for
experts and opinion makers where they get a chance at hosting their
own shows. Many then use this to create talk shows to match what they
do on Television. On the local scene, I see political commentetors
such as Political Dons at the Main University, Analysts and
Influential Bloggers as well as Veteran Hosts taking this on.
A belated response
to West Nile, would be the revival of Idi Amin's dream of creating an
Africa Wide Station covering most of the common languages. This was a
dream that was destroyed way beyond its time. What you now see, is
that any nation that wishes to express itself on the broader
continent now finds itself having to create some kind of media
channel to present its own perspective and maybe even to serve in
the interest of soft power.
While the
journalists were going back and forth reporting on the events as they
took place, there were some interesting undertones to watch in the
interactions between 'studio' and 'stage'. Traditionally, the studio
is supposed to run the show and make the calls while the stage
responds to queue with up to date information and news. But it was
clear in some regards that some of the people on the stage were
really much to large of the stage and would probably suit the studio.
Or maybe the two groups were very comfortable with each other and
willing to stretch the space?
If you also
noticed there have been some interesting career moves by some of
the station hosts In the country. This is not unique to the
country but we do stand out in a sense maybe bacause we live in a
relatively small country. Career moves here are made rapidly and
seemelessly across sectors. It is not unusual to see the exit of one
from a telcom to another or from a prominent TV station to another.
And the friction within the work space is also often pulpable. The
more notable of these moves took place in the media space and
demonstrate the stiffness of the competition that will be a mark of
the days and months to come. In a sense most of these moves are
enhanced by the current political climate as the country prepares for
the 2016 election.
Maybe the only
negative aspect about the news space is that late commers are often
under very little pressure to innovate. Five years or so ago, the
major players were WBS, NTV and NBS. Now though others have emerged
and began to influence the manner in which the new groups do their
work. The interests of the brands have been overtaken by the rise of
popular hosts who command quite a lot of influence and can now
command their own pay. So you will continue to see new super hosts
moving from station to station making more but growing only in a
limited sense. The major brands will suffer because it will become
almost impossible to keep your core group and to create an ethos
around the manner in which you work.
