The Role of Media in Conflict in the Horn of Africa

Abstract

This study focuses on the role of media in horn of Africa, looking at how the press – mainly radio – is used in conflict management while at the same time assessing the positive and negative impacts the media has on the prolonged Somalia conflict. The thesis also looks at the challenges faced by the journalists and their media houses in respect to the conflict in the war torn horn of Africa nation. Special attention is given to the de-escalation approach used by media operating in the horn of Africa to mitigate the impact and spread of conflict. The study focuses on the years when the region conflict was at its peak, especially during the era of warlords, moderate Islamist, extremists such as Al-Shabab and the Federal government. Unemployment among young men, and where male educational levels are low, faces high degree of conflicts. For instances throughout Horn of Africa, factional conflicts have been drawn on a pool of marginalized or socially excluded young men. Conflicts of scarcity are linked to the control of land and water rights. In both cases, the crucial element is how competing interests for those resources are controlled. The Horn has been called one of the most armed regions in the world. The study pursued to evaluate possible expressions of peace journalism against war journalism by using tools unique to conflict analysis. The study used secondary sources of data, this includes; several media houses websites and reporters operating in the horn of Africa. The study used the frameworks of peace and war journalism to analyze the impact of media reports has had on the conflict in Somalia, and the result shows that even though both local and international media houses tend to use more of war journalism than peace journalism, some local stations in the country have championed peace journalism and actually helped calm tensions in different parts of Somalia. The research also found that radio station is the most preferable source of media in Somalia; since most people are not literate they do not depend on newspaper.