Print Media Coverage of the Refugee Crisis in Kenya: a Comparative Analysis of the Daily Nation and Standard Newspapers

Abstract

The study sought to investigate print media coverage of the refugee crisis in Kenya by the Daily Nation and Standard newspapers. The study objectives included establishing the amount of coverage of the refugee crisis by the Daily Nation and Standard newspapers, determining the sourcing used by the Daily Nation and Standard newspapers, comparing and contrasting the coverage of the refugee crisis by Standard and the Daily Nation newspapers, and identifying factors that determined how the Standard and Daily Nation newspapers undertook the coverage of the refugee crisis. The study was guided by three theories: agenda setting, agenda priming, and agenda building. A mixed-method research approach was used in the study. The study's target population included all newspaper articles published by the Daily Nation and Standard newspapers between 1st May 2016 and 30th April 2017. The study found that the number of articles on the refugee crisis published by the Daily Nation was 29 from a total of 21,170 articles published between 1st May 2016 and 30th April 2017, while the Standard newspaper had 34 articles on the refugee crisis from a total of 11,315 articles published in the same period. The findings from the priming analysis showed that the Standard Newspaper had a total of 30 articles on its inside pages, 3 articles on its editorial pages and only 1 article on its front pages. Daily Nation had 24 articles on its inside pages, 4 on its editorial pages, 1 on its front pages and none on the back pages of both newspapers. The study also found that humanitarian themes in the context of refugees' plight and illegal immigration were most prevalent in both newspapers. The study recommends that print media should increase its coverage of the refugee crisis as it is a crucial issue of societal concern that deserves continuous and interpretative coverage that clarifies misconceptions and corrects falsehoods regarding refugees. In addition, the study recommends that media organizations in Kenya should emphasize and facilitate humanitarian and peace journalism training for their journalists to better equip them with the technical know-how on what peace and humanitarian journalism entails and how to report on it.