Date of Award

2024

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Executive Masters in Media Leadership and Innovation (EMMLI)

Department

Graduate School of Media and Communications

Abstract

This study explores the product, content design and strategies that Nation.Africa is currently employing to meet the media needs of Generation Z. Using a qualitative research approach and case study method, the research sought to identify chasms between what Nation.Africa is currently offering what the post-millennials want. The findings indicate Nation.Africa’s products that target to serve Generation Z media needs are those that seek to empower them, entertain them, inform them, help them progress in life, and get information in their most preferred formats— audio and visual. The research also established that Nation.Africa attempts to design content targeted at the post-millennials differently in terms of topics, formats, packaging, and distribution. However, the study found several gaps in Nation.Africa’s products targeting the iGeneration such as lack of a clear, deliberate and explicit strategy to serve audiences aged 18-26 years; failure to fully meet and serve the media needs of Gen Z; failure to fully target, involve and feature the young demographic; and lack of or slow pace of innovation. The research equally revealed deficiencies in Nation.Africa’s content design for serving Generation Z, such as limited content formats, and weak platform nativity for content published on third-party platforms, including social media. Based on the findings, the study recommends drawing a comprehensive and explicit strategy to serve the media needs of the digital natives, and communication of the plan to all managers and junior staff. A comprehensive review of all Nation.Africa products targeting Generation Z are also prescribed, with a view of re-aligning them to the needs and preferences of the post-millennials. Looking ahead, further research on this topic is recommended— taking both qualitative and quantitative approaches, focusing on more than one legacy-Press digital platform, and involving larger samples that can yield richer findings that can be applied across Kenya’s media sector. A longitudinal study focussing on several media houses in East Africa would also be a lot more informative for regional publishers seeking to restructure their legacy-Press digital platforms to meet the media needs of the iGeneration and other young audiences.

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