Date of Award

2-2023

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Master of Arts in Digital Journalism (MADJ)

First Supervisor/Advisor

Joseph Nyanoti

Second Supervisor/Advisor

Njoki Chege

Department

Graduate School of Media and Communications

Abstract

In the run-up to the 2022 general elections in Kenya, there was a general concern about political candidates vying for elective seats with active economic crimes cases. This study set to establish print media’s coverage of politicians with active economic crimes, analyse the framing of political candidates with active economic crime cases and identify factors that influence the framing of these political candidates during the electioneering period. Anchored on the framing theory, the first and second phases of the project entail content analysis, during which the data gathered was coded, analysed, and presented using tables. The third phase incorporated in-depth interviews where data collected was analysed thematically. The study established that the print media paid much attention to politicians with active economic crime cases during the campaign period. For example, daily Nation covered these politicians in 66 days while The Standard in 46 of the official 70-day campaign period. The combined total of the two publications was 112 days out of the 140 days, which is 80 percent of the days in the entire campaign period. Conflict and economic frames were the predominant frames used in the coverage of politicians with economic crime cases, while the use of responsibility and framing of the story along the views and underlying problems were moderate in coverage. The study suggests a follow-up study to investigate the coverage of politicians with active economic crime cases and its influence on voter behaviour and perceptions during an electioneering period.

Download

Share

COinS