Political parties in Kenya have reached an historic agreement paving the way for an end to the violence that has wracked the country. Parts of the media have been accused of fanning the violence - but more recently they have shown that they could play a key role in calming it.
By Jamal Abdi and James Deane
In January 2008, Kenya suffered its worst violence in its history. An election that saw Mwai Kibaki sworn in as President for a second term was considered by international observers as deeply flawed and by many Kenyans as blatantly stolen. Within six weeks of the announcement, more than 1,000 Kenyans had been killed, more than half a million driven or fled from their homes.
The violence after the announcement of the polls was due to the polarity in the media, especially vernacular media which were turned into political tools.
Samuel Poghisio, Information Minister, Kenya
Many factors have been held responsible for the violence, and high among them has been the famously free and vigorous Kenyan media - particularly the local language or "vernacular" media in the country. "The violence after the announcement of the polls was due to the polarity in the media, especially vernacular media which were turned into political tools," Samuel Poghisio, Kenya's Information Minister argued.
Vernacular radio stations
Independent observers have agreed.
"Vernacular radio stations in my opinion played a role in the escalation of the violence," says Caesar Handa, director of Strategic Research and Consulting, whose media monitoring on behalf of UNDP first drew international attention to the character of some radio coverage. His analysis has been backed up by many others.
The ethnic hate our radio station was propagating about those from outside the community was unbelievable.
Kenyan journalist, vernacular radio station
Journalists from the radio stations themselves have expressed shock at the character of some of the broadcasts. "The ethnic hate our radio station was propagating about those from outside the community was unbelievable," one such journalist told a forum organised by the media support organization, Internews.
The role of the media
The crisis has prompted the government to institute a formal review of the media, a step being fiercely resisted by the Media Council of Kenya, the independent regulator.
The role of the media in Kenya's violence has revived the spectre of the role of Radio Milles Collines which instigated widespread violence during the Rwandan genocide. It has also raised questions of whether media can be too free in fragile states such as Kenya.
The crisis demonstrates that a free and plural media are as much an answer to Kenya's democratic deficit as they are a problem.
A new policy briefing from the BBC World Service Trust dismisses such conclusions, and - while highlighting the abuses that did occur - argues that the crisis demonstrates that a free and plural media are as much an answer to Kenya's democratic deficit as they are a problem.
It argues that the role of the local language media during the crisis was the product of a chaotic regulatory policy and the lack of training - especially of talk show hosts, whose programmes provided the platform for most of the hate speech.
It argues that many local language radio played a role in calming tensions as well as inflaming them, and could be a powerful mechanism for reconciliation.
Marginalised voices
Most of the poorest in Kenya - especially those most marginalised from political and economic power - have least access to information on issues that shape their lives in languages they best understand. They have historically had very few channels through which they can communicate their perspective into public debate. The local language stations - almost all of which have emerged in the last four years in a chaotic environment - have provided just such a channel.
Years of pent up frustration have found their voice on these radio stations which - because they were set up principally as commercial entertainment vehicles - have struggled to mediate the complex and angry debates that have ensued.
The popularity of talk shows and phone-ins has made them a mainstay of programming, but the period immediately following the election resulted in radio stations effectively losing control over their own programming. The result - largely preventable - was appalling hate speech.
BBC World Service Trust policy briefing
The policy briefing argues that changing media is fundamentally changing how people access information, and that Kenya provides a clear example of what can happen when those changes are ignored or poorly understood. The role of the media in Kenya's crisis was entirely preventable, and had it been prevented, the violence itself may well have been much more limited. Its role in the future may be critical in the reconciliation and restoration of democratic legitimacy in the months and years ahead.
This article is extracted from the BBC World Service Trust policy briefing 'The Kenyan 2007 elections and their aftermath: the role of media and communication' written from the BBC World Service Trust by Jamal Abdi and James Deane, based on 20 interviews with media, civil society and other figures. Download policy briefing