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KtnNews launch a major milestone in the media industry


The launch of the first 24-hour news channel in Kenya by the Standard Group on 10th July 2015 is a major milestone in country’s media industry. Many Kenyans, both in the diaspora and in Kenya have been waiting for such a channel and this can be attributed to the reception the launch got on social media platforms Twitter and Facebook. Several people lauded the launch, which Standard Group says is meant to inform, educate and entertain the masses.

The channel will offer comprehensive, incisive news, current affairs programming, documentaries and features, while KTN will continue to air its popular programs.
This is just but a glimpse of what digital migration promises its subscribers. It is also important to note that the launch of this channel will see the media group recruit more employees, a positive thing to digital content creators.

It is also a challenge to other media organizations in the country to exploit the broadcasting opportunities that come with digital transmission of content and to provide an array of educative and informative programs to local and international subscribers. Viewers will now not have to wait for prime hours to watch news, they can tune in anytime to the channel and get news highlights and detailed analysis of the same- which is what digital migration is all about.

This, I think is a major milestone in Kenya’s media industry, looking back at the long journey it has gone through- from the colonial period where freedom of the press was like a mirage- to date when the constitution provides for freedom of the media and people can air their views in public for a through the press and dissent.

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