Radio listening habits among rural audiences: An ethnographic study of Kieni West Division in Central Kenya

In the 1990s, the liberalization of the media industry in African countries such as Kenya was faced with the challenge of continuing to provide much-needed information to the African population. One segment of particular interest in Kenya was the rural audience that makes up 80% of the country's population. This is a research on the role of radio in rural listeners' everyday lives within a liberalized media environment. Using the media ethnography method, I examined the radio consumption habits of rural people of the Kieni West Division, Nyeri District, Kenya. How do they choose content from the stations that are available? What type of content do they seek and how does this relate to their daily lives? Data was collected using interviewing, focus-group discussions and observation methods. In addition, documents relating to radio broadcasting in Kenya were analyzed.;This research found that radio is the most important and accessible medium in Kieni West and that vernacular radio stations are the most preferred ones. Kieni West listeners use radio to obtain information about what is happening locally and beyond. They use radio to access information on health and agriculture. In addition, listeners rely on radio for social interactions, civic engagement, and as a platform where they can take some of their problems and seek solutions. This research concludes that media liberalization and commercialization of radio in Kenya has led to a number of outcomes to rural listeners. These include emergence of a competitive radio industry that provides multiple outlets and a wide variety of content from which people can choose. Secondly, the rise of vernacular radio stations has provided access to broadcasting in various local languages which allows for diverse content to a wide section of the population. Vernacular stations demonstrate sensitivity to the needs of rural audiences and therefore higher acceptance.