We have set up a citizen journalism blog-style website called Kenya Monitor.
Kenya Monitor’s sole mandate is to report on important stories from all the counties in Kenya through use of bloggers and other online content creators.
It has become quite evident that mainstream media does not necessarily cover all stories especially those of human interest. The growth of the number of internet users in Kenya has also spurred the rise of citizen journalist who are able to capture events as they happen through their mobile phones. Due to the lengthy process of sending images, video footage or stories to media houses, most Kenyans never get to share their witness accounts.
We intend to harness the power of the internet and the need by the Kenyan Citizen to share their stories to provide a platform that caters for this need. We are starting with Nairobi County and its environs and eventually launch it countrywide.
How it will work
Kenya Monitor will accept stories, images, audio and video footage from the public which will then be verified and edited by a team of editors and then published.
The editors will be paid and the content contributors will work on a volunteer basis but will be paid a small stipend to facilitate their Internet access costs.
Content
Kenya Monitor will be the platform for Kenyans to tell their own unfiltered stories and at the same time crowd-source interesting stories as observed by the citizens. The main focus will be on stories that don’t get much coverage in the main stream media. We have identified several broad thematic areas such as development, governance, health, culture, arts, culture, education, environment, philanthropy among others which will be the main focus point for the platform.
There will also be an emphasis of local stories and experiences Kenyans go through in their daily lives.
The content will be in English but will also be translated into Kiswahili and other Kenyan languages. The specific content created will be in the form of text, videos, audio and pictures.
Building Capacity
In order to build capacity and get content, we are seeking experienced and passionate editors who believe in the Power of the internet in promotion of Free Speech online as well as in the ever growing important role of Citizen Journalists.
We are currently looking for editors for the following Counties:-
a. Nairobi
b. Mombasa
c. Makueni
d. Nakuru
The topics we will focus on from the counties will be:-
i. Health
ii. Governance
iii. Arts
iv. Culture
v. Environment
vi. Environment
vii. Education
viii. Human Rights
ix. Gender Based Violence
x. Philanthropy
Title Position
The Title Position shall be County ‘Name’ Editor.E.g Nairobi County Editor. If you have the following qualifications or know someone who does, then it’s you we are looking for
Qualifications
– Be a blogger or/and have a clear understanding of Blogging, Social Media and Citizen Journalism
– Have a passion for alternative media and the role of blogs& Social media play as alternative news sources
– Demonstrate a clear understanding and passion for the chosen county to edit on.
– 1 year experience in editing for an online or print publication will be an added advantage
– Multi-lingual (knowledge and competence in editing in English & Kiswahili)
– Possess Leadership & management skills required to manage contributors
– Have an active presence on Social Media
– Demonstrate knowledge of current affairs in county and topics of specialization
– Demonstrate a clear knowledge of the existing bloggers and online content creators in your field and/or region of expertise.
Duties
– Identify and recruit new contributors who exhibit passion and knowledge of the topic/region through their blogs and/or online conversations.
– Manage and co-ordinate contributors for a given topic and region
– Collection of articles according to set deadlines
– Meet the weekly and monthly articles publication threshold
– Fact check and verification for news stories
– Editing all articles prior to publishing
– Publication of all articles to the Kenya Monitor website
– Follow leads to stories and news in the given topic or region and assign contributors for coverage in a timely manner.
– Create additional content to meet the monthly threshold of at least 25 posts per month
– Curate posts based on opinions and/or articles written by various bloggers on the topics featured on Kenya Monitor
– Prepare weekly progress reports
– Attend all monthly meetings
– Report to the Kenya Monitor Managing Editor and Project Lead
If interested, send the following information;- Your Profile complete with links to your online presence as well as which County Editorial position you are seeking to:- [email protected] and cc [email protected]
All applications should reach us on or before 1st January 2015.