This chapter addresses theoretical
review, conceptual framework and reviews existing literature. It also shows the
relationship between vernacular radio and language, culture as well the
regional appeal of this electronic mass medium. The popularity of vernacular
radio is looked at in terms of audience size, hours of listening and
participation in programmes. Extraneous variables analyzed are influence of
vernacular language as well as vernacular illiteracy.
This study was based on Uses
and Gratification Theory. Uses and gratifications approach is an
influential tradition in media research. The original conception of the
approach was based on the research for explaining the great appeal of certain
media contents. The core question of such research is: Why do people use media
and what do they use them for? (McQuail, 1983). There exists a
basic idea in this approach: audience members know media content, and which
media they can use to meet their needs.
In the mass communication process, uses and gratifications
approach puts the function of linking need gratifications and media choice
clearly on the side of audience members. It suggests that people’s needs
influence what media they would choose, how they use certain media and what
gratifications the media give them. This approach differs from other
theoretical perspectives in that it regards audiences as active media users as
opposed to passive receivers of information. In contrast to traditional media
effects theories which focus on “what media do to people” and assume audiences
are homogeneous, uses and gratifications approach is more concerned with “what
people do with media” (Katz, 1959). It allows audiences personal needs to use
media and responds to the media, which is determined by their social and psychological
background. In this study, the researcher acknowledged that audience of the
vernacular radio deliberately chose this medium.
Uses and gratifications approach also postulates that the media
compete with other information sources for audience’s need satisfaction (Katz et al., 1974a). As traditional mass media and new media
continue to provide people with a wide range of media platforms and content, it
is considered one of the most appropriate perspectives for investigating why
audiences choose to be exposed to different media channels (LaRose et al.,
2001).
The approach emphasizes audiences’ choice by assessing their
reasons for using a certain media to the disregard of others, as well as the
various gratifications obtained from the media, based on individual social and
psychological requirements (Severin & Tankard, 1997). As a broader
perspective among communication researches, it provides a framework for
understanding the processes by which media participants seek information or
content selectively, commensurate with their needs and interests (Katz et al.,
1974a). Audience members then incorporate the content to fulfill their needs or
to satisfy their interests (Lowery & Nabila, 1983).
Needs and Gratifications
Uses and gratifications approach emphasizes motives and the
self-perceived needs of audience members. Blumler and Katz (1974) concluded
that different people can use the same communication message for very different
purposes. The same media content may gratify different needs for different individuals.
There is not only one way that people uses media. Contrarily, there are as many
reasons for using the media as there are media users.
Basic needs, social situation, and the individual’s background,
such as experience, interests, and education, affect people’s ideas about what
they want from media and which media best meet their needs. That is, audience
members are aware of and can state their own motives and gratifications for
using different media. McQuail, Blumler, and Brown (1972) proposed a model of
“media-person interactions” to classify four important media gratifications:
(1) Diversion: escape from routine or problems; emotional release; (2) Personal
relationships: companionship; social utility; (3) Personal identity: self-reference;
reality exploration; value reinforces; and (4) Surveillance (forms of information
seeking). The researcher was of the view that vernacular radio meets needs of
its listeners, which are not met by other media. He also felt that low
education levels might also contribute to preference of vernacular media.
Another subdivided version of the audience’s motivation was
suggested by McGuire (1974), based on a general theory of human needs. He
distinguished between two types of needs: cognitive and affective. Then he
added three dimensions: “active” versus “passive” initiation, “external” versus
“internal” goal orientation, and emotion stability of “growth” and
“preservation.” When charted, these factors yield 16 different types of
motivations which apply to media use (Item 1).
Item 1.A structuring of 16 general paradigms of human motivation
(McGuire, 1974).
Katz, Gurevitch and Haas (1973) developed 35 needs taken from the
social and psychological functions of the mass media and put them into five
categories:
- Cognitive
needs, including acquiring information, knowledge and understanding;
- Affective
needs, including emotion, pleasure, feelings;
- Personal
integrative needs, including credibility, stability, status;
- Social
integrative needs, including interacting with family and friends; and
- Tension
release needs, including escape and diversion.
Congruously, McQuail’s (1983) classification of the following
common reasons for media use:
Information
- finding
out about relevant events and conditions in immediate surroundings,
society and the world
- seeking
advice on practical matters or opinion and decision choices
- satisfying
curiosity and general interest
- learning;
self-education
- gaining
a sense of security through knowledge
Personal Identity
- finding
reinforcement for personal values
- finding
models of behavior
- identifying
with valued others (in the media)
- gaining
insight into oneself
Integration and Social Interaction
- gaining
insight into the circumstances of others; social empathy
- identifying
with others and gaining a sense of belonging
- finding
a basis for conversation and social interaction
- having
a substitute for real-life companionship
- helping
to carry out social roles
- enabling
one to connect with family, friends and society
Entertainment
- escaping,
or being diverted, from problems
- relaxing
- getting
intrinsic cultural or aesthetic enjoyment
- filling
time
- emotional
release
- sexual
arousal (p. 73)
These dimensions of uses and gratifications assume an active
audience making motivated choices.
McQuail (1994) added another dimension to this definition. He
states:
Personal social circumstances and psychological dispositions
together influence both … general habits of media use and also … beliefs and
expectations about the benefits offered by the media, which shape ... specific
acts of media choice and consumption, followed by ... assessments of the value
of the experience (with consequences for further media use) and, possibly ...
applications of benefits acquired in other areas of experience and social
activity (p. 235).
This expanded explanation accounts for a variety of individual
needs, and helps to explain variations in media sought for different
gratifications.
Gratifications sought (GS) and gratifications
obtained (GO)
The personal motivations for media use also suggest that the media
offer gratifications which are expected by audiences. These gratifications can
be thought of as experienced psychological effects which are valued by
individuals. Palmgreen and Rayburn (1985) thus proposed a model of the
gratifications sought (GS) and gratifications obtained (GO) process shown in
Item 2.
Item 2. An expectance-value model of media gratifications sought
and obtained (Palmgreen and Rayburn, 1985).
The model distinguishes between GS and GO. Thus, where GO is
noticeably higher than GS, we are likely to be dealing with situations of high
audience satisfaction and high ratings of appreciation and attention (McQuail,
1983).
To investigate the relationship between GS and GO, Palmgreen et
al. (1980) conducted a study of gratifications sought and obtained from the
most popular television news programs. The results indicated that, on the one
hand, each GS correlated either moderately or strongly with its corresponding
GO; on the other hand, the researchers found that the gratifications audiences
reportedly seek are not always the same as the gratifications they obtain
(Palmgreenet al., 1980). A later study conducted by Wenner (1982)
further showed that audiences may obtain different levels of gratifications
from what they seek when they are exposed to evening news programs.
Media Dependency
Theory
Media dependency theory, also known as media system dependency
theory, has been explored as an extension of or an addition to the uses and
gratifications approach, though there is a subtle difference between the two
theories. That is, media dependency looks at audience goals as the origin of
the dependency while the uses and gratifications approach emphasizes audience
needs (Grant et al., 1998). Both, however, are in agreement that media use can
lead to media dependency. Moreover, some uses and gratifications studies have
discussed media use as being goal directed (Palmgreen, Wenner&Rosengren.
1985; Rubin, 1993; Parker & Plank, 2000).
Media dependency theory states that the more dependent an
individual is on the media for having his or her needs fulfilled, the more
important the media will be to that person. DeFleur and Ball-Rokeach (1976)
described dependency as the correlating relationship between media content, the
nature of society, and the behaviour of audiences. It examines both macro and
micro factors influencing motives, information-seeking strategies, media and
functional alternative use, and dependency on certain media (Rubin and Windahl,
1982).
As DeFleur and Ball-Rokeach (1989) suggested, active selectors’
use of the media to achieve their goals will result in being dependent on the
media. Littlejohn (2002) also explained that people will become more dependent
on media that meet a number of their needs than on media that provide only a
few ones. “If a person finds a medium that provides them with several functions
that are central to their desires, they will be more inclined to continue to
use that particular medium in the future” (Rossi, 2002).
The intensity of media dependency depends on how much people
perceive that the media they choose are meeting their goals. These goals were
categorized by DeFleur and Ball-Rokeach (1989) into three dimensions which
cover a wide range of individual objectives: (1) social and self understanding
(e.g., learning about oneself, knowing about the world); (2) interaction and
action orientation (e.g., deciding what to buy, getting hints on how to handle
news or difficult situation, etc.); (3) social and solitary play (e.g.,
relaxing when alone, going to a movie with family or friends).DeFleur and
Ball-Rokeach (1989) also suggested that more than one kind of goal can be
activated (and satisfied) by the same medium.
Dependency on a specific medium is influenced by the number of
media sources available to an individual. Individuals should become more
dependent on available media if their access to media alternatives is limited.
The more alternatives there are for an individual, the lesser is the dependency
on and influence of a specific medium (Sun et al., 1999).
INDEPENDENT VARIABLE
Vernacular radio
- Language
- Culture
- Regional appeal
|
Intervening variables
·
foreign languages
·
vernacular illiteracy
|
DEPENDENT VARIABLE
Popularity of vernacular radio
·
Audience size
·
Hours of listening
·
Audience participation in programming
|
The conceptual framework above underscores the fact that
popularity of vernacular radio is greatly dependent on the language it uses to
transmit its programmes, vernacular language. In this framework, vernacular
radio is the dependent variable whereas popularity of vernacular radio is the
dependent variable.
Aspects of vernacular radio that can influence its popularity
include the language itself, culture transmitted or portrayed by the language
as well as the regional appeal of the radio station.
Popularity of a radio station can be gauged by the size of the
audience it boasts of, the average hours the audience listens to it and the
level of audience participation in radio programmes like call-ins.
Vernacular radio refers to radio that
broadcasts in language that is native or local in a particular region. The
latest media research from Kenya reveals that radio is still the preferred
media. According to latest statistics from media research company, Synovate
conducted under the Kenya Audience Research Foundation (KARF), radio leads in
overall media consumption followed by the mobile phone, television, newspapers,
and the internet respectively (Kimutai, 2011).
The study carried out on a population sample of 8 504 showed
that 93% of the sample had listened to radio in the last seven days. Further,
more people in Kenya are now listening to more than one radio station - about
54% and the average time spent listening per day is 6 hours.
An interesting highlight of the findings is the top ratings
for vernacular radio stations. Kenya has two national languages - English
and Swahili, and over 42 tribes which when subdivided triples the number of
spoken dialects in Kenya. 68% of people sampled listened to vernacular stations
for more than 10 hours a week for vernacular far more than those who
listened to stations broadcasting in English. According to the
report, top radio broadcasting languages by time spent listening are Luo (28%),
Swahili (26%), Kikuyu (25%), Kalenjin (24.8%), and Kamba (22%) - stations that
receive more than three hours a day of core listeners.
Royal Media Services Group has carved out a particular niche in this area. The
company began in 1999 with its flagship station, the very popular Radio Citizen, which transmits in
Kenya’s national language Swahili and targets the “common man.” The group’s
current stable of 11 stations includes nine vernacular outlets: Inooro
(Kikuyu), Ramogi (Luo), Mulembe (Luhya), Musyi (Kamba), Muuga (Meru),
Chamgei (Kalenjin ), Egesa (Kisii), Wimwaro (Embu) and Bahari FM (Swahili
and Mijikenda) .
Charles Njoroge, director general of the
Communications Commission of Kenya -- the body in charge of licensing and
regulating broadcasters -- said the growing number of vernacular radio stations
is driven by demand from listeners. He said it all started in the early 1990s,
when national broadcaster KBC Radio would air programs in different languages
at different times.
“Media owners discovered there was demand for vernacular radio stations, owing
to the popularity of the select programs aired in vernacular languages,”
Njoroge said.
The CCK director general dismissed concerns that the proliferation of
vernacular stations indicated a failure by Kenyans to unite around common
language or languages. Building a sense of national unity is a political
priority in the wake of widespread post-election violence in 2008-
2009 that was driven largely by ethnic divisions.
Rather, Njoroge argued that vernacular stations are a way to
preserve local cultures and traditions which are being diluted by Western
influences. “Vernacular radio stations are one of the platforms to
protect Kenya’s diverse languages and cultures,” he said.
2.3.1 Language and mass communication
|
 Language is the development of
the basic form of communication between human beings, and in a society. Moreover,
just as it is the basic form, it is also the most developed. We cannot
communicate in any real sense without language, other than through gestures;
we do communicate through some non-verbal forms like the visual arts -
painting and sculpture - and through dance, but the culmination of true,
articulate, communication is through language. It could take a number of
forms, of course. It could be unvarnished, workaday prose, it could be
poetry, it could be drama; but all of these are forms of language, written,
spoken and read.
Other than the availability of signals, one factor that
determines the choice of radio station that audiences listen to is the
language of broadcasting. Among the questionnaire respondents in a research
that was conducted in Kieni West Divisionin central Kenya dominated by the
Kikuyu community 71% picked a Kikuyu vernacular station as their favourite station
(Gathigi , 2009). Those who preferred vernacular stations cited the ability
to comprehend content as one of the major reasons behind their choice. To the
older population, the emergence of vernacular radio broadcasting has provided
an avenue where for the first time they could listen to the radio on their
own without relying on an intermediary. The old broadcasting system in which
radio broadcast mainly in English and Swahili left out a huge section of the
older population. They had to rely on those who could understand the
languages to tell them what was going on. The following comments reflect some
of the views of the older people.
For
Beatrice, an 85-year old grandmother from Mahiga, the new broadcasting has
changed the radio.
“The good thing about the new Kikuyu stations is that even as
old people, we can now listen to the radio without asking anyone to explain
what was said. I will just sit there with my radio and get everything that is
said. Before, things were very different, the radio was a device that just
made noises, now it speaks to me.”
Stephen Ndungo, a 62-year old from Mahiga explained this too,
contrasting the old times when there was little to choose from and the
current times where there are many choices of radio stations.
“The local language stations are good because before we had KBC
that broadcast in English and Swahili and not everyone is educated or can
speak Swahili or English. So there will always be a time when people listen
to the radio but miss something. But since the day we got local language
broadcasting, there is no way you will hear someone asking what was said
because even little children now can say I heard this and that on the radio.
So the local languages make life and radio listening easy.”
Struggling with English is not restricted to those who said they
did not understand the language at all. Some listeners said that despite
understanding English, they have not attained the proficiency level where
they are able to understand everything that is said on the radio. From those
who reported a modest understanding to teachers and young people who have a
higher proficiency, these sentiments were shared across the board. Michael, a
20-year-old teacher at a local primary school who is also waiting to join
university said that language is critical in influencing his choice of
stations.
“Some stations, based on my level of understanding of the
language (English), sometimes I may not understand the news. Even when I want
to listen to the news, sometimes the use of English is a little too
complicated. If I listen to news from Easy FM for example, I cannot
comprehend the language without straining. So I end up tuning to a Kikuyu
station because I can easily understand.”
Agatha, a
55-year old teacher at Mahiga primary school captures the language situation
through what she calls “deep meanings” she gets and the “taste” of her
language, Kikuyu, compared to English and Swahili. She also talks of “feeling
the language getting” in her that signifies cognitive proximity to the speech
as it is delivered and the ease with which listeners understand their
language.
For some listeners,
the choice of language is determined by those who are around you and the
language norms. Young listeners like 23-year old Bernard Mutugi from Mweiga
pointed to what they view as the sensitivity of Kikuyu language, which they
believe mutes discussion of topics that are freely addressed in other
languages. Culturally, there are shared language norms that have to be
adhered to. When a language that is deemed as inappropriate in the Kikuyu
culture is heard on the radio, young people feel uncomfortable if they are in
the company of older people. However, there is no such discomfort if one is
in the presence of her or his peers. However, it all depends on which
language is being used on the radio as Mutugi explained.
“Based on what is being discussed on the radio, like in Kiss
100, there are things that can be freely said in English. But if the language
of broadcasting was Swahili or Kikuyu, it would feel shameful to listen. So I
can laugh without hiding and without losing respect. When some issues in
English are delivered in Kikuyu language, they are very sensitive and I will
feel uncomfortable. Also, because of the people around me, there are things
that when said in Kikuyu, with my mother present, will sound offensive. But
the same things can be said in English and I can still listen with her.”
Young people on the other hand argue that Kikuyu language, like
the culture, is more conservative while English language is liberal in the
discussion of taboo topics and muted discussions identified in the preceding
section. They feel more uncomfortable using the vernacular language to
discuss sexual issues than older people. Even concepts that are not necessarily
considered unacceptable in the day-to-day speech are hard for many young people
to use while the elder people do not have the same problem. Mr. Kariuki, a 68
year old from Mweiga argues that Kikuyu language is not necessarily blunt;
instead, it is the young people who do not understand their culture.
“Our language is not blunt. I think some parents have taught
their children that our language is blunt. Our children have lost our culture
and that is making things so difficult. One day I told a young man something
and he was so mad because he thought I had insulted him by telling him he
depends on his mother. When I went to visit his home, he was asked to prepare
me a cup of tea but refused and said I insulted him. When he repeated what I
had said, his mother reprimanded him asking him who else he depended upon.”
It is also interesting to note how some of the young listeners
view Kikuyu broadcasting. Some are resistant to their language on the radio.
For them, the language is too mundane; they hear it every day in their lives
and would rather listen to something different. Some do not even want to be
associated with listening to Kikuyu stations because among their peers it is
not considered a “cool” thing to do. In contrast, listening to English language
FM stations has a sense of prestige. According to Joseph Mathenge, a
22-year-old male from Endarasha, listening to Kikuyu stations for a young man
feels awkward. “Even girls are not impressed when they find you listening to
Kikuyu stuff”. Ndugi, a 24 year old from Mwiyogo thinks there is too much
Kikuyu on the radio. For Ndugi, such presence results in people all over the
country learning the language that erodes any uniqueness of the Kikuyu
community.
“I don’t know how I feel about Kikuyu stations because I do not
listen to Kikuyu stations. And after all, these Kikuyu talk has gone
overboard making me feel like I can turn off the Kikuyu stations. As the
Kikuyu people we need a way we can communicate among ourselves, be different
and symbolize ourselves as Kikuyu. But now the language is being spoken so
much by four stations such that even Kisii or other communities understand
Kikuyu and from the way things are going, they will all be speaking Kikuyu.
If you go to a different place these days and meet a Kisii, Kamba, or
Kalenjin, they are all speaking Kikuyu. In a few years to come, everyone will
be speaking Kikuyu language fluently.”
These comments illustrate a feeling of protectionism. Ndugi
feels that the Kikuyu people ought to keep their language to themselves.
However, there is also an aspect of resistance that does not necessarily come
out openly. It is a kind of discomfort that some people, especially the young
feel with their vernacular language. There is a desire to feel different from
the rest. In many cases, disassociating with the “local” makes these young
people feel different and one way of doing that is using a different language
for communication, such as English, which is considered “prestigious”. When
asked, many young people expressed the desire to move away from the village,
probably to join their friends in the urban areas where life is considered
more flashy and interesting. Also there are assumptions that more employment
opportunities exist in the urban areas. As Githinji, a 40-year old farmer
from Endarasha explained, since many young people do not manage to go away
from the village physically, the consumption of urban content serves as a
psychologically compensatory act that partly fulfils their wish.
The researcher was interested to know to what extent Meru
language attracted listeners in Mucwa Sub-location.
|
2.3.2. The Relationship
between communication and culture
The term “culture” refers to the complex collection of knowledge,
folklore, language, rules, rituals, habits, lifestyles, attitudes, beliefs, and
customs that link and give a common identity to a particular group of people at
a specific point in time.
The researcher was concerned about to what extent culture transmitted through
the vernacular language contributes to popularity of vernacular radio. The
relationship between communication and culture is a very complex and intimate
one. First, cultures are created through communication; that is, communication
is the means of human interaction through which cultural characteristics—
whether customs, roles, rules, rituals, laws, or other patterns—are created and
shared. It is not so much that individuals set out to create a culture when
they interact in relationships, groups, organizations, or societies, but rather
that cultures are a natural by-product of social interaction. In a sense,
cultures are the “residue” of social communication. Without communication and
communication media, it would be impossible to preserve and pass along cultural
characteristics from one place and time to another. One can say, therefore,
that culture is created, shaped, transmitted, and learned through
communication. The reverse is also the case; that is, communication practices
are largely created, shaped, and transmitted by culture.
This study sought to find
out how favourably the vernacular radio is viewed and therefore liked by its
audience for conforming to their culture
All institutions within society facilitate communication, and in
that way, they all contribute to the creation, spread, and evolution of
culture. However, communication media such as radio play a particularly
important role. Because media extend human capacities for creating,
duplicating, transmitting, and storing messages, they also extend and amplify
culture-building activities.
In
Canada, Gerald S. Doyle Bulletin, was a programme that transmitted messages sent by
listeners who listened to Newfoundland radio that broadcast in vernacular. ‘Purposefully
obscure language’( deliberate use of language with hidden meaning) was allegedly
a significant feature of the messages broadcast on the Gerald S. Doyle
Bulletin, and certain unique or humorous personal messages purportedly
broadcast on the Bulletin have entered into Newfoundland oral tradition,
and are repeated and shared like jokes and legends during reminiscences about
outport life(Franklin, 2009). As Philip Hiscock has observed,
For over thirty years
[the Bulletin] retained a large audience and injected into the
folklore of Newfoundland a rich and
varied corpus of verbal play. In a manner similar to the collection and telling
of jokes, excerpts from remembered message programmes are passed on for
entertainment, and enlightenment about Newfoundland’s past culture (Hiscock
1988: 53).
Here the channelling of
telegraphic into radiophonic communication, private into public, scatters the
grains (the original meaning of the term ‘broadcast’) of lore. This
‘publication’ of messages means that they ‘belong’ to a wider community that
can then relate and repeat them freely, and adapt them, if they choose. The
humour of the remembered, repeated (and, perhaps, in the process of oral
transmission, refined) messages resides in the various ways in which
they deviated from the conventional formula. The unconventional and figurative
language of some messages can be attributed to a sense of humour on the part of
the sender, or the necessity for economy in phrasing a telegram. Some allowed
all kinds of possible interpretations of what the sender really meant. For
example, one message was sent by a man to his wife, letting her know that he
could not return home that day because he had to wait to complete their
purchase of a household item: “Won’t be home tonight, hung up on stove” (quoted
in Hiscock 1988: 56). Some of the humorous messages can be attributed to
mistakes made during the scripting or relaying of the messages, which sheds
light on the ‘cherishing’ of ‘amateur’ standards in local or regional radio.
Franklin (2009), has highlighted the
popularity of amateur hours and local interaction in the programming of the
small private stations in that (Canadian) province in the 1930s:
“As imperfect as
[the] announcers were, they nevertheless served to remind listeners that those
who spoke to them over the air were one of them. Less than proficient
renderings of the news or announcements of local events reinforced the notion
that announcers were members of the community, doing the best they could
through a medium that reflected the community and was responsive to its needs
and wishes. If people felt close to their flawed announcers and error-prone
stations – and there is abundant evidence that they did – then it was because
they saw both as an extension, an integral part, of themselves. That is why
they believed they had a legitimate say in programming…”
It has been noted that
listeners to riddles, jokes and other folkloric forms become not merely
participants but even creators of meaning when the message is not explicit; “to
project themselves into the text in order to invest the empty spaces with
meaning” (Levine 1992: 1386). Each and every Bulletin listener had had
his or her interest piqued, and imagination fired, by “interstices that need
connecting, ambiguities that need resolution, imprecisions that need clarity…”
(Levine 1992: 1384).Thus the interpretation of the Bulletin was in many
instances a collective process, as has typically been the case with the small
group exchange of folklore, and this is entirely congruent with the way in
which the programme contravened what we might term the normative model of
broadcasting, which is typically unidirectional in flow and often private in
its domestic mode of ‘consumption’.
Folklore was created
both despite and because the vernacular was channelled, and in the process shaped
by communications media such as the telegraph and the radio, which are
conventionally associated with heavily standardised varieties of speech. It can
be observed that the communicative network created by the Bulletin is an
excellent example of what Walter Ong has referred to as ‘secondary orality’ in
the age of electronic technology; “This new orality has striking resemblances
to the old in its participatory mystique, its fostering of a communal sense,
and even its use of formulas” (Ong 1988: 136).
The researcher wished to
find out how Meru culture is transmitted by and contributes to the popularity
of vernacular radio station.
2.3.3 Regional appeal of vernacular radio
Vernacular radio stations broadcast chiefly using a local language
to a target
audience that understands the language of broadcast. Vernacular stations tend
to
broadcast to a community that is also defined by a common culture. The content
such as
news and different types of programs is mainly in the vernacular language. The
degrees
to which the stations use the language vary from station to station. For some
stations such
as Inooro FM, a Kikuyu station, the broadcasts are in the Kikuyu language. The
presentation, news and informational programs, and all the music played on
Inooro FM
are in the Kikuyu language
Most vernacular stations tend to assume a regional nature because
settlement
patterns in Kenya are such that people of a given ethnic group are concentrated
in one
settlement region. Thus, the Luo audience is found in the Nyanza around Lake
Region,
the Kalenjin in the Northern and Southern Rift while the majority of Kikuyu
audience is
found in Central Kenya region. Vernacular stations in Kenya have started
gaining the
highest listenership in areas where their languages of broadcasts are widely
spoken.
Inooro FM is the most listened to station in
Central Kenya ahead of two other Kikuyu stations, Kameme FM and Coro FM. In
Lake
Region, Ramogi FM that broadcasts in Luo language has the highest listenership.
Kass
FM that broadcast in Kalenjin language is the most listened to station in
Central Rift
Valley area while Muuga FM, a Meru language station dominates the Upper Eastern
The researcher wished to find out to what extent this assertion of
regional appeal holds.
Vernacular radio has become very popular in Kenya. Below are
concepts examined in an attempt to
understand this variable.
2.4.1 Audience size
The latest media research from Kenya reveals that radio is still
the preferred media. According to these findings, there are top ratings for vernacular
radio stations. Kenya has two national languages - English and Swahili, and
over 42 tribes which when subdivided triple the number of spoken dialects in
Kenya. 68% of people sampled listened to vernacular stations for more than 10
hours a week for vernacular far more than those who listened to
stations broadcasting in English (Kimutai, 2011).
2.4.2. Hours of listening
The researcher needed to find out how long audiences listen to
vernacular radio .According to Gathigi (2009), who investigated the listening
habits of audiences to vernacular radio, an examination of the Kieni West
audience’s radio listening habits suggests that they are related to the stations’
programming formats. Kieni West audience’s listening habits also conform to the
listening trends of the wider Central Kenya audience. These habits are
influenced by factors such as availability of the audience to listen when the programme
is on air, the relevance of the programme content, and the popularity of the programme
based on the content and presenter(s). The radio audience in Kieni West chooses
programs from multiple stations. People listen to the radio more during certain
times of the day when they are available and are likely to make sure that they
tune into their preferred programme when it is on air. Most radio listening
occurs in the early morning hours before people start their daily activities
and in the evenings after work. No major differences were found between the
amount of time people spend listening to the radio during the weekdays (Monday
to Friday) and during the weekend (Saturday and Sunday). On average, respondents
to the questionnaire spend an average of 6.8 hours on weekdays compared to 6.4
hours on weekend day.
Many listeners are free from their work during the weekends
and one would expect that they would listen more during this time. However,
this is not
case and various explanations were given. Some women reported that they are
likely to
be busy during the weekends because they have to take care of the children who
are not
in school. During the weekdays, mothers spend the day alone at home but this
changes
during the weekend when children are at home. For people who have formal
employment such as teachers and administrators, the “free time” during the
weekend
does not actually amount to being free. This time is used to perform other
duties that they
are not able to fulfill during the weekdays. During the weekends, it is common
to find
men doing various activities at home such as doing domestic repairs, taking
care of
animals, or working on the farm, among others. For others like Gerald Karimi, a
38 year
old casual worker and a father of three, the weekend is spent with the family
and working
on the farm as he reported.
“The weekend is the only time I am ever at home. The rest of the week, I leave home
very early before 6:00 am when it is still dark and will not come dark until 8:00
pm when it is dark again. I do not even get to see what is happening around my
compound. Also, most of the times I will come home and the children are sleeping,
same when I leave in the morning. The weekends are therefore sort of busy for
me and it is hard to find time to pay much attention to the radio. I spend the
weekend with my children, talk to them, play, and sometimes take them to visit
relatives and such things. I also use the weekend to work around the farm. You
will find me mending fences and putting up or repairing animal structures.”
In comparing the average number of hours spent listening on the
radio across gender, this
research found that male listeners spend an average of 7.2 hours on weekdays
while
women listeners spend 6.2 hours. During the weekend, female and male listeners
spend
almost an equal average time with 6.5 hours and 6.4 hours respectively.
2.4.3. Audience Participation
The vernacular broadcasting format identified research by Gathigi (2009) is found in the
Kikuyu radio stations These stations carry content that can be termed as
all-inclusive and
balanced between information, education, and entertainment. This kind of
programming
is common on Kikuyu vernacular stations that include Bahasha FM, Coro FM,
Inooro
FM and Kameme FM. The programmes in these stations are arranged to compete with
other vernacular stations hence they are highly similar. The vernacular
stations open at 5:00am, playing Christian inspirational music until 6:00am
when the news headlines are read. During this hour, listeners also call in to
send early morning greetings and dedications. The morning show falls between
6:00am and 9:00am and is one of the most important segments. Morning shows on
the Kikuyu vernacular stations consist of information in the form of news
briefs at the top of the hour and a full news bulletin at 7:00am. The morning
content includes music, talk, review of the major newspapers top stories, and
constant traffic updates. Because the morning shows attract higher sponsorship
from advertisers, there are various sponsored games where listeners call in to
win money and other prizes.
The session after 4:00pm has more talk and game shows where listeners call in
to win prizes, as well as constant traffic updates because of proximity to
Nairobi where
they have a sizeable audience (Gathigi, 2009).
Popularity of vernacular radio has been hampered by young people
refusing to listen to vernacular radio. They feel it is “cool” (a sign of civilization)
to listen to stations broadcasting in English. (Gathigi, 2009).
A significant number of young people born and brought up in towns
do not learn their mother tongue. With rapid rural to urban migration,
vernacular radio may experience declining audience in future.
2.7 Summary
From the literature review done, it is clear that vernacular radio
is a player in radio market in Kenya. Language appears to be a dominant factor
in contributing to the popularity in this mass medium. The researcher found
that this review very essential in conducting the research.
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