Master’s of Science Degree in Mass communication

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https://testir.kiu.ac.ug/handle/20.500.12306/3743

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Browsing Master’s of Science Degree in Mass communication by Subject "Media"

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    Citizen journalism and print media industry in Uganda
    (Kampala International University: College of Humanities and Social Sciences, 2018-10) Muluta, Mpungu
    This research takes a critical look at challenges of citizen journalism in Uganda. It also tried to establish the factors that have influenced the increasing growth and popularity of citizen journalism. Citizen journalism for the purpose of this research was limited to blogging. Blogging has become a channel through which people share ideas, news, advice and analyses on different happenings in the society. The practice has turned out to be journalistic, with a good number of bloggers running authoritative and influential blogs, where thousands of people flock for information. In Uganda, blogs are now a permanent fixture in the media environment as their popularity grows, with bloggers holding influence on political, economic and social discourses. Their growing influence has made bloggers share audiences with traditional media (newspapers). This study tried to identify challenges posed by blogging on print journalism and how journalists respond to new threats. The study also sought to identify the factors that have influenced citizen journalism (Blogging) in Uganda and how journalists perceive bloggers. The study was guided by the following research questions: (i) what challenges citizen journalism has posed to print media industry in Uganda? (ii) How newspapers respond to challenges posed by citizen journalism in Uganda? (iii) What factors that influence citizen journalism practice in Uganda? (iv) How print media industry perceives citizen journalism practice in Uganda? To achieve these objectives, descriptive survey and cross-sectional designs were carried out. The research sampled 80 journalists in five media houses in Uganda, namely Bukedde, New Vision, Daily Monitor, Red Pepper and Observer. To put this research in perspective, New Media and Public Sphere Theories were briefly examined. The findings reveal that there are some threats posed by blogs on print media, but most journalists read blogs because they find information on the sites useful and they are now getting ideas for their stories from the sites. The study concluded that bloggers are not journalists but their work is very important in complementing the work of journalism.
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    Media service act, 2016 and the freedom of Media in Tanzania
    (Kampala International University, College of Humanities and social Science, 2023-03) Yahaya, Omari Mhando
    Media freedom is a crucial component of democracy, protecting fundamental human rights such as freedom of opinion and expression. While vibrant democracies in the world have articles that prohibit enacting laws against media freedom, many nations, particularly developing countries like Tanzania, have laws in place that restrict media operations, limiting freedom of expression and that of the press. This study investigates the impact of the Media Service Act, 2016, on media freedom in Tanzania, using qualitative research methods to gather insights from journalists, human rights activists, and politicians. The study employed thematic analysis to analyze the collected data. The study reveals a complex relationship between the Media Service Act and media freedom violations in Tanzania. Findings show that the Act has had a partial impact on editorial content so far, with varied opinions among respondents. Some believe the law had no effect, while others observed changes specifically in the investigative reporting and analysis of critical issues in media, and a third group saw positive effects on professionalism and ethics. Furthermore, the study found that self-censorship exists among Tanzanian journalists, partially influenced by the Act and other regulations, but denied by a few respondents who associate it with unprofessionalism. Moreover, government crackdowns on media and journalists have been observed to be partially caused by the Media Service Act, 2016. The study concludes that the Media Service Act is partly responsible for media freedom violations in Tanzania; while other laws and regulations have been found to be other factors together with actions of government and its agencies. Based on these findings, it is recommended that the Media Service Act, along with other restrictive laws, should be amended to protect media freedom as guaranteed in the Tanzanian Constitution.