By Brenda Odhiambo and Kevin Mudavadi

USIU-Africa alumnus, Jimmy Ochieng (MA in Communication, Class of 2019) has in conjunction with Dr. Kioko Ireri, been published in the International Journal of Press/ Politics. Their study, titled ‘Politicians in Newspaper News: Who Attracts Coverage in Kenyan Politics’ examines the coverage of 349 Kenyan politicians in four English national newspapers (Daily Nation, The Standard, People Daily, and The Star) between 2013 and 2017.

Within the contexts of media coverage based on news values, and reporting as a mirror of political reality, the study investigates whether gender, tribe, party size, seniority, committee or party leadership, commenting on corruption and devolution, and criticizing the government predicted the visibility of members of parliament (MPs) in newspaper news. Findings show that seniority, committee or party leadership, commenting on devolution and corruption, and criticizing government emerged as the main predictors of the parliamentarians’ coverage in news media. You can find more of this study on: https://rb.gy/ck2xyu

Last year, Jimmy was published in the Oxford Handbook of Kenyan Politics, where he co-authored a chapter titled ‘East Africa: Regional Politics and Dynamics’, with Walter O. Oyugi, a retired Professor of Political Science and Public Administration at University of Nairobi. Focusing on Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, the authors point out that the three countries inherited similar political systems and all governance institutions at the sub-territorial level operated in line with centrally determined guidelines.

Congratulations, Jimmy!