Freedom of press day: A time for sober reflection

The traditional media in Kenya is facing an enemy far greater than the clampdown made common in the days of Mwakenya publications. Declining advertisement revenue has brought pressure to bear on the role of conventional media in society.

Secondly, traditional media must rise against revolutionary technology that is pressing forward. Social media is emerging as a substitute for news outlets. Yet it is increasingly becoming a conduit for what is commonly referred to as "alternative facts"; where truth is jostling for space with falsehoods and innuendo packaged as news. And so, like never before, society deserves quality journalism that protects public interest.

The role of the media cannot be underestimated; by holding the feet of especially politicians to the fire, it plays a critical watchdog role in governance. Kenya's record in governance is not impressive. Media has consistently called out those leaders who have crossed the line. And so Kenya is better because of, not in spite of the media.

Secondly, the media has been at the forefront in fighting corruption- now feared to have reached hideous levels-and blamed for most of the ills in our society. Obviously, a media that has been deprived of resources cannot pay their journalists well. That undermines their critical role.

The words of former British MP Edmund Burke that there were "Three Estates in Parliament; but, in the Reporters' Gallery yonder, there sat a Fourth Estate more important far than they all..." ring true today as it did 220 years ago.