MOUNT KENYA UNIVERSITY
NAME: ROTICH JEMUTAI STELLA
REG NO: BMMC/2019/50340
UNIT TITLE: POLITICAL AND PARLIAMENTARY REPORTING
UNIT CODE: BJL 4118
1. Explain the abilities and skills of a political journalist (10marks)
EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATIONS-Effective communication is nothing but the presentation of
views by the sender in a manner best understood by the receiver. To make a good political
journalist you have to understand your audience. You have to know how to relay questions to
politicians and their followers in a manner that will encourage them to be open and give correct
information.
SOCIAL PERCEPTIVENESS - Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react
as they do. Politicians their followers usually have very diverse point of views. What you think
wrong may be right to someone else. So it’s good to understand politicians and respect the
opinions they bring forward.
HARD WORK & GRIT- for any journalist one must be hardworking and be passionate in your line
of work. This is no different for a political journalist since you have to commit long hours to
attend political gatherings, campaigns and parliamentary debates.
CONFIDENCE- as a political journalist you will be at times required to question noble people in
the government. To achieve this one must have high levels of confidence to question even the
most feared and dreaded politicians, concerning any matters.
INTERPERSONAL SKILLS- a political journalist need to have good skills to relate with different
people. He or she should know how to approach and question different audiences without
invading personal space or making the other party uncomfortable.
2. Discuss the rewards and challenges of working as a political and parliamentary journalist
in our country Kenya (20marks)
Rewards
OPPORTUNITY TO MEET NOBLE PEOPLE- One of the richest and noble group of people in
every country are usually politicians. By being a political journalist you are able to meet with
governors, the president and other government officials which many people may not have
an opportunity to meet.
PREVILEDGES TO GO EVEN TO PROHIBITED PLACES- every journalist has a media card. This
grants the journalist an opportunity to get a pass in presidential debates, parliamentary
debates and even book appointments with politicians.
BEING PART OF THE BIGGEST EVENTS LIVE-This job leads you to many events – You are
often part of the biggest events in the city or country and watch it live. It’s always a big
experience. And these moments enrich your career. These include public holiday
celebrations, presidential press briefings, political gatherings and parliamentary debates.
GREAT NETWORKING- Interacting with politicians and noble people one is able to make a
few political friends here and there, some of whom may help you rise in your career since
they might be influential in state matters. They can organize interviews for you even with
more prominent politicians than themselves.
TO BE SEEN AND OFTEN RESPECTED BY THE GENERAL PUBLIC AS SOMEONE OF AUTHORITY
AND INFLUENCE- In most cases when news are read the journalist name is usually
mentioned and sometimes the journalist has to come forth to do the presentation on
television, in cases where the story is written in newspapers the name of the journalist and
sometimes their picture is put at the beginning or end of the article. This makes the
journalist famous and respected especially those who expose political scams.
Challenges
LONG WORKDAYS-A day in the life of a journalist can be very long especially when you’ve got to
break that story and subsequently get that important interview. Furthermore, each story
involves significant research a journalist needs to track down relevant sources and crosscheck
facts. This can be quite tiresome for many and journalists are known to cancel social
appointment more than once.
STRESSFUL- Political journalism can be stressful since one has to keep on thinking of new eye
catching stories and to meet certain deadlines. Journalists are under constant stress to meet
deadlines. Also, relentless travel can take a toll on the physical wellbeing of a journalist. When
there is an incident worth reporting, every news organization wants to be the first one to share
it with their audience.
RISK TO LIFE- In Kenya most political gatherings and election end up in tag of war between
politicians, followers and police. Journalists caught up in such scenarios risk being killed by stray
bullets, stones or experience the burning tear gas. Other instances may be caused by exposing
scams by political leaders who may in turn come after their lives or their families.
UNCOOPERATIVE SOURCES- There are times some sources in the government claim they
are busy so they can’t grant journalists a few minutes of their time for a brief interview.
Other times, they avoid journalists claiming they have tight schedules even when they are
not busy.
HARD TO FIND BALANCE BETWEEN PRIVATE LIFE AND JOB-It’s hard to balance your private
life with the job. Often it’s hard to keep your private life, family, and job balanced. If you
are a reporter in the field, you are often not at home due to the many political events
happening in the country.
