OPINION: Kenyans desperately need digital media information literacy before 2027

Despite its horrors, war in the digital age is breathtaking to watch. The same applies to watching politicians throwing barbs at each other, in verbally hypocritical jiu jitsu, that can very easily sow seeds of tribal hatred that incites violence.

Real-time news coverage and immediate access to live imagery -gory or otherwise- kicks up one’s adrenaline, creating the emotional rush of stress, fear, or excitement, depending on your reception of the news item at hand.

Findings from the African Centre for Strategic Studies (ACSS) on foreign information manipulation operations should be considered as food for thought on how propaganda in Africa affects countries on the continent.

In a region rife with disinformation campaigns from all other parts of the world, Kenyan discourse stands out in the way it “disinforms” itself by having the highest number of local fake news propagation activities.

These massive misinformation or disinformation initiatives are a recipe for societal distrust.

With the emergent artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities, it is increasingly much easier to create fake news and propaganda through computer-generated posters, audio clips plus realistic videos that skew the truth.

As protagonists seek to win hearts, minds, or both to their causes -at home and abroad- these tools are widely used to reach unsuspecting audiences to influence their perspectives on existing matters.

Mass consumption of traditional press through radio, television, or newspapers is still considerably trusted, but it is still facing stiff competition, even possible annihilation from alternative information sources, primarily social media.

However, despite their news production speed plus power to distil narratives into short and easily digestible packages for viewer consumption, new media tools are extremely susceptible to misuse on account of questionable intent, accuracy, or authorship of content.

Be it developments on global multipolarity or events tracking as Kenya moves towards its forthcoming general election in 2027, the effects of post-truth dynamics are bearing heavily on the information ecosystem.

The lack of factual objectivity, as a foundational framework of reason, due to a reliance on emotional appeal, personal biases or partisan opinions, corrupts the civic mindset that should be reliant on constitutional democracy above all else.

Grim news from the Middle East, Eastern Europe or South America surprisingly pits people in strange binaries of being either “for us or against us”, just as rabidly as it pits supporters of English Premier League teams of one football club against the other.

So much so that instances of suicide or homicides on these interactions give us no pause to reflect on what is happening, until they escalate into political or other larger-scale hostilities that always seem to result in killings.

Kenyans are, therefore, in desperate need of Media and Information Literacy (MIL) as a form of digital skills in a rapidly changing world. This will provide additional comprehension capability to be aware of how to interpret the various forms of internet-powered content they come across.

Secondly, they need to be helped in understanding how to navigate the sheer volume of massive outputs that is likely to confuse them and leave them completely demoralised.

Many people cannot fathom the magnitude of algorithmic filter bubbles but still desire to be functionally informed of their day-to-day lives.

Consequently, traditional and alternative media stakeholders should work together in promoting essential digital literacy skills needed in consuming their products.

This will help information reception beyond face value, by emphasising the need for counterchecking news items, interrogating motives, habitual reliance on established facts, and familiarisation with AI-generated content.

More importantly, skills imparted through MIL offer premeditated caution or forethought, exposure to diversified sources, or civic reasoning on internet applications, namely: applying information utility; confirming viability and judging credibility of news is a pathway for ethical use of ICT.

The author is Regional Coordinator of the East African Tax and Governance Network (EATGN), follow on X @lennwanyama.