Unnamed sources and kenyan journalists

Do Kenyan journalists respect the principle of attribution (protecting sources) in journalism as it is described in the ethical principle of unnamed sources?

The code states that pledges of confidentiality to news sources must be honored at all costs and therefore should not be given lightly. In 2006 Mungiki were killing people by beheading them for not paying dues the organization. The organizations spokesman offered NTV’s journalist a chance for an interview. The journalist offered the spokesman confidentiality and even allowed him not to face the camera. For the mere fact that the spokesman gave a number of interviews till the killings were halted by police is a good indication that he kept his or her promise.

Journalists have at times offered many victims of rape anonymity that they will never reveal their face. By the way they hide their faces by either blocking their mouth or their eyes. People who do not know you might recognize you but your friends can tell it is you by a single scar by a gap in your teeth or even by your voice. It would then be said that such journalist dishonor their pledge to the sources that being the interviewer since they do not make the victims unidentified. The code stipulates pledges of confidentiality must be honored.

The government has however tried to muscle the press by time and tome again trying to pass the media bills that stipulate that under certain circumstances the source should be named. This would then mean that whistle blowers would do so under their own peril as they would maybe be needed to testify in court proceedings. It is worth noticing that in Kenya there exist no witness protections hence the witnesses stand the risk of easily being eliminated so that they would never testify much like the Ouko case. It is also worth noting that the police are not reliable as they act as defendant’s spies. There are many conflicting rumors that the only reason that Kabuga has never being arrested is because the police always expose the witnesses. In the last case a witness was skinned like an animal.

This then means at no terms can a journalist agree to give information to police or officials of government. Since in Kenya police are known for torture journalist must then as stipulated in the code ‘Unless there is clear and pressing need to maintain confidence, sources of information should be identified.’