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It is a lucky thing to be born into history. When I came to this earth on the 29th of August 1989, Raila Odinga, the scion of Kenya’s first vice president Jaramogi Oginga Odinga, was celebrating three months since his release from detention; he had spent six years in police cells and in the notorious Nyayo torture chambers. The winds of change that would return Kenya to multipartyism were already blowing, ushering in the legislation that would repeal Section 2a of the independence constitution in 1992.
I became more aware of these historic events through my father’s collection of books and magazines: Pius Nyamora’s Society, Gitobu Imanyara’s Nairobi Law Monthly, and Njehu Gatabaki’s Finance, among others. However, it was a souvenir magazine edition published following Jaramogi’s death in January 1994 that introduced me to this enigmatic family. It was, therefore, through the written word – and not television – that I learned about the Odinga family’s contributions to the independence struggle, expansion of the democratic space, and calls for the equitable division of Kenya’s national resources.
But the first time I would see Raila physically was in 2003, after the National Rainbow Coalition (Narc) was swept into power. I was now a teenager aged 14, a Form 1 student at Kerugoya Boys High School in today’s Kirinyaga County. The Narc team had planned a series of homecoming rallies in the region. Our principal, Laban Munyiri, gave us the opportunity to stand by the roadside and wave to the leaders. Let’s never forget the all-pervading atmosphere of euphoria and hope that defined the early years of President Mwai Kibaki’s administration until it imploded in 2005. Never did I imagine that I would one day cover the news of Raila’s death in a major national newspaper.
The following account is a recollection of how the news was broken and the important lessons learned.
October 15, 2025, will be forever etched in the annals of Kenya’s history. Nairobi woke up to a chilly, grey morning, dark clouds seeming to signal imminent rains. But the rains did not come. The morning remained chilly until the media announced what the dark clouds could have seemed to signal – the death of the former prime minister in Kochi, India. Baba, as he was fondly known, had died of cardiac arrest thousands of kilometres away, to the great consternation of the nation and his ardent supporters.
Rumours had started spreading in the first weeks of October concerning Baba’s long absence from the limelight, and speculation that he had been hospitalised, which the family and his ODM allies flatly denied. Questions about Raila’s whereabouts had also exposed the legacy media’s inability to stick to factual reporting and instead resort to confusion and speculation. However, unlike social media, which fuelled rumours that the ODM leader had died before October 15, to their immense credit, traditional media exercised utmost restraint and professionalism. So, what were some of the hits and misses in breaking the news of Raila’s demise?
Hits
First, The Star news website takes the crown for being the first to break the news and share it across its social media platforms. On its Facebook page, the publication flashed the following headline: “Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga dies at the age of 80 years.” It is that headline that plunged the entire nation into grief that lasted several days.
Second, the same news website continued to update the country about the circumstances of Raila’s death; where exactly he had died, and why he was there. The Star was answering the who, what, where, when, why and how – the very basic principles of good journalism – at breakneck speed and with accuracy and professionalism. Not once did it veer into the comfort of rumour and speculation. Social media, often the first to break news, was for the first time caught unawares.
Third, The Star’s ability to leverage the power of social media attracted huge traffic (this, as we shall see, would also prove to be its weakness) that definitely increased its online audience. The media outlet had already been lauded for being the first to report the death of Chief of Defence Forces Gen. Francis Ogolla, who died last year in a plane crash in West Pokot together other military officers.
Misses
Why did it take so long for other traditional media outlets to break the news? Audiences waited with bated breath for NTV, KTN and Citizen TV to also report the news, but nothing came until hours later. Not that the audiences did not trust The Star, but as pioneer mainstream media platforms, the former still command greater trust and a larger following.
On Friday, 17 October, the Daily Nation offered an explanation through the paper’s research and impact editor Daisy Okoti and its public editor Pamela Sittoni.
Okoti argued that “In the case of someone of Raila’s stature, the responsibility of announcing such news rests with higher authorities, such as the presidency. It could not be a casual announcement.” But what if the presidency decides to announce it ten hours later? Apart from accuracy, speed also matters in this information age.
Then Okoti added a twist, which still fell short of convincingly explaining the long delay in breaking the news, “Amid widespread misinformation, disinformation, and everything in between, it would be a grave mistake for a newsroom of our standing to publish unverified information – or rely online posts – in the rush to be first.” Does it mean that what The Star reported was unverified?
What about the public editor’s explanation? Sittoni raised some fundamental ethical questions that may have necessitated the delay. “Had the family been informed? Or would the media be breaking the news to some family members?” However, she concurred that in the digital age, audiences’ thirst for speed in breaking news determines whether a news outlet gains new readers or not.
Returning to The Star, its web developers have their work cut out. It became clear on 15 October that the website cannot sustain a large influx of traffic. The site crashed multiple times despite the hard work and determination of The Star’s reporters who continued to feed it a steady flow of information. Lesson learned: being the first to break news is not enough; having an excellent website that can withstand the constant flow of traffic is.
In absolute terms, news of Raila’s death has exposed both the strengths and weaknesses of legacy media. It is now up to news editors to learn from these vital lessons, and, more importantly, to take comfort in the fact that audiences still trust them. The rule remains: when the mainstream media has not confirmed it, then it definitely has not happened.
A lasting memory of seeing Baba’s enigmatic character up close was at Kasarani Stadium in Nairobi during Azimio la Umoja’s last rally. Raila was again vying for the presidency in the 2022 general election – his fifth attempt – and his supporters were hopeful that he finally stood a chance of winning, simply because the incumbent and the “deep state” were backing him. It was a hot, sunny day and Baba’s legions of fans flocked to the 60,000-capacity stadium in their numbers, singing and making merry. This is it! So many thought. But when the results were announced, hopes and dreams were dashed again, moments of celebration shattered. Baba’s journey to the land of no return now signals a chapter finally closed.
May his soul rest in peace.
