A Study of the Views of Government Media Professionals on Agenda Setting With Respect to Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Issues
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Date
2012-06
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
In Ethiopia, where development is a big agenda, the mass media intervention is very
significant to sustain development and achieve societal quality of life. To shape
development needs and to raise community participation in development activities of the
government the state-owned media also play an important role. This, in fact, is
determined by the capacity of the news media agenda setting practice. The mass media
give appropriate prominence to development priorities of the public and transmit the
salience concepts and practices of positive development achievements.Accordingly, Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) issues should also be considered
as development challenges and media agenda. This is because it is confirmed that 60% of
diseases in the country are due to water, sanitation and hygiene related, and the media
also have social responsibility to make the situation media agenda to influence the public.
This research focuses on the views of government media professionals on agenda setting
with respect to WASH issues. The study focused on Ethiopian Television and Addis
Zemen newspaper practice of agenda setting pertinent to WASH issues.
Through a series of in-depth interviews and focus group discussions, the researcher
analyzed how journalists work with the media agenda setting theory and related
literatures. Editorial policies and guidelines were observed in to the analyses and
discussion of the study.
The findings of this study indicated that journalists views, both editors and reporters
working in Ethiopian government media outlets, perceived as practicing agenda setting
with respect to WASH issues. Journalists from ETV and Addis Zemen recognized their
media agenda to be government policies, laws and strategies. The findings also showed
that in the government media houses WASH issues as media agenda mostly set by top
level media managers; and it was driven by events. In this regard, the participation of
reporters in agenda setting process was very limited according to the findings of the
study.
The research also indicated that most of the study interviewees and discussants
knowledge on WASH issues were very low.
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Keywords
Government Media Professionals, Agenda Setting With Respect to Water, Hygiene Issues