page_title: Culture of Kenya
section_title: Television
hierarchical_section_title: Culture of Kenya / Media / Television
caption_attribution_description: Orange Democratic Movement leader Raila Odinga Address the press after being through out of the tally centre at the KICC in Nairobi.
context_page_description: The culture of Kenya consists of multiple trends. Kenya has no single prominent culture that identifies it. It instead consists of various cultures practiced by the country's different communities.
context_section_description: Acting for television has proved popular with the Kenyan audience. This genre has been around from the 1960s when actors like Mzee Pembe graced the Kenyan television screen. Others, like Benson Wanjau (Ojwang' Hatari) and Mary Khavere (Mama Kayai), followed later with their comedies presented exclusively in Swahili, reaching millions of households courtesy of Kenya Broadcasting Corporation television station.
  Serious Television drama was witnessed for the first time in the early 1990s with the entry of popular actors like Packson Ngugi, BMJ Muriithi alias Ben Mutua Jonathan Muriithi and Betty Achieng', alongside other thespians who featured in a variety of TV shows following the liberalisation of the airwaves by the Kenyan government. Tushauriane, a Swahili television series featuring Kenyan fine actors like Dennis Kashero and Tony Msalame had premiered in the late 1980s becoming arguably one of the most popular productions to ever hit the Kenyan TV screens.
  A new genre in the form of stand-up comedy followed when actor Joni Nderitu entered the scene. The new style was later to be perfected by the group, 'Redykyulass', a trio of young Kenyans – Walter Mong'are, Tony Njuguna and John Kiare (KJ) – who specialized in political satire. They lampooned not only the establishment but also Daniel arap Moi, the Kenyan President at the time. The lampooning of the Kenyan head of state was unprecedented and could have easily led to their prosecution, or even detention without trial, had it been done in the 1980s, when mimicking the head of state and exhibiting any form of political dissent was considered treason.
  Other Stations known to promote theatre in Kenya include Nation TV, Kenya Television Network (KTN) a Citizen TV, all based in the nation's capital, Nairobi. K24, the newest TV station to enter the scene, started its test run in Nairobi in December 2007. It captured the interest of many mainly because of the introduction of Jeff Koinange, one of the most popular Kenyan journalists who has worked for major international media houses like CNN, as its chief News anchor.
  A satellite- and Internet-based 24-hour pan-African TV channel, A24, was scheduled to start broadcasting from Nairobi in 2008. This will be in honor and memory of world-renowned and award-winning Kenyan Photojournalist, Mohamed Amin.
caption: Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga speaking to the Kenyan media.
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