Representing school arson in Kenya

An analysis of newspaper reporting

Bibliographic Data

ID12883606
AuthorsHildah Oburu (0000-0002-6998-1850, University of Nairobi, corresponding author), Bronwyne J Coetzee (0000-0003-1545-418X, Stellenbosch University), L Swartz (0000-0003-1741-5897, Stellenbosch University)
Year2020
Volume16
Issue3
Pages293-311
Publication date2020-07-30
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueGlobal Media and Communication (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1742-7665 • E-ISSN: 1742-7673
PublisherSAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/1742766520946472
OpenAlexW3046242844
LanguageEN
References cited23

Arson is a recurrent problem in Kenyan secondary schools. Although school violence – notably gun violence – has received significant attention, there has been less academic attention paid to school arson, especially in Africa. This study explores how newspaper reports in Kenya framed school arson and links these framings to broader questions about the understanding and production of Kenyan identity. A thematic analysis of 334 newspaper reports revealed multiple understandings of school arson. Print media discourse afforded journalists an opportunity to make a commentary on the post-colonial globalized Kenyan society. We discuss the implications of this for understanding post-colonial media in Africa

Arson · Colonialism · CONTEST · Criminology · Kenya · Media studies · Newspaper · Political science · Qualitative research · Social science · Sociology · Thematic analysis · Crime Patterns and Interventions · Gun Ownership and Violence Research · Hate Speech and Cyberbullying Detection · Law

Tools

Open DOI