VICTOR BWIRE: Media framing shapes international narrative

The attack on Ukraine by Russia and subsequent media coverage and framing is already shaping international discussions around issues including non-alignment, racism, trade, and political inclinations within the global community.

Media coverage and individual journalists’ comments on digital platforms already show where people stand on the conflict – majority being utterly opposed to the attack while a number focusing on the emerging issues of racism and discrimination of people based on Colour and related.

It's more than the hate speech being talked about in Kenya ahead of the 2022 General Election, but serious discrimination even as people trapped in the war zones are frustrated as they try to escape the place.

Digital media accounts and stories are filling us with details that liberal media would not have managed because of lack of access- and using digital tools such as google assistant and translators, people are briefed on the minute-by-minute account- journalists like my friends Geoffrey Mosoku and Mwangi Maina with global sources are keeping us updated, and the anger in people can easily be felt.

Even outside the language barrier- that media in Ukraine is speaking in vernacular – this diminishing the media role in international matters-things might have been very different is there was widespread media coverage of the conflict in familiar languages.

In fact one the latest casualties in the attacks is a leading TV station, obviously aware that updates on the number of victims of the war will start- and each of the nation will be giving its own war victims- thus media control and destruction are simultaneous targets through for different reasons.

The performance of Dr Martin Kimani, Kenya permeant representative to the UN Security Council made a topical statement to the Council about the war, and from media coverage he has so far received, he did very well- and Kenyans position on the matter its internationally known- the perfect example of media role at the international level and the  shaping the narrative on international relations well presented in the court of public opinion.

Major global powers use foreign relations and diplomacy as principal strategies to position themselves at vantage points in the economic, political and cultural order. They have thus forced read and hear about their positions, allow their nationals occupy and steer global policy making decision and adopt their way of life.

The West, USA, Russia and China discovered the major global players push their agenda into the global arena and lobby to place their citizens into powerful strategic regional and global institutions to speak for them through use of the media. Already you can see how international media is framing the war- principally favouring some regions for political expediency.

As such media has been internationalized and globalized taking the shape of other multinationals in the other sectors including manufacturing, banking among others.

It is time the Kenya Media and the guys running our foreign policy borrow from such strategy and sensitize our media on importance of playing the game of diplomacy for our good as a nation. There is no better time than this when one of our own has been appointed to the position of the deputy chair of the African Union.

 The media is a market place of ideas, where the best idea wins, this those blaming the media for all manner of things and not carrying or carrying this or that, story miss the point. We can appreciate the media that have remained focused, but the angle favors a country’s stand in the war.

Powerful and influential nations use media to set the global agenda and thus influence global thinking, The media, if well and strategically has been used across the global not only to influence world policy debates, but more importantly, positions on major issues. Indeed, government and powerful institutions have made media relations part of their most invested in departments.

Parents, traders, human rights advocates, Un bodies want to know what is going on in the region as humanitarian support organization are looking for media reports to where urgent support is required- like somebody said, its like COVID 19 is longer a global threat.

Media is very central in international relations as media and propaganda are at the center of diplomacy and foreign relations. Your perception and conclusions on the war are shaped by the media framing and presentation of the war, and shaped by which media you are exposed to and which country its linked to.