By Hezron Ochiel
Social media has widened its lead over television as Kenya’s main news source, according to the Media Council of Kenya’s State of the Media 2025 Survey Report.
For public relations (PR) professionals, the findings raise an important issue about how organisations reach the people they serve.
An institution may have thousands of social media followers, an active website and regular media coverage, yet still struggle to get important information to its intended audience.
The Media Council’s findings provide useful evidence of changing news habits. However, choosing the right communication channels requires a closer understanding of how specific audiences seek and use information.
Social Media Extends Its Lead Over Television
The Media Council’s survey found that 39% of respondents identified social media as their main news source, compared with 31% who preferred television.
Social media was already ahead in 2024, at 37%, compared with television’s 31%. Its lead therefore widened from six to eight percentage points.
Radio declined from 26% to 21% as respondents’ preferred news source.
The survey involved 3,774 respondents aged 15 and above across Kenya’s 47 counties. Fieldwork was conducted between 15 and 23 April 2026, although the report examines the state of the media in 2025.
Other findings reveal changes in traditional media consumption.
Daily television viewership declined from 63% in 2024 to 57% in 2025, while weekly newspaper readership fell from 20% to 13%.
These figures require careful interpretation.
The 39% social media finding measures respondents’ primary news source. Daily television viewing and weekly newspaper readership measure audience reach over different periods. They are separate indicators and should not be compared as though they measure the same behaviour.
Television continues to reach a substantial audience. Radio also remains relevant, particularly for communities whose information needs digital platforms may not adequately serve.
Meanwhile, 74% of respondents reported using social or digital media platforms, with WhatsApp, Facebook, TikTok and YouTube featuring prominently in their online activity.
The findings confirm the importance of digital platforms in Kenya’s media environment. They also give PR teams a reason to examine whether their communication strategies reflect their intended audiences’ habits.
What the Findings Mean for Public Relations
Many organisations still rely on press releases, media coverage and official social media accounts to distribute information.
These channels serve important purposes. However, information can travel through several people before reaching those who need it.
An institution may publish an announcement on its website and share it across its official platforms. Some stakeholders will encounter the original message. Others may receive a screenshot, a forwarded WhatsApp message or an explanation from someone who has read it.
The information can lose important details along the way.
Communication teams need to understand these patterns because they affect how messages are interpreted.
Consider a college communicating admission requirements.
Prospective students may find the announcement through social media, but they still need reliable information about eligibility, application procedures and deadlines.
The institution should establish where applicants first encounter the announcement, how they verify it and whether they can complete the application process.
National platform rankings cannot answer those questions.
I explored this issue further in my article on why communication strategies should be built around audience behaviour rather than platforms.
The Media Council’s report gives organisations valuable national context. Their own communication audits and stakeholder feedback should guide decisions about specific audiences.
Digital Visibility Brings New Verification Challenges
The survey also raises concerns about misinformation and artificial intelligence.
According to the Media Council, 28% of respondents identified misinformation as a leading concern.
The report examines respondents’ ability to recognise AI-generated material, although its detailed results and concluding summary give conflicting interpretations of the relevant 63% finding. That inconsistency requires clarification before the figure can be used confidently.
The wider concern remains relevant to PR professionals.
Official information can be copied into social media posts, circulated through messaging groups or presented in videos without its original context.
When inaccurate claims spread, audiences need a reliable way to establish what an organisation has actually communicated.
This makes an institution’s website particularly important.
It should contain current statements, accurate service information and clear explanations that people can consult when they encounter conflicting accounts elsewhere.
Communication teams should also monitor misleading claims and respond with evidence where correction is necessary.
Credible journalism remains valuable in this environment. Independent reporting can help audiences examine claims and understand issues beyond an organisation’s official account.
In my earlier article on why media relations still matters in the digital and AI age, I examined the continuing importance of professional journalism in public communication.
For PR practitioners, making information available is only part of the responsibility. People must also be able to establish whether it is accurate.
Four Changes PR Professionals Should Make
The survey offers a useful basis for reviewing existing communication practices.
1. Find out how your audience receives information
Start with the people your organisation needs to reach.
Examine enquiry records, website analytics and stakeholder feedback. Where necessary, conduct a communication audit to establish which channels audiences use and trust.
Look beyond the organisation’s official platforms.
You may discover that an important audience receives most of its updates through intermediaries, even when the original information is published elsewhere.
That finding should influence how messages are distributed.
2. Match the content format to the information need
Mobile access is important, but every message does not need to become a video.
A short demonstration may help people understand how a new service works. Detailed admission guidelines may require a webpage or downloadable document that readers can consult repeatedly.
Social media can direct people to those resources.
Communication teams should consider the information’s complexity and what audiences need to do with it before choosing the format.
3. Make official information easier to verify
Review the accuracy and accessibility of information on your organisation’s website.
Ensure that announcements contain the necessary dates, contacts and supporting details.
Where misleading information circulates, provide a correction that people can verify through an official source.
Organisations should also make it easy for audiences to distinguish authentic accounts and announcements from impersonation or manipulated content.
4. Measure whether communication worked
Media coverage, website traffic and social media engagement remain useful indicators.
However, they tell only part of the story.
Assess an admission campaign against its objectives. If the purpose is to help eligible applicants complete an application, the communication team should examine whether people found the requirements, understood the process and submitted their applications.
A campaign may attract thousands of views while leaving prospective applicants uncertain about what to do.
That is a communication gap worth investigating.
Performance measurement should help teams spot these problems and improve follow-up communication.
Why Traditional Media Still Matters
Social media’s growing lead does not make television, radio or newspapers irrelevant.
The Media Council’s findings show that traditional channels continue reaching substantial audiences.
Professional journalism also provides reporting and scrutiny that remain important to public understanding.
PR teams should therefore avoid treating digital growth as a reason to abandon other channels.
The appropriate media mix depends on whom an organisation needs to reach and what information it is communicating.
A public health campaign intended for a broad population may require radio and television alongside digital platforms. An announcement targeting a specialised professional audience may call for a different approach.
Each channel should have a clear purpose.
Final Thoughts
The Media Council’s survey shows that social media has strengthened its position as Kenya’s main news source. It also documents declining daily television viewership and reduced newspaper readership.
For PR practitioners, these findings should inform communication planning and encourage closer examination of audience behaviour.
An organisation can publish frequently, secure media coverage and maintain several active digital accounts without necessarily meeting its stakeholders’ information needs.
Before increasing social media activity or investing in another platform, communication teams should establish where their audiences get information and what prevents them from using it effectively.
The platform with the largest audience is not necessarily the one that will help your organisation achieve its communication objectives.
That distinction deserves greater attention in how PR strategies are developed and evaluated.
About the Author
Hezron Ochiel is Assistant Director, Corporate Communication at the Kenya Medical Training College (KMTC) and founder of Hezron Insights.
He has more than 15 years of experience across journalism, health communication, strategic public relations, media relations and institutional reputation management.
His work focuses on strategic communication, digital visibility and the changing relationship between technology and public trust.