Another leap as NMG launches podcast today

The Nation Media Group (NMG) will today launch podcasts, episodes of digital audio files that users can download to personal devices.

One of the three podcasts to be broadcast will be an eight-part series investigation into the disappearance of blogger Bogonko Bosire.

The podcasts will also include daily updates from editors on top stories expected in the paper and TV.

The podcasts are meant to boost the company’s engagement with its audience and attract listeners, particularly the young.

NMG Editorial Director Mutuma Mathiu has stressed the importance of younger audiences.

Mr James Smart, a veteran TV journalist who worked at the company’s broadcast division and founded NTV’s successful talk show, “The Trend”, will be the podcast editor.

Mr Smart said podcasting is a new thing, but he would rely on his experience as well as experimenting and collaborating with colleagues and the public.

NMG is launching a service that is new to the media landscape in Kenya, but with a growing market from much smaller media houses and content creators.

Like the blogs, podcasts – with their combination of sleek high tech and cozy, retro low – are today’s influential medium.

The group is riding on the success and reputation of its legacy media. 

According to the Reuters Institute 2020 Digital News Report, the Daily Nation is the country’s most trusted paper.

The Daily Nation, the company’s leading product, has a distinctively conservative outlook which could give its podcast a way of attracting listeners keen on exploring news deeply.

Mr Smart said podcast listenership in the country is highest among younger people.