Social Cultural Values, Audience Preferences and Quality of Content in Vernacular Radio Broadcasts in Kenya: A Study of Maasai Radio

Abstract

The paper aimed to analyse the factors influencing the quality of content generated in vernacular radio in Kenya. Specifically, the paper aimed to establish the influence of cultural values and audience preferences on the quality of content generated by Maasai vernacular radio Mayian and Noosim FM, which broadcast to almost 80% of the Maasai community in Kenya. A total of 57 employees working in the two radio stations formed the target population of the paper. The paper adopted a census as the population targeted was small. Therefore, the paper sample was 57 respondents. Primary data was collected using a structured questionnaire. Statistical package for Social Science (SPSS version 26) was used to code and analyse the raw data realised from the field. Correlation and regression analyses were done to determine the relationships between the paper variables. The paper found that at the significance level (95%,) cultural values and audience preferences were significant factors influencing the quality of content generated by vernacular radio. Additionally, cultural values were the most crucial factor in determining the quality of content generated by vernacular radio, followed by audience preferences. The paper recommends that vernacular radio invest in cultural sensitivity training for content creators and broadcasters and conduct regular surveys and feedback sessions with their audiences to understand their preferences better.