A recent analysis indicates weekly media consumption patterns reveal digital platforms including WhatsApp, Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube have collectively surpassed television viewership in Kenya.
According to the Media Council of Kenya’s State of Media 2025 report, social media accounts for 27% of consumption compared to television’s 25%, representing a significant shift where digital platforms are not just supporting but replacing traditional broadcast methods.
Television, historically the dominant national medium, is experiencing diminishing daily reach as viewership declined by six percentage points to 57%, with Citizen TV holding a remarkable 56% market share in a highly concentrated media landscape.
Radio maintains steady performance with 19% weekly consumption and dedicated listeners tuning in for one to three hours daily, with Radio Citizen and Classic 105 among the leading stations.
Print media, however, faces severe decline as weekly readership plummeted from 29% in 2022 to merely 13% in 2025, with most consumers opting for digital alternatives.
The survey encompassed 3,774 participants across all 47 counties, uncovering not only consumption habits but also credibility challenges and technological transformations affecting Kenya’s media environment.
Online news consumption remains an emerging practice with over half of Kenyans not accessing news websites on a typical day, indicating that despite digital platforms’ dominance, formal online journalism has not yet fully integrated into daily life.
Social media has instead emerged as the modern public forum, with 74% of Kenyans frequently engaging with digital platforms.
The focus has shifted from connectivity issues to platform selection and influence in the media landscape.
During 2024, approximately three-quarters of Kenyans perceived government coverage as unfair.
By 2025, this figure decreased to 46%, representing a 27-percentage point improvement that indicates enhanced confidence in institutional media.
Overall trust metrics also increased, with 79% reporting “some” or “a lot” of trust compared to 74.5% in the prior year.
However, concerns persist, with misinformation and insufficient coverage of critical issues being the primary worries, each mentioned by 28% of respondents, closely followed by reporting bias at 17%.
This highlights the precarious equilibrium between increasing trust and ongoing doubts.
Artificial intelligence introduces additional complexity to the media landscape.
Although 59% of Kenyans are aware of artificial intelligence applications in media, nearly two-thirds lack the ability to distinguish AI-generated content.
This disconnect between awareness and detection capabilities threatens information reliability, particularly since 61% utilize AI-powered platforms and 48% report that AI has improved their media consumption experience.
The research cautions that without immediate digital literacy initiatives, the difficulty in identifying artificially created content could worsen misinformationalready the foremost public concern.
Platform comparisons reveal a fragmented media environment.
Television continues to attract large audiences but is diminishing in daily significance.
Radio sustains listener loyalty but confronts generational changes.
Print media is becoming increasingly marginalized while online news expands without achieving regular engagement patterns.
Social media, in contrast, has solidified its position as the primary source for news, influence, and public discourse.