This archive report was first published on 2 July 2020.
Nation Media Group's Restructuring: Senior Staffers Let Go ¶
On July 2, 2020, Nation Media Group began its restructuring process, which has led to the layoff of over 500 staff members. Senior editorial staff and division managers were among the first to be let go.
According to multiple sources, Business Daily Managing Editor Ng'ang'a Mbugua and Daily Nation News Editor Francis Wanyonyi Wambilianga were among the senior staffers who lost their jobs. Several other senior staffers, including Business Daily and Daily Nation journalists, have also become casualties of the ongoing redundancy exercise.
The restructuring is seen as a make-or-break moment for the company, following a significant reduction in traditional revenue streams. Nation Media Group Managing Editor, Digital, Churchill Otieno is expected to play a key role in the reorganisation of the newsroom in NMG's new business model.
"Advertising can no longer fund journalism sufficiently. There is a lot of creativity going on in our mainstream media houses to reimagine the business models in order to find clean money that can fund journalism," Churchill Otieno stated in a past interview.
As the company shifts its focus to digital, more reorganisation is expected in the newspaper division. Highly-placed sources inform that more staffers in the company's television broadcasting division, NTV, are set to be let go from Friday, July 3.
Ng'ang'a Mbugua was appointed managing editor of Business Daily in January 2019 after working at Daily Nation. The restructuring is a significant move for the company, which has been struggling to adapt to the changing media landscape.
