JOURNALISM AND COMMUNICATION IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN JOURNALISM AND MASS COMMUNICATION.

Abstract

The mass media, most significantly through its news, reporting, and analysis, affects what and how we learn about reality, hidden facts, and political views. Investigative journalism has been contributing to the realization of democracy, good governance, and human rights. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to analyses the practice and challenges of investigative journalism in the South Radio and Television Agency’s Neqash Program. The target population of the study was managers, editor-in-chiefs, editors, senior reporters, media experts, and producers. The researcher employed a descriptive research method. The research approach of the study was qualitative. To get relevant information, qualitative content analysis of sample news stories, and key informant interviews were applied as specific methods in the study. Regarding the Neqash programme, the result of the study showed that it is attempting to practice investigative journalism, although it is in an early stage. Neqash program primarily focuses on government institutions like land issues, corruption, and irregularities to promote good governance and democracy. It also relies on society, government bodies, and secondary sources like documents. The study also identified that lack of qualified journalists who were committed to this assignment, lack of logistics, lack of adequate training, organizational pressure, external interference such as political and financial, absence of incentives for investigative journalists, absence of protection for the journalist, and poor public participation as a source of information are the major challenges while practicing investigative journalism in the station, in particular the Neqash program.