An examination of the public sphere theory in the context of bunge la mwananchi in Kisumu central constituency

Bunge la Mwananchi (BLM) has been in existence for over twenty years and has been used by activists, politicians, and general members of the public to advance their causes. The platform has also acted as an open forum that encourages anyone to initiate a conversation for ordinary people to debate socio-economic and political problems impacting their lives. Despite its existence and potential as a form of alternative information that can shape opinions, researchers and various scholars have only examined the public sphere theory against other traditional mediums such as radio, TV, and newspapers, few if not none has examined the theory in the context of alternative media of information such as Bunge Mwananchi in Kisumu Central Constituency leaving a gap that needs to be filled. This study focused on the examination of the Public Sphere Theory in the context of Bunge la Mwananchi in Kisumu Central Constituency. To that end, this study aimed at establishing the nature of Bunge la Mwananchi participants in Kisumu Central Constituency; establishing the speaking criteria for members during Bunge la Mwananchi debates in Kisumu Central Constituency; and determining the messages/content shared during the Bunge la Mwananchi debates in Kisumu Central Constituency to find out if they are in tandem with the workings of public sphere theory. This study used public sphere theory as its theoretical framework for the purpose of analysis and interpretations of data collected. Public Sphere Theory was proposed by German philosopher JurgenHabermas in 1962. The tenets of the theory include disregard of class, popular concern and inclusivity. This study used descriptive research design. The area of study was Kisumu Central Constituency. To obtain data, the study used interviews and focus group discussions where 15 FGDs and 10 in-depth interviews with BLM chairpersons were sampled. This focused on personal accounts, observations, descriptions and individual insights of the respondents. Purposive sampling technique was used to select respondents for interviews. For Focus Group Discussions, the study used Convenience Sampling Technique. It adopted a qualitative research method in which the interview schedule was used to collect qualitative data from key informants. The qualitative data is presented through descriptive narrative procedures. The study used both primary and secondary data. Primary data collection involved interviewing key informants who are chairpersons, and custodians of a lot of the information related to the management of Bunge la Mwananchi. The data collected is presented through text, narration, and verbatim. The study population comprised of 162 participants of the total population of 1,500 membership representing 11 percent of the population. The outcome of this study will contribute to the body of knowledge, especially on research on media and political communication studies, and civic engagement; it will also help enforce the public participation requirement, which is a provision of Kenya's Constitution under Article 1, where both the County and National governments can consider using BLM as an alternative forum for public participation; lastly, the outcome of the study will be considered as a community mobilization tool in respect to the President's Big 4 Agenda and Vision 2030 Blueprint. The study revealed that BLM allows anyone to participate in its debates regardless of class, age, gender, ethnicity, culture, generation, or social standing, demonstrating that it upholds public sphere theory tenet of disregard of class. The study further discovered that for participants to contribute to the conversation there’s a guide to be followed, the discussions are guided by the chairman. Lastly, study discovered that BLM doesn’t generate any new information to members rather, BLM’s content is largely determined with what is trending in the mainstream media.