Watch Out!!! Fake Journalists on the Loose in Nairobi

If you have hosted a media event or been to any of late you have probably come in contact with the new bunch of people masquerading as journalists without you realizing.

They commonly target functions that are hosted in major hotels around town and the trend is spreading fast! The bogus reporters come equipped with fake IDs bearing names of the recognized media houses. Just to seem genuine, they demand for demand for press releases and any other useful material promising to report on the stories, but of course they don’t post anywhere.

So dire is the tendency that in some occasions the fake journalists outnumber the legit ones. One of the event organizers says, “They scramble for food and most of them eat without any table manners especially at cocktails and dinners”. He added, “We send out invitations in advance and at times request for a specific number of representatives per house to attend, but contrary to our expectations, we receive ten reporters from a media house.” Obviously, majority of these later turn out to be shams.

“I don’t understand where the problem is. These are young people who can do something productive rather than wasting time roaming about in town. There is need for the relevant authorities to intervene to save the situation,” complained another event organizer.

How desperate can fellas get???!