Hip Hop Radio Edutainment for Youth Participation in Kampala

How can hip-hop, radio and fact-checking encourage young people to take part in social and political conversations? Together with EARS and three Kampala radio stations, Minibus Media developed radio formats that combine music, spoken word and constructive journalism.
Challenge
Young people often have limited opportunities to discuss social, economic and political issues in mainstream media. Radio can reach wide audiences, but it needs formats that speak to young people in their own language and culture.
Approach
Minibus Media worked with the Ugandan East Africa Radio Service (EARS) and three Kampala radio stations – Radio Sapientia, Galaxy FM and Radio City – to develop hip-hop-based radio edutainment formats. The programme combined instrumentals, rap, spoken-word poetry and live conversations on issues affecting local communities.
Radio hosts received training in interviewing, constructive journalism and fact-checking. Each station then developed its own hip-hop programme, ensuring that the formats reflected the interests and language of their audiences.
Result
The project connected EARS with local hip-hop networks and reached more than 200 artists across Uganda. Radio presenters received practical tools for future broadcasts, including a manual on constructive journalism, interview techniques and fact-checking.