On the 13th March, Kenya announced its first coronavirus case. The government announced measures to contain the spread. However, some of the measures proved deadlier than the virus itself - Cops and Corpses, 2020
Maurice Oniang'o won the Thomson Foundation Young Journalist award in 2014 with a portfolio of stories which included a film on child soldiers in Kenya.
Seven years on, Maurice is firmly established in his field and making long-form films and documentaries that hold power to account. His mission is to give a voice to those who cannot be heard and a platform to those who cannot be seen.
I wouldn't call myself a campaigning journalist, he says. I am a journalist who is interested in social and environmental justice.
His latest film, Cops and Corpses - Victims' Cry for Justice, won the Spotlight Gold Award as one of the best independent films of 2020 and has been nominated for a second award at the 42nd Durban International Film Festival. The subject matter - the escalation of police brutality on people living in informal settlements in Kenya during the Covid-19 pandemic - came to his attention through social media.
Citizen journalists played a key role in letting people know there was a pandemic, he says. There was also the issue of an escalation of police brutality. I learned through social media - tweets and videos - that people were being injured, and in some cases killed, because of the breaking of a curfew. It was especially the case in the informal settlements with the police enforcing coronavirus restrictions.
Much of Maurice's film covers street protests. He uses mojo extensively and combines it with photo stills and mobile phone footage from citizen journalists, together with victim interviews filmed on a video camera.
This was my first protest film, so I needed guidance as to what to do. I spoke to different mentors and did online learning for mobile journalism. This taught me how to use my mobile phone for good quality video and to have something that is presentable.
Covering civil unrest during a pandemic also brought its own issues, with personal safety a key factor.
-- Play
-- --
Just mentioning that I am the 2014 Thomson Foundation Young Journalist winner has given me a platform to speak about my work and get other opportunities"
Maurice Oniang o, documentary filmmaker
Maurice stresses the importance of balance and accuracy in storytelling in order to have credibility with the audience. It is important, he says, to try to get both sides of an unfolding story. You have to love doing research. The only way you are going to get accurate and verifiable information is by doing in-depth investigation. You must also listen to the experts, your peers and your mentors.
-- Play
-- --
When the authorities refuse to speak to you as a journalist, it is either that they are hiding something or they don't want to face the media and speak about an issue that many people know exists. I tried to get their side of the story, but no one responded. All my emails and phone calls went unanswered.
Maurice is not in the job to win awards, although such recognition helps to highlight his areas of concern. Winning the award means that someone is noticing what you are doing, he says.
They most certainly are.
Young Journalist Award
We are excited to announce the return of our annual award where young journalists, their work and their voices are at the centre, and where journalism's power to enact meaningful change is as present as ever. Now in its ninth year, the award enables journalists aged 30 and under from countries with a Gross National Income (GNI) per capita of less than $20,000 to submit their best stories.
Each year we receive entries from journalists that are revelatory, prompt public debate and have led to, or have the potential to lead to, positive change in society. This year we want to build on that and introduce a new element. Find out more here. Closing date for entries, 10th September, 2021.
Application form here.
Explore our projects across the globe
Europe Stories
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
13/03/2026
RT has announced today that Rick O'Shea is the new presenter of Arena RT Radio 1's flagship weeknight arts and culture programme. Rick has been pres...
13/03/2026
Lights! Camera! Action! The 98th Oscars set to air live as RT backs the Irish n...
12/03/2026
Staines-upon-Thames, UK, 11th March, 2026 - Yospace, the trusted leader in Dyna...
12/03/2026
In Latin America, women are shaping music and defining its future. To kick off t...
12/03/2026
En Am rica Latina, las mujeres est n moldeando la m sica y definiendo su futuro....
12/03/2026
Let's turn back the clock 20 years: The music landscape was a world away fro...
12/03/2026
Bad Bunny is no stranger to Spotify's Billions Club. In fact, he has a whopp...
12/03/2026
Spotify was at the London Book Fair this week, joining conversations across the publishing industry about how people can make reading part of their daily lives....
12/03/2026
Mastering tool improves mono compatibility
Tokyo Dawn Labs' Ohlhorst Digital range is a series of mastering-focused plug-ins developed by Jan Ohlhorst, ...
12/03/2026
Wave FX processor integrated into four products
Lewitt have teamed up with Elgato to create a new processor for the company's Wave Next product range, i...
12/03/2026
Free tool for annotating audio files
Mix Notes is a new, free iOS App that provides users with a simple way to annotate their audio files. It's been cre...
12/03/2026
Side-chain ducking tool gets an upgrade
Devious Machines' popular side-chaining and envelope-shaping tool has just been kitted out with an improved enve...
12/03/2026
Ceremony to take place on 16 April 2026
The MPG (Music Producers Guild) have revealed the full shortlist for this year's MPG Awards, which will be takin...
12/03/2026
Emulates three classic dbx 160 variants
The latest arrival to Overloud's Gem Series plug-in range faithfully recreates not one, but three versions of th...
12/03/2026
New granular soft synth announced
Said to be their most advanced software synthesizer to date, Baby Audio's latest release has been built on a new granu...
12/03/2026
Latest version now live!
Edit 11 March 2026 - Bitwig Studio 6 is now live, and available for all to download!
The latest version of Bitwig's DAW softwa...
12/03/2026
Latest free eBook now available!
Designed for recording engineers, audio-technology students and technically minded musicians, our latest free eBook deliver...
12/03/2026
Rohde & Schwarz Cybersecurity expands SITLine network encryptor portfolio - more...
12/03/2026
Rohde & Schwarz to showcase future-proof EMC testing solutions at EMV 2026 Rohde & Schwarz will participate in EMV 2026, Europe's premier trade fair and c...
12/03/2026
Modern media operations demand a platform that unites automation, orchestration, and human oversight without compromise. In this post, we explore the six key te...
12/03/2026
A deep dive into the platform
Architecture The Blue Lucy platform follows a distributed microservices architecture, meaning the overall operational capability...
12/03/2026
Orchestration platform enables broadcasters to deploy multiple AI models safely with full auditability, rights protection, and regulatory oversight.
LONDON, En...
12/03/2026
Wuppertal March 12, 2026
Riedel Expands Managed Technology Division in the Ame...
12/03/2026
Advanced Media Server Delivers Double the Channel Density at Half the Cost per C...
12/03/2026
The Late Late Show Show St Patrick's Day special
Dancing with the Stars f...
11/03/2026
First Medium-Earth Orbit (MEO) deployment of the emergency.lu platform for refugees and their host communities' use provides dependable broadband for humani...
11/03/2026
Following a successful first series, UKTV today announces the commission of two ...
11/03/2026
Wednesday 11 March 2026
Sky and CANAL launch new partnership to develop English-language drama
Sky and CANAL are today announcing a strategic co commissioni...
11/03/2026
NTCA, Cartesian Release New Report on the Business Case for USF
March 11, 2026
Network Economics
News
NTCA - March 11, 2026 - As the FCC and Congr...
11/03/2026
TELL US YOUR (SHORT) STORIES
The 2026 RT Short Story Competition is now open for entries
Recognising and rewarding the best new Irish fiction writing for...
11/03/2026
RT 's The Traitors Ireland is among the nominees for the 2026 Celtic Media Festival Torc Awards for Excellence, announced today....
10/03/2026
10 Mar 2026
VEON's Largest Market Pakistan Almost Triples Mobile Spectrum i...
09/03/2026
Contains all six dual-ensemble libraries
VSL's Duality Strings series offers an intriguing alternative to your average string library, capturing two str...
09/03/2026
Outstanding Contribution To UK Music
Photo: Samuel Bradley
Ahead of their upcoming MPG Awards, the Music Producers Guild (MPG) have revealed the latest win...
09/03/2026
Two new high-quality DI boxes announced
Boasting some impressive technical specifications and versatile routing options, Strymon's latest active DI boxe...
09/03/2026
Latest MPE-capable Soundbox library released
The follow-up release for Sonora Cinematic's Pure Nylon has arrived, and becomes the latest addition to the...
09/03/2026
Popular wireless mic head design revived
Sennheiser have revealed that the MD 9235, a cardioid mic head designed to pair up with their handheld wireless sys...
09/03/2026
Captures two sought-after Dumble combo amps
The latest TONEX release captures a pair of sought-after Dumble amplifiers from IK Multimedia's private amp ...
09/03/2026
Flexible all-analogue insert matrix joins line-up
HUM Audio Devices don't tend to do things by halves - even the quickest of glances at the likes of the...
09/03/2026
Captures three sought-after pianos
Rhodes latest software release brings together a collection of three virtual pianos: a concert grand, an acoustic upright...
09/03/2026
Flagship compressor gets an upgrade
Techivation's flagship compressor plug-in has just been treated to a ground-up rebuild that kits it out with some po...
09/03/2026
Profiler OS 14.0 enters open beta
Kemper's amp-modelling systems already have a great reputation, but the latest update to their systems' underlying...
09/03/2026
Procedural stems smasher & recomposition engine
Blinksonic have recently launched a new Reaktor-based tool which they say takes a radical departure from yo...
09/03/2026
13 - 15 March 2026 at University of Warwick Conference Centre
The Institute of Professional Sound (IPS) have announced that The IPS Training Weekend 2026 wi...
On the 13th March, Kenya announced its first coronavirus case. The government announced measures to contain the spread. However, some of the measures proved deadlier than the virus itself - Cops and Corpses, 2020 
