Chief of Mission Susan Burns's Remarks at the University of Nairobi
(Remarks as prepared)
Wednesday, April 30, 2026
Good morning! I'm honored to be here with such a distinguished panel and audience.
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As Dr. Rugutt just mentioned, I am the acting ambassador for the United States Embassy in Kenya.
I am here today to talk about a value shared deeply by the people of both Kenya and the United States: our constitutionally guaranteed protections for a free and independent media.
This year we are celebrating our 250th anniversary as a nation. I'm speaking to a room of journalists so let me be precise: The United States' constitution, which guarantees free press and free speech in its very first lines, is only 234 years old.
But America was born 250 years ago to be free from the control of an unaccountable king. Our founders knew that a free press would be a guard dog for citizens against this form of tyranny.
In Kenya, your right to free press is a bit younger. In fact, probably everyone in this lecture hall is older than Article 34 of your constitution.
Here, too, we must acknowledge the decades of courageous journalism, and entrepreneurship that created a thriving media industry in Kenya, as well as the public demand for that constitutional guarantee.
Happy Sweet Sixteen to Kenya's constitutional guarantee to a free press! Adulthood, as we all know, can take some of the shine off the teenage years: With age comes wisdom, but also challenges and headaches.
Our 234-year-old-press can tell you about its aches and pains, much of it related to an Internet culture that demands content but doesn't want to pay.
America's journalists have been battle-scarred by two centuries of documenting scandals, unmasking corruption, and all manner of stories that many power people would have preferred not be published.
Like Kenya, the United States benefits from a legal system where many of these fights between politics and the press have taken place. Sadly, some of these struggles never make it to a courtroom: journalists globally face danger, harassment, and even death for their work.
Far from being withered and decrepit, American media continue to uncover corruption, verify facts, and give voice to the weak and the marginalized. The accountability, self-correction, and renewal driven by free and independent journalism is the beating heart of democracy.
What can Kenyan media do to protect and enhance their rights? This is not a rhetorical question - and even though we are in a lecture hall, I'm not here to lecture. I'm here to listen to my fellow panelists and, especially, the next generation of journalists here in the audience today.
I ask this question because - as grateful as I am to live and work in a country with free press and a vibrant social media sphere - I believe we should also have an open dialogue about improving journalists' ability to serve citizens.
I have had the pleasure of meeting leading Kenyan journalists, who have described not only their triumphs in the face of political and economic pressure, but also their concerns over practices that erode credibility - as well as their frequent struggle to get paid on time.
I represent the United States here in Kenya. Each country has its own interests and we're no different.
Yet, such disclosures are regularly missing in Kenyan media - where foreign (and domestic) institutions routinely use ghost writers to pen opinion pieces that appear without needed disclosure.
In fact, the embassy has been approached by media houses and asked to pay for interviews or the placement of guest columns. I'm not going to name names but I assure you we did not pay for coverage.
When opinions are written elsewhere, imported into the newsroom, and published without disclosure, the byline becomes a mask.
And journalism's ability to be a voice for its audiences is diminished.
I am not a journalist, but I know that at its core, journalism is about revealing, not hiding.
This practice - whether you call it "brown envelope syndrome" or just plain malign propaganda - undercuts editorial independence and will eventually destroy your most important resource: trust.
I recognize that Kenyan media are struggling, in part because of unpaid advertising debts.
Offering editorial space to the highest bidder is selling out your freedom.
For the record, U.S. media does not operate off government-controlled advertising; it is simply not a significant part of industry revenue.
Reporters in the United States do not need to be licensed by the government. As a matter of course, U.S. media reject efforts that would compromise their independence or allow government censorship.
The U.S. embassy has long supported journalists and the professional development of the media in Kenya.
We have offered travel assistance to dozens, if not hundreds, of journalists to help fund their reporting on stories in the United States, or to enhance their training by working alongside American media colleagues.
But we do not hide this support, nor do we pay journalists to write pro-American pieces under their bylines without disclosure, nor do we censor or pre-screen their coverage.
We don't do these things because we believe in the marketplace of ideas.
When I see someone unwilling to take credit for their ideas publicly - or buying the credibility that comes with an established media name - I question why you would adopt a position you're not willing to stand behind openly.
And I also question why a media house would cheapen their good name by passing off this content as anything but advertorial.
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In this era of deep fakes and AI-generated "content" [air quotes], trust is more important than ever. Your work is more important than ever.
My appeal today is simple: Media houses and journalists have an ethical obligation to disclose outside financial influence. Kenyan citizens have the right to know who is paying for their news - whether this is a local business, a politician, or a foreign government.
Perhaps this approach is acceptable in other countries where journalism and entire social media platforms are criminalized and censored.
But this is Kenya. This is a society that values and champions a free press, that enshrines those values in your laws, and the Kenyan people deserve better.
Let me be clear, I welcome scrutiny and criticism by Kenyan journalists and opinion columnists - democracy functions best when all voices can be heard, including those you do not agree with.
Sunday is World Press Freedom Day. I congratulate Kenya's journalists - and all citizens who express their views - for their commitment to Kenya's founding ideals.
I thank Kenya's reporters, editors, photographers, and students here today for choosing to serve their fellow citizens through the vocation of journalism.
A free and independent press is a shared value that makes both Kenya and the United States stronger. Now is the time to serve and strengthen Kenyan journalism by focusing on ethics and building trust.
Thank you.
