The Thomson Reuters Foundation survey found that 42% report harassment, arrests and defamation lawsuits
NAIROBI, February 2026— When a Kenyan community journalist published an investigation exposing a politician’s “dirty and corrupt deeds,” he did not receive a cease-and-desist letter. He received death threats.
“Severe unspecified consequences that included a threat to my life,” the journalist, who requested anonymity, told researchers for a new report published Wednesday by the Thomson Reuters Foundation. His experience is not an isolated case.
A comprehensive new study, “Weaponising the Law: Threats to media freedom in Kenya,” reveals that 42 percent of Kenyan media actors have faced legal threats including litigation, arrest, and platform shutdowns, simply for doing their jobs. The findings paint a picture of a press corps operating under siege, with the very laws meant to protect them being twisted into weapons against them.
Systematic “Lawfare”
The report, which builds on the Foundation’s 2023 global investigation into legal attacks on media, provides the first country-specific deep dive into what experts call systematic “lawfare” in Kenya. It arrives at a pivotal moment as the nation approaches a high-stakes election cycle, with researchers warning that the chilling effect on journalism poses a direct threat to democratic accountability.
‘My station is a community-based media… you become a victim’
The threats documented are multifaceted with journalists reporting physical arrests, crushing defamation lawsuits, and the shutdown of online platforms. In some cases, the pressure is economic and communal rather than judicial.
One respondent described the precarious position of community media: “When you do stories that are not favourable to the local leadership, either political or government, then you become a victim. You will be denied funds and support, and to some extent, get threats of shutting down or mobilising the community to demonstrate against you.”
Despite constitutional protections enshrined in Kenyan law, researchers found that institutional weaknesses have fostered a culture of impunity. A staggering 48 percent of respondents identified journalist safety, or the lack thereof, as one of the biggest legal threats in the country. Physical assaults, harassment, and even killings are occurring without consequence, eroding the rule of law from within.
The report’s most striking statistic underscores the depth of the crisis: 65 percent of media professionals surveyed highlighted legal protections as their most needed support to ensure journalism sustainability.
This demand for structural defence comes as over half of respondents expressed a lack of confidence in the legal system’s ability to protect journalists covering sensitive topics.
Legal Threats
Conducted in partnership with ALT Advisory and Power Law Africa, the research identifies six primary categories of threat: abuse of court processes, weak law implementation, regressive legislation, technology-facilitated harms, journalist safety and impunity, and broader media industry sustainability.
Researchers noted that while these challenges are not unique to Kenya, the solutions require urgent, collaborative action. Inadequate oversight of surveillance powers and a failure to enforce existing protections were highlighted as critical vulnerabilities that render paper guarantees meaningless.
Will Church, Director of Media Freedom at the Thomson Reuters Foundation, framed the Kenyan findings within a global pattern of legal aggression.
“In response to mounting legal threats, we provide free legal services and resources for independent media around the world,” Church said.
This report, Will adds, draws on the experience of journalists and media experts in Kenya to identify and explore the most pressing legal threats they face, and highlight ways to counter them. “Legal threats reflect the broader threats that journalists and media face.”
Key Recommendations
The TRF report does not merely diagnose the problem; it offers a roadmap for survival. Some of its vital recommendations developed include strengthening the implementation of access to information and community media laws, robustly confronting the abuse of court processes through judicial reform, and urgently addressing technology-facilitated harms like unlawful surveillance and cybercrime accusations.
“Mitigate the impact of repressive and disabling legislation through building evidence and driving public awareness,” the report urges stakeholders, while calling for stronger legal support mechanisms, education, and robust policies to advance the sustainability of journalism.
This is the first in a planned series of national-level reviews by the TRF examining media freedom challenges in diverse contexts worldwide. For Kenyan journalists facing down threats of litigation, economic strangulation, and violence, the findings represent both a warning and a call to action, a blueprint for defending the Fourth Estate before the next election silences it further.
