Kibera News Network (KNN) is a community-driven citizen journalism collective based in Kibera, Nairobi. Founded as part of the Map Kibera initiative, KNN trains and employs local youth to document everyday life, community challenges and local responses through short videos, documentary features and grassroots reporting. The organisation’s core purpose is to counter external misrepresentations of Kibera by producing locally sourced, place-based journalism that highlights issues such as sanitation, housing evictions, public health, policing, elections and community-led solutions.
KNN’s work combines practical skills development with civic engagement: members receive training in reporting, camera operation, editing and storytelling, and they distribute content through video channels, community screenings, WhatsApp broadcasts and mapping projects. The group frequently collaborates with Map Kibera’s Voice of Kibera and mapping teams to geolocate stories, create resource maps, and surface information useful to residents, NGOs and local authorities. KNN has been cited in academic studies of citizen journalism for its role in amplifying marginalised voices and in increasing local civic participation.
Its reporting has documented crises (fires, evictions, COVID-19 impacts), everyday resilience, and advocacy campaigns, and KNN has used multimedia to support public information campaigns and community accountability. The organisation’s strengths are its rootedness in Kibera, youth-led production model, and combination of storytelling with data-driven mapping and community outreach. While operating at a local scale, KNN’s content has reached wider national and international audiences, contributing to debates about informal settlements, participatory media and digital inclusion.