As All Eyes (and Ears) Turn to Kenya, Leading Live Coverage Now Available on Any Mobile Phone

February 27, 2013, Washington, D.C. — As Kenya prepares for one of the most important elections in its history – and one watched closely across the globe — AudioNow announced today a dozen radio stations in Kenya, the U.S. and England where U.S. audiences can receive live coverage of the March 4th presidential elections, by phone.

AudioNow, the nation’s leading radio-by-phone platform, has partnered with leading broadcasters such as BBC Swahili, Capital FM, and Jambo Boston Radio to bring breaking news and pre-election updates and analysis directly to the Kenyan diaspora in both Swahili and English.

The election is the first under Kenya’s new 2010 constitution, and the first after Kenya’s 2007 disputed election that was marked by widespread violence.

BBC World Service leads a week of special programming with “Kenya Decides,” featuring issues of top concern to Kenyans on the eve of the election –such as the crisis of youth unemployment — from reporters in key centers in the country, Nairobi, Mombasa, Kisumu, Nakuru, Eldoret, Nyeri and Garissa. Reporting will be in English, Kiswahili, Kinyarwanda/Kirundi, Somali and French. For coverage, in English, dial 712.432.6580.

BBC Swahili is also available on the platform. Says BBC Africa Editor, Solomon Mugera, “In addition to news coverage, the BBC’s weekly debate, Sema Kenya, remains the only forum where Kenyans freely and frankly debate major election issues in their own national language, Kiswahili.” For BBC Swahili, listeners can dial: 213.493.0310.

For those seeking updates from a Kenya-based station, callers can access Capital FM, by dialing 832.999.1984. Capital will offer live 24 hour broadcasts from the Bomas tallying center on election day, and will focus heavily on grassroots reactions to the day’s events, with comparisons to the aftermath of the 2007 elections.

Since autumn of 2012, Jambo Boston Radio has reached “hundreds if not thousands of Kenyans in North America and beyond,” because of AudioNow’s call-to-listen service, says Station Owner James Nganga. Jambo Boston Radio will also stream live 24 hours through the upcoming elections, with a team of reporters in Kenya, and interviews with local analysts. To listen to Jambo Boston Radio’s content, dial 213.992.4233

With 1,000 broadcast partners airing in over 50 languages around the world, AudioNow is devoted to open media access across all mobile platforms, ensuring that technology is not a prohibiting factor in citizens receiving news. For this reason, the AudioNow service comes at no extra charge to the caller. There are no fees accrued to the listener, beyond minutes on mobile voice plans.

For a complete list of AudioNow partners covering the elections, please refer to the list below:

BBC Swahili 213.493.0310
Capital FM Kenya 832.999.1984
Chamge FM 213.992.4317
Egesa FM 213.992.4316
Hot96 FM 213.992.4318
Inooro FM 213.992.4312
Jambo Boston Radio 213.992.4233
Kass FM 213.493.0160

Mulembe FM 213.992.4315
Musyi FM 213.992.4314
Radio Citizen 213.992.4311
Ramogi FM 213.992.4313
RFI Kiswahili 832.225.5393
VOA Swahili 213.493.0181
West FM Kenya 213.493.0195

For more information regarding AudioNow please contact Rebecca Walker at 202.621.2223 or rebecca.walker@audionow.com

With over 1,000 broadcast partners on all continents, in over 50 languages, AudioNow® is the largest call-to-listen technology gateway connecting mobile listeners to broadcasters across the globe. Our partners include industry leaders such as the BBC, RFI, Voice of America, Entravision, Al Jazeera, ESPN, and talkSPORT, as well as hundreds of in-language stations that cater to niche audiences. As a result, AudioNow® is on target to deliver three billion listening minutes in 2013.