By KPC Reporter
Media personality Caroline Mutoko has hailed outgoing Radio Africa Group Chairman Kiprono Kittony for his role in shaping Kenya’s media industry and mentoring generations of talent.
Mutoko credited Kittony with nurturing careers, backing innovation and helping transform the country’s media landscape over the past two decades.
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In a heartfelt tribute, Mutoko described Kittony as the “quiet hand behind Kenyan media’s loudest voices”, saying his leadership style was defined by trust, courage and a willingness to take chances on untested talent.
“When history compiles the roll call of Kenyan media giants, many names will rightly be etched in bold. But no honest telling of that story can leave out the man who rarely sought the microphone, yet quietly orchestrated the symphony behind it,” she said.
Mutoko recounted how her journey with Radio Africa began in 2000 after she submitted an unconventional one-paragraph job application following an advertisement in the Daily Nation.
The application, she recalled, boldly declared that Radio Africa would not find anyone better for the role.
“Today we call that personal branding. Back then, it was probably just audacity,” she said.
According to Mutoko, Kittony saw potential in her and invited her for an interview despite doubts about whether she would leave her then employer, Capital FM.
“That belief changed the trajectory of my life — and, I daresay, the sound of Kenyan radio,” she said.
She also recalled the legal battle that followed her move to Kiss FM, one of Radio Africa’s flagship stations, after Capital FM sought court orders to stop her from going on air.
Mutoko said Kittony stood by her throughout the court case and subsequent challenges that came with building one of Kenya’s most influential radio brands.
“Through every tremor, Kiprono remained remarkably still. His message was always the same: ‘You do your job. We’ll handle this,'” she said.
She described Kittony’s leadership as one centred on protection and empowerment rather than personal recognition.
“That is leadership not as performance, but as protection. Not as applause, but as architecture. He built the stage, then trusted the actors to deliver,” she said.
Mutoko credited the outgoing chairman with helping establish media platforms that challenged industry norms while creating opportunities for generations of journalists, broadcasters and media professionals.
She said Kittony’s influence could be seen in successful radio stations, newspapers and the many careers he helped nurture.
“His fingerprints are everywhere — in stations that rewrote the rules of radio, in newspapers that dared to challenge convention, in careers he nurtured, and in the quiet dignity with which he handled pressure,” she said.
The veteran broadcaster added that her own success story was largely the result of a chance Kittony took on a young and relatively unknown presenter.
“The Caroline Mutoko you know today exists because one man read a one-paragraph application and decided to take a chance,” she said.
As Kittony exits the chairmanship of Radio Africa Group, Mutoko said his legacy would be measured not by the spotlight he occupied but by the success of those he mentored and supported.
“Great leadership, you’ve taught us, is not measured by the spotlight you stand in, but by the number of people whose lights shine because of you. You have lit more lamps than you will ever know,” she said.
She thanked Kittony for his mentorship, loyalty and unwavering support throughout her career, describing him as “a remarkable leader, an extraordinary chairman” and a man to whom many in Kenya’s media industry owe a great deal.
