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Larry Madowo

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Larry Madowo
Madowo in 2023
Born
Larry Madowo

(1987-07-14) 14 July 1987 (age 37)[1]
Siaya, Kenya
NationalityKenyan
EducationColumbia University (MA)
OccupationJournalist
EmployerCNN
Known forJournalism
Websitewww.larrymadowo.co.ke

Larry Madowo (born 14 July 1987) is a CNN International Correspondent and host of the African Voices Changemakers and Playmakers series. He was previously a North America Correspondent for the BBC and also anchored breaking news and presented BBC World News America from Washington, DC. He was a 2019-20 Knight-Bagehot Fellow in Economics and Business Journalism at Columbia University[2] in New York and the BBC Africa Business Editor until 2019.[3] He is a reporter, broadcaster, writer and news anchor whose range includes business, technology, current affairs, politics and popular culture. His work has been featured on major global outlets including the BBC, CNN International, the Washington Post, and the Guardian.

Madowo started his career in Nairobi as a Trainee Reporter at KTN and then as a Business Anchor at NTV Kenya where he worked twice, he later anchored and reported business and financial news at CNBC Africa before returning to NTV. He resigned from the station in March 2018 to join the BBC. He hosted The Larry Madowo Show[4] on Nation FM from August 2014 until June 2016 and wrote a weekly column in the Daily Nation every week named #FrontRow[5] from 5 August 2014 until 8 February 2018. In Kenya, he is best known for hosting a popular Friday night show called #TheTrend[6] on NTV Kenya[7][8] from December 2012 until 30 June 2017.

Early life

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Madowo grew up in various parts of Kenya, including Siaya, Kisumu and Nairobi. He attended Usingo and Karapul primary schools and St Gabriel's Seminary for secondary education. He had intended to train as a catholic priest, but by the time he finished high school this had changed. In college, he studied broadcast journalism.

Journalism career

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In 2006, Madowo enrolled for a Communication degree at Daystar University in Nairobi. In 2007, Madowo interned for a vernacular radio station Bahasha FM reading news in English. Madowo eventually dropped out of college a year and a half down his degree to take up a job at Kenya Television Network (KTN), one of Africa's oldest private television networks.[9] He became one of the household names in Kenya and after 3 years, he left KTN for NTV, where he was a business anchor and reporter. In May 2012, he joined the South African-based CNBC Africa as one of the main anchors of market day shows Open Exchange, Power Lunch and Closing Bell.[10] His stay at CNBC Africa only lasted 8 months and in December 2012, he went back to NTV as the technology editor and news anchor.[8] Madowo returned to college and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication degree from Daystar University[11] in June 2014.

During his second tenure at NTV Kenya, he also freelanced for various global news outlets including CNN International,[12] France 24 English,[13] the BBC, and Public Radio International.[14][15] When the Kenyan newspaper the Daily Nation declined to publish a column critical of the Kenyan government's shutdown of four major private TV stations in early 2018, the opinion piece was published on the CNN website.[16] He terminated his column[17] and became a Contributing Columnist for the Washington Post's Global Opinions page.[18]

On 11 April 2018, it was announced[19] that Madowo was joining BBC News Africa as Business Editor. He led a team of business journalists based in Nairobi, London, Lagos, Dakar and Johannesburg. He has appeared across BBC World TV,[20] BBC World Service Radio,[21] BBC News channel in the UK, bbc.com[22] and BBC Radio 4 as a reporter or commentator on African business.

A radio documentary Madowo presented[23] on the Chinese-built railway in Kenya won the Daily Journalism (Single Report) category[24] at the 2019 Association of International Broadcasting Awards on 6 November 2019 in London. 'Raha: The Joy of the Train' was part of a series produced by Peter Shevlin[25] of British production company BlokMedia.

On 9 April 2019, he was named among the 2019–2020 Knight-Bagehot Fellows at Columbia University.[26] On 29 July 2019, Madowo said he was taking a sabbatical from the BBC[27] for his fellowship at Columbia Journalism School. Madowo graduated from Columbia with a Master of Arts in Business and Economics Journalism on 20 May 2020. His master's thesis on African e-commerce pioneer Jumia's tumultuous first year on the New York Stock Exchange[28] won the Philip Greer Scholarship Award for Financial Writing.

He briefly contributed to the Guardian US[29] and the BBC.[30]

Madowo marked his return to the BBC in a new role as a North America Correspondent in the summer of 2020 with a report from a Coronavirus Unit in Houston, Texas.[31] He reported across the United States primarily for BBC World News and the BBC World Service. He has filed reports from North Dakota,[32] Georgia,[33] Kentucky, New York, Louisiana, as well as South and North Carolina, among others. His coverage of the 2020 US election and inauguration of Joe Biden has been recognised around the world.[34]

He has interviewed some of the world's most prominent people including presidents,[35] world-famous artists,[36] global CEOs[37] and Sophia the Robot.[38]

Madowo was selected as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum in March 2020.[39] He was nominated as a One Young World Journalist of the Year[40] in June 2020. He has twice been named among the 100 Most Influential Africans by New African magazine.[41] Madowo was again cited as one of the Top 100 most influential Africans by New African magazine in 2020.[42]

He became the first black person to deliver the Peter Stursberg Foreign Correspondents Lecture[43] at Canada's Carleton University in December 2020.[44] He has also referenced his work as a foreign correspondent in the United States in interviews by the New Yorker[45] and NPR.[46]

In May 2021, Madowo was appointed as CNN's Nairobi correspondent.[47] Two months later, in July 2021, CNN promoted him to international correspondent.[48][49]

Views

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Madowo self identifies as a Christian, although he is quoted as saying that there is probably no God,[50] suggesting that he holds agnostic views. He is critical of the religious in Kenya, having written in his old Daily Nation column "Atheists don’t harm anyone, let them be!" that they exhibit the affliction of the inability to hold divergent views. This had come as a response to the outrage by religious Kenyans after the group; Atheists in Kenya, attempted to register themselves as an organization.

He has spoken out about racism while writing about his experience as a black man in the United States.[51]

Madowo became a vocal defender of press freedom in Africa after a run-in with the Kenyan government in 2018 forced him to seek shelter in a safe house.[52] Alongside two other colleagues, they regained their freedom after a court granted them anticipatory bail.[53] He has said that many other African journalists face greater dangers from their government, including threats to their lives.[54]

Personal life

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Madowo is also known to be very active on social media[55] and has a combined following of over 4 million people across Facebook,[56] Twitter and Instagram.[57] His sister Liz Madowo, a graduate of Moi University,[58] is a stylist and a fashion blogger.[59]

Madowo is also a regular moderator and speaker at media, technology and business conferences around the world.[60]

References

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  1. ^ "Larry Madowo celebrated his birthday". Nairobi Gossips. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
  2. ^ "Columbia Announces 2019–2020 Knight-Bagehot Fellows | School of Journalism". journalism.columbia.edu. Retrieved 31 October 2019.
  3. ^ Madowo, Larry (24 May 2019). "Is Facebook undermining democracy in Africa?". Retrieved 31 October 2019.
  4. ^ "Larry Madowo". Retrieved 14 March 2017 – via Facebook.
  5. ^ "LARRY MADOWO". Nation.co.ke. Retrieved 14 March 2017.
  6. ^ "The Trend". Nation.co.ke. Retrieved 14 March 2017.
  7. ^ "Larry Madowo – Who's Who in Kenya". Nation.co.ke. Retrieved 14 March 2017.
  8. ^ a b "Larry Madowo Back on NTV". Archived from the original on 17 April 2013. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
  9. ^ "Larry Madowo Bio – Larry Madowo". Larrymadowo.co.ke. Retrieved 14 March 2017.
  10. ^ "Larry Madowo Launches New Show 'Eye on Kenya' | Ghafla!Kenya". Archived from the original on 30 January 2013. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
  11. ^ "Larry Madowo in his final year at Daystar, six years after enrolling – Capital Campus". Capitalfm.co.ke. 7 September 2012. Retrieved 14 March 2017.
  12. ^ "NTV Kenya". Retrieved 22 July 2018 – via Facebook.
  13. ^ "Kenya on edge: Was the presidential re-run worth it? – France 24". France 24. 25 October 2017. Retrieved 22 July 2018.
  14. ^ "Kenyan military accused of turning Westgate mall siege into shopping spree". Public Radio International. Retrieved 22 July 2018.
  15. ^ "Cambridge Analytica's political work extends far beyond the US". Public Radio International. Retrieved 22 July 2018.
  16. ^ Madowo, Larry. "Opinion: Why it's a perilous time to be a journalist in Kenya". CNN. Retrieved 22 July 2018.
  17. ^ "Larry Madowo on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 22 July 2018.
  18. ^ "Larry Madowo". The Washington Post. Retrieved 22 July 2018.
  19. ^ "BBC appoints Larry Madowo to head Africa business desk". The Star, Kenya. Retrieved 22 July 2018.
  20. ^ "Larry Madowo on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 22 July 2018.
  21. ^ "New Voice for Radio Journalist, Click – BBC World Service". BBC. Retrieved 22 July 2018.
  22. ^ Madowo, Larry (21 July 2018). "Will Nigeria Air succeed where others have failed?". BBC News. Retrieved 22 July 2018.
  23. ^ "BBC World Service – The Compass, Stories from the New Silk Road, Raha: The joy of the train". BBC. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
  24. ^ AIB, The (6 November 2019). "For our Daily journalism single report award (radio), the winners are BlokMedia (@petershev @BlokMedia1) for BBC World Service (@BBCWorldservice) for Stories from the New Silk Road – Raha: The Joy of the Train, congratulations! #theAIBs #RahaTheJoyOfTheTrain". @AIBnews. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
  25. ^ Shevlin, Peter (6 November 2019). "This is for you ⁦@LarryMadowo⁩ let's hope we work together again soon! ⁦@theaibstv⁩ ⁦@AIBnews⁩pic.twitter.com/aJRY2RBxtk". @peteshev. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
  26. ^ "Columbia's Knight-Bagehots named for 2019–20". Talking Biz News. 9 April 2019. Retrieved 31 October 2019.
  27. ^ Madowo, Larry (29 July 2019). "This has been a dream job in every way and leaving it was one of the hardest decisions of my life. An exciting year in New York City awaits but saying goodbye is so hard! I'll miss everyone terriblypic.twitter.com/bmGR3uqIvU". @larrymadowo. Retrieved 31 October 2019.
  28. ^ "How the 'Amazon of Africa' fell from grace". BBC News. 29 April 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
  29. ^ "Larry Madowo | The Guardian". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
  30. ^ "How the US caught flashy Nigerian Instagrammers 'with $40m'". BBC News. 7 July 2020. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  31. ^ "Meet the 'COVID Hunter' of Houston – YouTube". Retrieved 19 December 2020 – via YouTube.
  32. ^ "'Grow up, mask up': Tensions in US Covid hotspot". BBC News. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  33. ^ "Why can it be so hard to vote in Georgia?". BBC News. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  34. ^ Breimer, Sanne (23 January 2021). "What we can learn from Kenyan journalist Larry Madowo who covers North America for the BBC". Medium. Retrieved 25 January 2021.
  35. ^ Kagame, Paul (2 October 2013), Interview with NTV's Larry Madowo – 1 November 2013, retrieved 23 June 2020
  36. ^ "YouTube". Retrieved 23 June 2020 – via YouTube.
  37. ^ "MADOWO: Why Nadella chose Kenya for Windows 10 global launch". Business Daily. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
  38. ^ "Meet the robot with 50 facial expressions". BBC News. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
  39. ^ "Meet the young leaders set to shape 2020".
  40. ^ "One Young World Journalist of the Year 2020 – Shortlist Announced". oneyoungworld.com. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
  41. ^ The New, African magazine. "100 Most Influential Africans of 2020". Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  42. ^ "Masiyiwa, Musk Included In New African Magazine's 100 Most Influential Africans 2020". 8 December 2020. Retrieved 13 January 2021.
  43. ^ "2020 Peter Stursberg Lecture". School of Journalism and Communication. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  44. ^ "ROUGH CUT: Stursberg Lecture 2020: Larry Madowo, Stranger in a Strange Land – YouTube". Retrieved 19 December 2020 – via YouTube.
  45. ^ Al-Sayyad, Yasmine (26 October 2020). "What Foreign Journalists See in the U.S. Election". The New Yorker. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  46. ^ "The News Roundup For December 18, 2020 : 1A". NPR. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  47. ^ "CNN Hires Larry Madowo as Nairobi-based Correspondent". CNN. 13 May 2021. Archived from the original on 21 May 2021. Retrieved 19 August 2021.
  48. ^ Maombo, Sharon (21 July 2021). "CNN promotes Larry Madowo". The Star. Archived from the original on 21 July 2021. Retrieved 19 August 2021.
  49. ^ Milimo, Dennnis (22 July 2021). "Larry Madowo promoted by CNN 2 months after joining the station". Pulse Live Kenya. Archived from the original on 22 July 2021. Retrieved 19 August 2021.
  50. ^ Post, Trending. ""There Is Probably No God" Larry Madowo Claims As He Defends Atheists in This Article | Trending Post | Kenya's Online Newspaper". Trendingpost.co.ke. Retrieved 17 January 2017.
  51. ^ "What it's like to be an African in the US". BBC News. 4 June 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
  52. ^ Aglionby, John (5 February 2018). "Kenya media crackdown raises fears of authoritarian creep". Financial Times. London. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
  53. ^ "Kenyan government ignores court order over broadcasting ban". Committee to Protect Journalists. 2 February 2018. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
  54. ^ Larry Madowo (Kenya): AFC Scholarship Awardee supported by Microsoft, retrieved 23 June 2020
  55. ^ "Larry Madowo (@LarryMadowo) – Twitter". Retrieved 14 March 2017.
  56. ^ "Larry Madowo". Retrieved 31 October 2019 – via Facebook.
  57. ^ "Larry Madowo (@larrymadowo) • Instagram photos and videos". Retrieved 31 October 2019 – via Instagram.
  58. ^ Ndanu, Carole (4 September 2015). "Larry Madowo Sends Out A Warm Message To His Sister As She Graduates". Niaje.com. Retrieved 14 March 2017.
  59. ^ "Liz Madowo – Fearlessly Fashionable". Lizmadowo.co.ke. Retrieved 14 March 2017.
  60. ^ "Larry Madowo". Slush. Retrieved 31 October 2019.
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