Kenyan journalist Larry Madowo’s criticism on the Western countries has rubbed a section of the Americans the wrong way just days after he landed in the United States.
The BBC business editor is in the US for a one-year study leave at Columbia University, New York City.
Larry’s Sunday tweet on his experience in the US was condemned by Americans who called on the journalist to return home if he felt the country was not safe.
The journo had tweeted on recent mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton.
“I went to sleep on news of a mass shooting in El Paso. I woke up to the news of a mass shooting in Dayton. This is only my first weekend living in these United States!” Larry wrote on Twitter.
I went to sleep on news of a mass shooting in El Paso. I woke up to news of a mass shooting in Dayton. This is only my first weekend living in these United States!
— Larry Madowo (@LarryMadowo) August 4, 2019
In fact, some tweeps seized the moment to criticize Kenya.
“You are a newcomer to America and you publicly say America is not safe despite the hell hole you are from. Get lost moron! Go home!” John Siebert tweeted.
Read: Larry Madowo Pokes Fun At A “Dusty” Boniface Mwangi
I have received a warm welcome, evidently #ThisIsAmerica pic.twitter.com/LbZLXrm1Xb
— Larry Madowo (@LarryMadowo) August 4, 2019
Absolutely not!
— Larry Madowo (@LarryMadowo) August 4, 2019
https://twitter.com/claud_bae/status/1157984115746115594?s=20
According to reports, America, on average, has a mass shooting every single day, something rare in Kenya.
In the recent past, there have been concerns on how the international media covers terror-related attacks in Kenya despite the US being more vulnerable to mass shootings.
This year, the New York Times was on the receiving end of the Kenyans wrath after they published images of dead Kenyans killed during the 14 Riverside terrorist attack in Nairobi.
Read Also: Daily Nation Rejects Larry Madowo’s Weekly Column
Such international media journos often restrain from publishing images of the dead when covering related incidents in America.
Recently, in a hard-hitting opinion piece titled “Africa is doing just fine — it’s the coverage by Internationa media that is behind times”, Larry bashed the western media for always portraying Africa as a continent plagued with war, famine and other calamities.
Larry touched on the positives in Africa beginning with the fastest internet, efficient mobile money transfer systems, ban on plastic bags among other great innovations.
“It is easy to caricature Africa and define it narrowly using its wars, famine, and disease, but that is lazy and misguided. Nobody reduces the whole of Europe to just homelessness, racism, and massive inequality so why should Africa be so easily dismissed?” read part of his article.
Read Also: Larry Madowo In Heated Exchange With CEO, Questions Nation’s Independence
He added: “There is an entire generation of African innovators, doers and trailblazers tackling some of the world’s most intractable challenges using homegrown solutions.”
The article irritated some international media journalists who criticized Larry terming his words offensive.
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