Eastleigh Voice
Kenyan community press, Somali-Kenyan perspective
Background
The Eastleigh Voice began production in February 2024 following months of planning by Kamukunji MP Yusuf Hassan Abdi — a former journalist and longtime United Nations official before entering parliament in 2011 — and a coalition of Somali-Kenyan business figures. The outlet describes itself as Kenya's first newspaper explicitly championing the interests of the Somali community, which numbers more than 2.5 million people in the country. At launch the outlet aggressively recruited talent from Kenya's two dominant media groups, poaching crime reporters and correspondents from Nation Media Group's Daily Nation and digital editors from Standard Media Group, giving it a more professionally staffed newsroom than typical startup outlets. Its managing editor is reported to work from the Eastleigh neighborhood under a low public profile. Coverage spans national Kenyan politics, business, health, education, and sport alongside Somali diaspora community stories, Horn of Africa affairs, and local Eastleigh trade and commerce news. The outlet's founding connection to an active MP is its most notable structural feature, as it blurs the line between political patronage and independent journalism; no major editorial scandals have been publicly documented as of mid-2026.
Sources
- Somali Newspaper Run By MP Which Poached Nation, Standard Journalists – Viral Tea Ke
- Somalis launch their own newspaper, 'The Eastleigh Voice,' and go on a talent-poaching spree – sauce.co.ke
- The Eastleigh Voice – Breaking News Kenya, Africa and World
- Yusuf Hassan Abdi – Wikipedia
- Eastleigh Voice: Contact Information, Journalists, and Overview – Muck Rack
- Asmali Media – Home
Profile compiled 2026-08-23; refreshed when ownership, funding, or the administration changes.