Abstract:
- Liberalization of radio airwaves in Kenya led
to a shift in language use in Kenyan FM radio stations
unlike before when broadcasters used English
exclusively. As a result of this, many radio stations have
adopted the use of sheng and code switching as program
presentation styles as a communication strategy to
enhance their listenership. Kenya being a multilingual
society with so many languages it therefore means that
code switching is inevitable. Sheng thrives on code
switching. Currently, sheng is like the first language to
most youths both in urban and rural areas and its
influence is now felt across Kenya’s social strata. The use
of sheng and code switching inKenya has influenced
greatly the way other languages are acquired, learnt and
even used especially in radio stations and in the
educational sector.For instance, most Kiswahili scholars
have blamed sheng for undermining the learning and
mastery of Kiswahili and English in the educational
sector. The objective of this study was to analyze the use
of sheng and code switching as a style in radio stations
and its effects on Kiswahili in Kenya.This study used
Register Analysis Theory as expounded by Halliday
(1978) to interpret the use of sheng and code switching in
selected programs. The units of analysis in this study
were sheng lexemes and code-switching linguistic
features as used in radio program conversations and
shows aired in Radio Citizen, Radio Maisha and Radio
KBC. Data was analyzed qualitatively by coding every
sheng lexeme and code-switching linguistic features used
and then the negative effects to Kiswahili language were
discussed. The study revealed that the use of sheng and
co-switching as program presentation styles in radio
stations has a negative effect on Kiswahili language
because they are mostly used as a communication
strategy to enhance listenership in radio stations.
Keywords:- Effects, Styles, Radio, Listenership, CodeSwitching, Sheng, Presentation
