The Standard has landed itself in trouble over a front-page headline on renowned TV news anchor Kanze Dena who is set to take up a new job as Deputy Spokesperson at State House and Deputy Head of the Presidential Strategic Communications Unit (PSCU).
On Wednesday, the daily splashed a photo of Dena alongside the headline 'Coast TV Girl Uhuru's New Spokesperson'.
The headline angered many Kenyans online who questioned why Standard would seemingly reduce Dena's career achievements to 'Coast TV Girl'.
"Hey @StandardKenya, Ms Kanze Dena is an accomplished journalist in a major station. Not a "Coast TV girl”. Shame on you," wrote one Ken Opalo.
[caption caption="The Standard front page on 06/06/2018"]
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Another user known as Mike Rono posed: "@StandardKenya @KanzeDena is not just a "Coast girl", she is one of the best in the industry. Why reduce her to just a "Coast girl" as if she is just some socialite who speaks Swahili?"
"A seasoned professional journalist reduced to a Coast Girl . Wrong choice of words," noted Mohammed Hersi.
The 38-year old was born in Nairobi but raised in Mombasa as she has revealed in past interviews.
After studying Journalism and Mass Communication, she landed an internship at the Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC).
Her talent stood out and she soon rose to become a Kiswahili newsreader on the same station.
It was during this period that many Kenyans got to know Dena.
She eventually moved on to Citizen TV where she hosted the popular show Nipashe on weekends alongside Lulu Hassan.
At State House, Dena will be in charge of digital, messaging, research, branding and press.
Her appointment was celebrated by members of the media fraternity as well as Kenyans who had grown accustomed to seeing her on their screens.
The move is part of a bigger shake-up in the executive as President Uhuru Kenyatta seeks to have a firmer grip in his second term.
The fate of the Dennis Itumbi PSCU team remains unknown with recent reports indicating that their duties had been taken over by Chief of Staff Nzioka Waita amid concerns on their messaging on the President.
They are also no longer based at State House, with some working from Deputy President William Ruto's Harambee House Annex office.
[caption caption="Some of the comments shared online"]
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