Recently, Homeboyz Radio journalist Talia Oyando shared a video showing her in the studio with her sleepy son in a broadcast of a radio reggae show she runs till late in the night.
It attracted mixed reactions from netizens with many commending her for the motherly love but the details are hidden in the struggles of taking care of a toddler while working as a busy media personality.
This hard reality coupled with the digital wake is taking a serious toll on NTV's Jane Ngoiri in her struggle with being a responsible mum.
The Swahili news anchor and reporter who's always managed to keep her family life a secret recently opened up on how she's having challenges handling her son's addiction to digital gadgets.
Ngoiri's son Amir is digitally hooked and cannot be at peace until he gets access to a tablet where he plays online games and cartoons.
In a recent post on her social media, Ngoiri appears to have been allowing Amir to use the tablet until recently when she noticed he was becoming addicted to the gadget.
"We live in the era of smartphones, tablets and laptops; our kids see us use these gadgets. Now I would put cartoons for Amir on the tab...but now no more tab or phone until further notice," she wrote on her Yooying page.
She asked other users on the platform to share their experience and ideas on how they handle their kids in the event they turn out to be gadget addicts.
"Talk of addiction....waking up and straight away looking for the tab and crying....how do you strike the balance? Technology and Children. Talk to me," inquired Ngoiri.
One user Norah Rain shared that she faces a similar problem with her child.
Norah's child is only 16 months but already displays signs of addiction. She argues that parents cannot completely deny children exposure to devices but should limit their access for the underage.
"I have the same issue with my 16-month-old. The tantrums and the addictive behaviour have made me stop giving him my phone or tablet. That said I am aware we can’t completely forbid these gadgets but I think especially for the younger kids they really do not add value as such," admits Norah in a response to Ngoiri's post.
Some parents like a Yooying user, Bui Bui, have opted to set rules and a schedule guiding the use and access to digital devices in their house.
The user advises: "Avoid too much time with electronics and put a limit on it. My general rule with electronics in our household. NO TV/Phone/iPad Monday to Friday.
"It's only on weekends and even then it’s limited. When he(child) wakes up Saturday and Sundays there is no access to electronics in the morning," she guided.
The parent allows her kids to use a phone only from noon until 6:00 PM and warns that she had learned that it is proven that too much screen time for kids at a young age interferes with their concentration and creative thinking.
The NTV news anchor is married to Abdillahi Hussein and they have been living as husband and wife since 2015.
Here is her photo in 2016 while at the NTV studios:
