A journey of a thousand miles begin with a single step and for State House Spokesperson Kanze Dena and a group of other high ranking media personalities, the first step was taken at KBC.
In some instances, the personalities joined the national broadcaster as interns and throughout the years, have risen up the ranks in the industry and charted brands of their own.
Here are five media stars who kicked off their careers at KBC
1. Kanze Dena
Before Kanze Dena's name became synonymous with Swahili news bulletins for roughly two decades, the former news anchor was once an intern at KBC wondering how she would climb up the ladder.
Kanze was first hired as an intern at Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC) radio station as a Swahili newsreader before she transitioned to KBC TV to deliver the 7 pm news beside Badi Muhsin.
In an interview in 2019, the State House spokesperson disclosed that Muhsin had played a pivotal career in the advancement of her career.
"Apparently, it was not hard to report news at four in the evening. The challenge was when I was paired with Badi Muhsin for the 7 pm news," stated Kanze.
Kanze stayed in KBC for close to five years before she left for Citizen TV in 2007, where she was paired with Lulu Hassan.
Kanze, in 2018, moved on from the media industry and is acting as the Statehouse spokesperson and head of the Presidential Strategic Communication Unit (PSCU).
2. Churchil Ndambuki
Churchill Show, with its cultic following, has shattered ratings across the country, so much that it is hard to imagine its founder, Daniel Ndambuki, starting out as a regular comedian.
The comedian started his craft in 2000 by playing a drunk character on Kisulisuli on KBC.
"The role I managed to get was a significant but small role as Bwana Asava who drank chang'aa and got blind from it.
"I came to KBC in the year 2000 immediately after college and was lucky to be picked on the show," he divulged claiming that the station used to have auditions where any talented person could come to the Kenya National Theatre to showcase their skills.
The comedian later started his hit NTV show that has provided employment to hundreds of Kenyans and helped create other brands such as Eric Omondi.
3. Monica Kiragu
Many people might not know who Monica Kiragu is but they sure love the JKLive Show hosted by Jeff Koinange, which she directs.
Kiragu started out at the Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC) back in 2002, before joining Citizen TV in 2012.
She worked at KBC for 10 years and rose through the ranks to become the head of news production. At Citizen TV, Kiragu is the head of directors.
4. Linda Ogutu
She is regarded as one of the long-serving KTN anchors with her sassy voice and confident on-screen poise. However, not many people know that she acquired her head start at KBC starting 2004.
The anchor left the station and joined NTV in 2012 but her star shone the brightest when she moved to KTN where she was once referred to as the most valuable news anchor owing to her grasp of the queen's language as well as her impeccable interviewing skills.
5. Beatrice Marshall
Beatrice Marshall has probably escaped Kenyans' mind since she joined the international media house, China Global TV Network (CGTN), formerly known as CCTV.
Regardless, the screen beauty ruled the screens in the '90s and early 2000s after starting out at KBC where she was known as Beatrice Turkwen.
She later joined KTN where she spent eight years anchoring the KTN News Prime bulletin alongside a raft of other programmes including Agenda 5 and Diplomatic Perspective.
She also rose through the ranks to become the Deputy Managing Editor in KTN before departing for CGTN.
