Frank Idewa, a citizen journalist. [Photo/ Frank]
Born and raised in Likoni, Mombasa County, Frank Idewa always had a passion for writing.
However, it was not until he joined campus that he discovered he had the zeal for journalism.
After clearing his High School education at the Starehe Boys Centre, Frank went on to pursue Bachelors of Commerce in Finance at the Technical University of Kenya (TUK).
At the same time, he was doing a second degree in Biochemistry at the University of Nairobi. This is when his passion for online journalism was born.
Frank recalls how a friend introduced him to Hivisasa.com, a county news website, and since then, he has never looked back.
“I was complaining to my friend at the University about how broke I was and needed a source of income. That’s when he explained to me how I can make money by submitting articles to Hivisasa,” said Frank.
Though he was a bit skeptical at first, Frank decided to try out his luck and submitted his first article.
“The first articles I submitted were all published which motivated me to submit several others in order to make more money.”
Having a passion for sports, he keenly followed the Kenya Premier League (KPL) and submitted football articles.
It wasn’t long until he discovered he also had an interest in politics.
Being an electioneering period, he took advantage of the political wave in the country and did research on different political figures in the Coast region, which enables him to write analytical pieces which attract a lot of readership.
Apart from the standard amount paid per article, Frank also earns extra money through the bonuses awarded to writers whose articles attract a lot of page views.
Writers can earn up to Sh1,500 per article in bonuses.
With his new found passion in online media, Frank is currently pursuing a Postgraduate Diploma in Journalism at Moi University.
“If it were not for HiviSasa, I would not have discovered my passion for journalism. This is the field I would like to pursue and that’s why I decided to go back to school,” he said.
He challenged his fellow youth not to focus on the high rate of unemployment and take advantage of opportunities available online to earn an honest living.