Former Citizen TV senior editor Patrick Mathangani on Monday, March 13, joined Doha-based media giant Al Jazeera as a deputy program editor.
In an update on his LinkedIn profile, Mathangani also announced his departure from CGTN Africa where he worked as a news producer.
The seasoned journalist was also elated about his new assignment in an international newsroom.
“Congratulate Patrick for starting a new position as Deputy Program Editor at Al Jazeera Media Network,” a LinkedIn update read.
Mathangani is a veteran journalist. He had a stint at Standard Newspaper, before joining Royal Media Services’ Citizen TV as a news editor.
He manned the desk at Citizen TV with the likes of Dan Korir, who is currently at KTN News, Nixon Korir who was then the Managing Editor before joining the Interior Ministry and Abdi Osman. Mathangani was fondly known as ‘man’ among his peers and colleagues.
It was also during his stint at RMS that Farida Karoney, was the Chief Operating Officer, before being appointed Lands Minister by former President Uhuru Kenyatta.
Mass Lay-offs
In October 2016, Mathangani was, however, laid off among over 100 employees from various departments who were offloaded as part of the company’s restructuring plan.
Notable names such as Terryanne Chebet, Kirigo Ng’arwa and Abdi Osman were let-go.
Months after he was fired, however, Mathangani was recalled to head Citizen Extra-a news programme that the media house introduced in the run-up to the 2017 General Election.
The programme, which consisted of a series of news bulletins, aired on a daily basis from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm.
Years later, Mathangani joined CGTN Africa on January 2020 as a news producer for a period of three years and three months.
His move to Al Jazeera comes amidst tectonic shifts in the media industry that have seen mass layoffs and the departure of seasoned journalists to pursue other endeavours.
