According to Rahmat (2008), the emergence of online journalism has significantly changed Malaysia’s mass media setting. Today, Malaysia is estimated to have about 10 million Internet users which is evidence to the evolution of our social intellect. As an alternative way in reporting news, online journalism plays a role in nation building as it is the most direct and simple channel for people to voice their opinions. However, there are several reasons why online journalism should be controlled.
First, while having a strong subjective voice is essential, it should not be invalidated of self-reflection as opinion should always lie rooted in fact. For example, one of Malaysia's most prominent bloggers and a high-profile critic of the government have gone on trial for sedition. Raja Petra Kamarudin, who is already being held under
Malaysia's Internal Security Act (ISA) wrote a post on his Web site known as Malaysia Today which he purportedly implied that Malaysia's Prime Minister, Najib Tun Razak, was involved in the high-profile murder of a young Mongolian woman known as Altantuya Shaariibuu. However, Raja Petra denied the allegation and supporters have criticized the government as they said the government attempt to gag critics and suppress freedom of speech. Nevertheless, online journalism should be truthful and accurate as well as credible.
In addition, online journalism forfeited objectivity for propaganda as to substituted judgment for fact. Online journalists seem to write about sensitive issues freely as they are the reporter as well as editor and this cannot be widely accepted by the public. The insensitivity in some journalists tends to show in their writing thus illustrating how unethical they are. As an example, Jeff Ooi who is the _Crowd-WCK_0081.jpg)
Member of Parliament for Jelutong in the 12th Malaysian Parliament called Mohd Razali Abdullah, a Penang Municipal councillor, an Islamic extremist. While Razali is a member of Jemaah Islah Malaysia (JIM), the organisation itself is a registered body and has a close tie with Ooi's party's youth wing, Penang DAP Socialist Youth (Dapsy). It gave the notion that Syariah Law is extreme and Muslims are extremists. Such remarks explained how insensitive and somewhat how uneducated the journalist was.
Furthermore there is no space for fictionalizations in online journalism as it is not enough to simply claim to be fair and balanced. For instance, former theSun associate editor Ng Kee Seng sued The Malaysian Insider consultant editor Leslie Lau over a supposedly libellous article. Besides, Lau's story does not name any sources, nor does he explain why his sources cannot be exposed. Ng's letter of demand said Lau's article implied that he was a "person of low moral character and who is willing to be a tool of politicians" as well as Lau's description of him as an "undistinguished veteran journalist" when he had been a journalist for 30 years in various publications. Lau also described Ng as someone whom The Star editors had "little respect for", although his report did not justify how he reached that conclusion.
In a nutshell, online journalists must be responsible for what they write on the internet as there are laws on defamation and sedition. According to the Prime Minister, "Just because you operate from cyberspace, it does not absolve you from having those laws applied to you." Online journalists should practice self restraint and responsibility in what they write, as there are readers that are influenced by them because as a nation, we develop as we are exposed to media diversity.
References:
First, while having a strong subjective voice is essential, it should not be invalidated of self-reflection as opinion should always lie rooted in fact. For example, one of Malaysia's most prominent bloggers and a high-profile critic of the government have gone on trial for sedition. Raja Petra Kamarudin, who is already being held under
Malaysia's Internal Security Act (ISA) wrote a post on his Web site known as Malaysia Today which he purportedly implied that Malaysia's Prime Minister, Najib Tun Razak, was involved in the high-profile murder of a young Mongolian woman known as Altantuya Shaariibuu. However, Raja Petra denied the allegation and supporters have criticized the government as they said the government attempt to gag critics and suppress freedom of speech. Nevertheless, online journalism should be truthful and accurate as well as credible._Crowd-WCK_0081.jpg)
Member of Parliament for Jelutong in the 12th Malaysian Parliament called Mohd Razali Abdullah, a Penang Municipal councillor, an Islamic extremist. While Razali is a member of Jemaah Islah Malaysia (JIM), the organisation itself is a registered body and has a close tie with Ooi's party's youth wing, Penang DAP Socialist Youth (Dapsy). It gave the notion that Syariah Law is extreme and Muslims are extremists. Such remarks explained how insensitive and somewhat how uneducated the journalist was.Furthermore there is no space for fictionalizations in online journalism as it is not enough to simply claim to be fair and balanced. For instance, former theSun associate editor Ng Kee Seng sued The Malaysian Insider consultant editor Leslie Lau over a supposedly libellous article. Besides, Lau's story does not name any sources, nor does he explain why his sources cannot be exposed. Ng's letter of demand said Lau's article implied that he was a "person of low moral character and who is willing to be a tool of politicians" as well as Lau's description of him as an "undistinguished veteran journalist" when he had been a journalist for 30 years in various publications. Lau also described Ng as someone whom The Star editors had "little respect for", although his report did not justify how he reached that conclusion.
In a nutshell, online journalists must be responsible for what they write on the internet as there are laws on defamation and sedition. According to the Prime Minister, "Just because you operate from cyberspace, it does not absolve you from having those laws applied to you." Online journalists should practice self restraint and responsibility in what they write, as there are readers that are influenced by them because as a nation, we develop as we are exposed to media diversity.
References:
- Agencies. (2008 , October 06). Malaysia blogger goes on trial. Retrieved February 20, 2010, from Al-Jazeera: http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia-pacific/2008/10/20081067323419616.html
- Keong, L. M. (2007, March 06). Court cases unite M'sian bloggers. Retrieved February 20, 2010, from ZDNet Asia: http://www.zdnetasia.com/news/internet/0,39044908,61994206,00.htm
- Rahmat, G. (2008). Online Journalism on Malaysian Socio Political Landscapes. Shah Alam: University Publication Centre (UPENA).
- Wikipedia. (2010, February 15). Raja Petra. Retrieved February 20, 2010, from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raja_Petra#Malaysia_Today
- Wikipedia. (2010 , January 14). Jeff Ooi. Retrieved February 20, 2010, from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Ooi#Lawsuit
- Yapp, E. (2007, July 31). Popular Malaysian blogger turns politician. Retrieved February 20, 2010, from ZDNet Asia: http://www.zdnetasia.com/news/internet/0,39044908,62030111,00.htm
Posts
0 comments:
Post a Comment