Only 41% of Malaysians trust the news they read, according to Reuters Institute's 2021 Digital News Report.
Kini, Awani, Star top online reach.
Most trusted news brands of brands included in the survey: Awani, Star, TV9.
Only 16% pay for online news.
reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/digital-news-r…
Kini, Awani, Star top online reach.
Most trusted news brands of brands included in the survey: Awani, Star, TV9.
Only 16% pay for online news.
reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/digital-news-r…
The tiny 16% of Malaysians who pay for online news is quite depressing.
I’ve been toying with the idea of a pay wall for CodeBlue, especially since we frequently produce analyses that’s not found in mainstream media.
But this may cut the readership for our niche publication.
I’ve been toying with the idea of a pay wall for CodeBlue, especially since we frequently produce analyses that’s not found in mainstream media.
But this may cut the readership for our niche publication.
Malaysians in general just don’t really care about the media or see the critical role that journalists play in reporting what’s really happening on the ground.
Hence the apathy towards press freedom or freedom of speech.
And reluctance to pay for news.
Hence the apathy towards press freedom or freedom of speech.
And reluctance to pay for news.
Not much public demand for freedom of information either.
So the press is left to the whims of the State that decides what information the public can or can’t receive.
Perhaps it’s due to the media oftentimes parroting newsmakers without really fact-checking or challenging them
So the press is left to the whims of the State that decides what information the public can or can’t receive.
Perhaps it’s due to the media oftentimes parroting newsmakers without really fact-checking or challenging them
So Malaysians don’t see the value in paying for “news” that’s a reproduction of statements that can be accessed directly from newsmakers’ social media pages.
But the media may be used to being stenographers due to decades of State control and curbs on dissent.
Chicken and egg.
But the media may be used to being stenographers due to decades of State control and curbs on dissent.
Chicken and egg.
In the West, journalists are treated as subject matter experts.
But in Malaysia, they’re seen as stenographers who often just ask questions based on the controversy of the day, or asking a newsmaker to respond to another newsmaker.
But in Malaysia, they’re seen as stenographers who often just ask questions based on the controversy of the day, or asking a newsmaker to respond to another newsmaker.
At CodeBlue, I try to ensure that my team is up to speed on Covid developments so that we are subject matter experts who can fact-check and challenge anyone, including scientists and politicians — rather than blindly reproducing what they say.
Anyway, I guess this situation will persist for a while, until we get a govt that truly embraces freedom of speech and is unafraid of criticism and dissent, which I have yet to see in any major political party.
C’est la vie.
C’est la vie.
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