Independent media: the vanguard of democracy
Indeed, it has redefined our culture.Especially fascinating is the fact that like it or not, politicians have had to wake up to the reality that old ways of controlling and manipulating information are now obsolete.
As much as the political establishment may lament the loss of those good old days when the only source of news the public had was that which was largely controlled by those who also held the reigns of political power, there remains a deep schism and tension between the old, which are largely the state-controlled outlets, and new media, which are clearly far more democratic, competitive, and diverse.
Obviously, while the old establishment media has sought to make in-roads on tapping into the technologies and formats of the new media, it remains the case that the fundamental principle of monopoly and control, which has been typical of the old media has been rendered less effective and less consequential than ever.
To be sure, that monopoly and control is still relevant; state-controlled media still has a significant impact on shaping the public agenda, manipulating public opinion, and in promoting a particular ideology.
But the new media, which almost by definition have enabled the increased democratisation of society, posses a fundamental challenge for the political establishment. Prepared or not, it presents the establishment with an unavoidable conundrum: how to retain control of information in an increasingly democratised information age?
Contradictory signals
It is in this backdrop that one must interpret recent developments regarding, among other things, the crackdown on Harakah and Suara Keadilan, and the banning of the books by the cartoonist Zunar.
Indeed, these developments remind us all about the continued concerns about political intervention in the media and especially in journalism.
In April 2009, Najib was reported to have backed the idea of a freer state-owned media, where reporting can be done without fear of consequences.
But not long thereafter, we began to confront the fact that the government seemed intent on restricting the reporting of various news stories that might not reflect so favourably on various political figures. How ironic.
Precisely how would one reconcile these two obviously contradictory signals? Of course the cynic might be inclined to insist that the former claims by the prime minister are nothing more than the typical posturing weve come to be accustomed to.
And there might after all be some truth to this particular interpretation.
One year later, the Joshua Wong episode at ntv7 reminded us once again just how far we truly have gotten in the media from being without fear of consequences.
But more than exposing the potential lack of sincerity in such purported claims about wanting to promote a freer media, these contradictory tendencies reveal a fundamental flaw of the system of information control that has prevailed.
Free expression of ideas
That is, the continued presence and influence of the government in the media, and even more critically, the notion of state-owned media, cannot but stifle open inquiry, free debate, and deliberation - the democratic process.
State-owned and controlled media may be with us for the foreseeable future but the exploding popularity and credibility of the more independent outlets prevalent in the new media, which have emerged as a counter-weight to the state-owned forms of media, may be the singl! e most c ritical check on the abuse of power in the country.
Where the credibility of the judiciary and police has been so acutely and systematically compromised, short of the alternative media, there arent other genuinely credible institutions remaining to which one can turn to for keeping the political establishment in check.
State-owned media cannot be anything but a propaganda machine. This is an indisputable fact. A democracy, on the other hand, can only be nourished when the media can openly champion the free expression of ideas.
G Krishnan is a freelance writer who routinely writes online columns about Malaysian affairs.
See What Barisan Nasional Gotta Say?
Comments