Media Council not just regulator, but key support for local media
MMC pro-tem committee chairman Premesh Chandran said industry players should view the Council's framework as a form of strategic collaboration, rather than merely a regulatory mechanism. He emphasised that its focus should be on empowering the industry to function effectively, rather than solely on punitive measures.
Speaking as a panelist at HAWANA 2025 Media Forum today, he however agrees with the panelist for the media to be accountable for the content it produces and MMC will ensure a fair and balanced measure for a more conducive industry.
'The goal is to help the media industry thrive as it plays its role in informing society, holding the government accountable, and ensuring that the society knowledgeable and well-informed, so that we can make sound decisions about our democracy and policies.
'So, can the Media Council achieve that? That is the ultimate objective, to support the media industry in doing good work while ensuring its long-term sustainability (as) I think the biggest constraint many of us face today is financial (limitations),' he said during the HAWANA 2025 Media Forum titled 'Malaysian Media Council: Regulator or Media Protector?' held here today.
The session was also joined by Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ) executive director Wathshlah G Naidu, Star Media Group senior news editor Philip Golingai and International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilisation, International Islamic University Malaysia (ISTAC-IIUM) Professor Datuk Ahmad Murad Merican.
Moderated by Bernama TV anchor and broadcast journalist Jessy Chahal, the forum were joined by more than 250 journalists, media practitioners, academicians and students.
Also present, Malaysian Press Institute (MPI) president Datuk Yong Soo Heong, MPI chief executive officer Ainol Amriz Ismail, Malaysian National News Agency (Bernama) chief executive officer Datin Paduka Nur-ul Afida Kamaludin and Bernama editor-in-chief Arul Rajoo Durar Raj, who is also the project director for HAWANA 2025.
Sharing the same sentiment, Wathshlah opined that MMC should not function solely as a regulatory body, but also serve as a mechanism to rebuild public trust in the media by promoting media literacy and ethical journalism.
Wathshlah said the Media Council should be seen as a body that balances support and accountability -playing a critical role in ensuring media sustainability while also holding media organisations accountable, not just internally but to the public as well.
She added that while it is essential to help the media industry grow and remain viable, the council must also play a part in upholding standards and ethics. Also, fostering public trust must be central to the council's mandate, as it directly influences how the public engages with media.
'In building the public trust, you're also educating the public so regardless of who considers themselves journalists, it's also critical for the public to know how to make the distinction that what we are listening to or what we are reading is actually reliable content,' she said.
The media council formation has been a long-standing discussion among media stakeholders in Malaysia, aimed at promoting self-regulation and press freedom while improving media standards.
The HAWANA 2025 Forum jointly organised by Bernama and MPI, also serves as an important platform for the pro-tem committee of the MMC to voice their views on the direction of the industry post the approval of the Malaysian Media Council Bill 2024 (MMM 2024) in Parliament last February.
HAWANA 2025, the largest gathering of Malaysian media practitioners, themed 'Journalism in the New Era: Embracing AI, Safeguarding Ethics', is organised by the Ministry of Communications through Bernama as the implementing agency.
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