Media must move to thought leadership in AI era, says FMT MD
Rafiq Razali, managing director of the Media Prima Group (left), with FMT's managing director, Azeem Abu Bakar, at D-Conference 2025 on Thursday.
PETALING JAYA : As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to reshape the media landscape, news outlets must evolve into thought leaders to remain relevant and avoid being left behind, says FMT managing director Azeem Abu Bakar.
Speaking at the D-Conference 2025 hosted by the Malaysian Digital Association here yesterday, Azeem said media organisations cannot ignore radical changes in the way content is consumed.
'People increasingly use AI as assistance. They no longer search, they will ask— making citation, not clicks, the new currency of influence,' he said.
'We are heading from a game of 'traffic' to 'thought leadership'.'
Azeem said AI platforms are increasingly relying on original reporting.
'A lot of the outcome of AI actually comes from us, publishers. I write articles, and then you get it from ChatGPT. It could be a battle of who gets cited the most,' he said.
Azeem said FMT was looking to adapt its content strategy to appeal to machine learning models.
He said the increasing use of AI engine optimisation to enhance content and user experiences across various platforms calls for a change in the manner in which content is written.
'AI likes explainers. It likes things in point form,' he said, adding that media outlets must put more structure into its content for better AI consumption.
Other speakers urged caution in embracing AI.
Rafiq Razali, Media Prima's group managing director, raised concerns about intellectual property and brand safety.
'What keeps me up at night is how a lot of the work that's been done by people in my organisation can be used to train large service models without credit,' said Rafiq, citing lawsuits by major media and entertainment companies against AI platforms.
'Sometimes it's good to take a step back (and ask): are we doing the right thing?'
Nik Justin Nik Ariffin.
Nik Justin Nik Ariffin, Head of Group Corporate Communications at Karangkraf, called for the preservation of trust and journalistic integrity.
'The trust is our currency,' he said. 'We must safeguard it carefully.'
Nik Justin noted that publishers now serve two distinct audiences — traditional readers who value depth, and digital natives who prioritise speed.
'Human oversight is essential. Transparency is non-negotiable,' he said.
Diogo Andrade.
Meanwhile, Diogo Andrade, the APAC commercial director at Teads, speaking from an adtech perspective, warned of threats to monetisation and credibility posed by fake websites and auto-generated comment bots.
He said it was important to continue funding trusted journalism to preserve accountability.
'Generative AI producing misinformation will have no consequence. If a journalist does, they can lose their licence,' said Andrade.
Lydia Wang.
Lydia Wang, COO of Star Media Group, summed up the new media equation: trust, structure, ethics — and agency.
'We must be sceptical when we consume content. Do not trust blindly,' she said.
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