Media Organisations Must Earn Public Trust

KUALA LUMPUR, June 26 (Bernama) -- Media organisations must continuously earn and preserve public trust in an increasingly crowded information ecosystem dominated by digital content and unverified information, said Karangkraf Media Group Chief Executive Officer Firdaus Hussamuddin.

She said competition within the media industry is no longer confined to media organisations, but now extends to social media platforms, content creators and algorithms competing for public attention.

“In this environment, media relevance can no longer be treated as something permanent. It must be continuously earned through innovation, credibility and a deep understanding of the audience’s needs and expectations,” she said during the Thinkers Forum: Media Evolution and Industry Transformation programme here.

The forum, organised by the Malaysian Press Institute (MPI), also featured veteran journalist Datuk A. Kadir Jasin, TV AlHijrah Chief Executive Officer Namanzee Harris and Vanakkam Malaysia Chief Executive Officer Thiaga Rajan Muthusamy as panellists.

Also present was Malaysian National News Agency (Bernama) Chief Executive Officer Datin Paduka Nur-ul Afida Kamaludin.

Sharing Karangkraf Media Group’s transformation journey, Firdaus said sustainable growth for media organisations depends on diversifying business models, strengthening digital capabilities and embracing innovation without compromising editorial integrity and professional ethics.

“Ultimately, the successful media organisation of the future is not necessarily the one with the most advanced technology, but the one that is able to sustain public confidence in the reports it publishes,” he said.

Meanwhile, Kadir said mastery of artificial intelligence (AI) has become an important new competency for journalists, but stressed that technology cannot replace human judgment, field experience and editorial accountability.

He said AI should serve as a tool to strengthen the journalistic process, while fact-checking and verification must remain the responsibility of journalists.

“AI can help accelerate content production, but determining factual accuracy remains a human responsibility. Information obtained still needs to be verified through authentic and reliable sources rather than accepted blindly,” he said.

Now in its third year, the forum serves as a strategic platform for discourse on the transformation of the media landscape, while exploring the challenges and opportunities shaping journalism in the digital era.

-- BERNAMA