Journalists Now Expected To Be More Than Just News Reporters

KUALA LUMPUR, June 14 (Bernama) -- If journalists were once considered to have completed their task after filing a report to the editor's desk, technological advances and changes in the media landscape now demand a much broader role than simply reporting the news.

In an increasingly competitive digital environment, journalists no longer serve merely as information gatherers. Instead, they are expected to think as content creators who can identify opportunities, understand audience preferences and produce reports that have both commercial value and audience impact.

New Straits Times (NST) associate editor (Content and Digital) Najmuddin Najib said journalists today must move beyond the basic task of reporting events and constantly seek added value that can be generated from an issue.

"Journalists today can no longer be passive reporters. To remain relevant, we at NST train journalists to look at how an assignment can be expanded from various angles and developed into a broader chain of issues.

"They can no longer simply file a report and assume their job is done. Instead, journalists must think like content creators, constantly looking for opportunities to expand a story and attract readers," he told Bernama in conjunction with National Journalists' Day (HAWANA) 2026.

Drawing on more than two decades of experience in the media industry, he said NST's ability to remain in operation for 181 years would not have been possible if the organisation had relied solely on management to commercialise its news content.

He said technological advancements have also provided various analytical tools that enable media organisations to understand reader behaviour in real time, helping them plan more effective content strategies.

At NST, he said, an analytics platform has been placed at a monitoring centre near the editors' and journalists' workstations, allowing the performance of each report to be monitored live.

"We can now see which stories are attracting readers, which content is receiving less attention and what trends are emerging. This information helps editors and journalists make faster decisions while gaining a better understanding of audience preferences.

"In today's media landscape, we are not merely delivering information. News is also a product that must be marketed to readers," he said.

Meanwhile, Sinar Harian Group editor-in-chief Zamri Rambli said the concept of content creation requires journalists to view news as a valuable asset with its own identity and unique characteristics.

He said journalists must constantly seek story angles that are close to the people and have a direct impact on their lives, in line with the identity and editorial DNA of their respective media organisations.

"Every media organisation has a different DNA. Therefore, we cannot produce reports that are the same as those of other media organisations. Journalists need to think about the added value they can provide to readers.

"What we produce must be close to the people and able to benefit them. That is what differentiates one report from another," he said.

However, Zamri said efforts to nurture creative and entrepreneurial-minded journalists face a major challenge due to the emergence of news portals that copy content from mainstream media organisations for easy profit.

Describing the situation as an unfair business practice, he said media organisations have to bear high operational costs to produce quality content, only for their work to be copied and repackaged using artificial intelligence (AI) technology by irresponsible parties.

"What is worrying is that these portals, which operate with only two or three staff members, are also being trusted to collaborate with ministries. This is based on my own experience during discussions on a project with a ministry last year.

"I was surprised to see representatives of a portal that copied up to 60 Sinar Harian reports a month also receiving advertising support from the ministry," he said.

In this regard, he said the issue of content theft and unethical news practices should be elevated as a key agenda item in discussions at HAWANA and the Malaysian Media Council (MMM) to ensure the sustainability of the industry as a whole.

Scheduled to take place on June 20 at the PICCA Convention Centre @ Arena Butterworth in Penang, HAWANA 2026 will be officiated by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

-- BERNAMA