KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 28 (Bernama) -- The establishment of the Malaysian Media Council (MMC) is seen as a significant step towards enabling media practitioners to report freely, without undue pressure or restrictions from external parties.
Vanakkam Malaysia managing director M. Thiaga Rajan expressed confidence that the MMC would enhance the integrity of media practitioners by ensuring that they are overseen by their peers.
“We can deliver more authentic news to the public because people are seeking the truth. With the MMC, this can be prioritised. This is crucial, as the media serves as the fourth pillar in a democratic system, ensuring stronger checks and balances,” he told Bernama.
On Feb 26, the Dewan Rakyat passed the Malaysian Media Council (MMC) Bill 2024, which, among other things, aims to protect media freedom and ensure that the public receives information which is authentic, impartial, and of high integrity.
He also expressed his appreciation to the government for its role in realising the MMC, which has been long anticipated by the media industry. He described it as a government reform in ensuring that media practitioners are the link between the government and the people.
Regarding the BERNAMA (Amendment) Bill 2024, which was also passed on Wednesday, Thiaga Rajan highlighted its importance in empowering digital media practitioners to play a crucial role in delivering accurate and informative content.
He added that technology has evolved, making this amendment timely, as digital media is now an integral part of the broader media ecosystem.
“Vanakkam Malaysia is also a digital media platform, which has been operating since 2003, and we have waited far too long for this recognition,” he said.
He said that Vanakkam Malaysia, which recently began publishing news in Malay, plans to become a Bernama client, to access news from the country’s official news agency.
“The cost of hiring journalists has increased, and there are times when we cannot cover certain locations. In such cases, we can subscribe to Bernama, as we have editors who can handle translations,” he said.
The bill to amend the BERNAMA Act 1967 (Act 780), the first to be made since the act was enacted in 1967, was passed with a majority voice vote, after being debated by eight Members of Parliament.
The bill amends Section 2 of the principal Act, by defining a media organisation as 'any entity carrying on the activity of dissemination of news or news material through newspapers, publications, radio, television, or any other forms of mass communication, including electronic or digital platforms', in line with today's technological and digital boom.
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