In a study conducted by a group of academicians, undergraduates from two top Malaysian universities selected online news portal Malaysiakini as the most credible source of political news, in comparison to other media.

azlan The study by Yayasan Hal Ehwal Siswazah (YES) also revealed that Malaysiakini is the most popular online political website, and the one most frequently visited by students at Universiti Malaya (UM) and Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM).

As much as 66.4 percent of 1,009 undergraduates in UM felt Malaysiakini was the most trustworthy, compared with other online news portals - The Malaysian Insider (30.6 percent), Utusan Online (23.6 percent) dan Tranungkite Online (15.7 percent)

It is also the most popular news site among 71.1 percent of the students polled, compared with Utusan (24 percent), The Malaysian Insider (21.2 percent) and mStar Online (19.7 percent).

The same trend was seen in UKM, where as much as 39.4 percent of 1,006 students picked Malaysiakini as most reliable source of political information.

Malaysiakini site most surfed

Utusan Online came in second most credible source among UKM students (31.5 percent), followed by mStar Online (19.4 percent) and PAS organ Harakahdaily (15 percent).

NONE In terms of popularity, more then 50 percent of the undergraduates often surf Malaysiakini website, followed by Utusan Online (almost 40 percent), Harakahdaily and mStar Online (30 percent).

Aside those websites, students from both campuses often visit social network sites Facebook and YouTube , in order to access information on politics.

“Based on preference, the media that most influenced the political views of the respondents are - Facebook , websites, blogs, print paper, radio, TV and Twitter .

“In terms of Internet use or social network sites, majority of undergraduates visit alternative media to source and deliver information, download music and movies and also for entertainment,” reads the study.

It also states UM and UKM students access the Internet and social media between 11 and 12 hours a day.

The survey in UM was conducted by its economic and business campus lecturer Muhammad Asli Mohd Ali, while in UKM, it was done by social sciences and humanities faculty lecturer associate professor Dr Mohd Fuad Mat Jali.

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