Information Minister Zainuddin Maidin today compared the nation's Internet bloggers, under fire for their outspoken views, to washed-up karaoke singers who have little influence.

Explaining his analogy, the minister said these bloggers are like karaoke singers who take pleasure in their own singing but have no influence although they claimed to have received millions of hits.

He said some might enjoy their "singing", especially those who shared their views but many rejected them because they sang "out of tune" and their views were unacceptable to the majority of the people.

He said some of the bloggers were those who had once received the attention of the mainstream media, but were now rejected.

Because of this, he added, they had to find a new avenue to vent their frustration. However, not many people read their pieces.

"Anyway, I see this development as something positive because with the opportunity to "sing in the karaoke", they can relieve their tension and 'addiction'," he was quoted as saying by Bernama .

"It also provides alternative reading to the public besides making the country more politically matured," he added.

Unwise actions

Zainuddin, or Zam as he is popularly referred to, said mercenary and frustrated bloggers who use blogs for their own interest as well as that of certain groups only served to worsen the situation.

"The unwise actions of some bloggers tarnish the name of professional bloggers who use technology to spread knowledge, academic discussion, interest in specific fields and other matters of interest to the society," he said.

Zainuddin said that although there were numerous bloggers, the mainstream newspapers would ultimately hold sway over the majority of the people.

"In fact most of the bloggers hope to be quoted by the mainstream media because they believe that the media can attract readers," he said.

In recent weeks, the authorities have taken action against two bloggers igniting fears of a crackdown in the Malaysian cyberspace.

Opposition party PKR webmaster and blogger Nathaniel Tan was detained for five days over postings in his blog which were said to be in violation of the Official Secrets Act.

Following this, Raja Petra Kamarudin, the webmaster of the Malaysia Today political blog, was grilled by the police for eight hours after Umno filed a police report against him.

He was accused of insulting the King and Islam, a charge which he has denied.

Certain quarters have claimed that the actions are part of a concerted effort to silence online dissent as numerous blogs feature allegations of corruption and abuse of power involving top government officials.

See 4-min video 'Mahathir on bloggers'