Malaysian journalists must be the most idiotic lot if the number of false news, inaccurate reporting and misquotes are to be used as a gauge. There are just too many investigations being carried out on journalists for sensationalising the news and for inciting the readers.

My logic tells me that this is simply not possible unless one of the followings is prevalent:

(i) Our reporters are poor listeners unable to comprehend whatever that are being conveyed;

(ii) Our reporters have evil intentions; they deliberately spin the messages of politicians due to partisan reasons;

(iii) Many politicians are incoherent and unable to express themselves clearly;

(iv) Many politicians love to shoot off at the mouth like loose cannons only to regret later when reality hits them;

(v) There are no confusion and false reporting; politicians just love to bully and prefer the shortest and the easiest way to move out of the hole into which they have dug themselves.

Let’s do some ‘normal’ tests. Is it normal for Malaysian reporters to be poor listeners or weak in languages? I would assume that most reporters are above average in listening and language ability when compared with other Malaysians.

How about some reporters indulging in partisan reporting by deliberately twisting the words of politicians? I must say this is possible but unlikely to happen prevalently. If there are such attempts, I think the mischief could be easier determined and the culprits punished. Surely there are other reporters present who are able to confirm or deny the essence and the content of the news item. Surely there are tape recordings of news items that can be relied on for verification.

How about politicians unable to speak clearly to make themselves understood? Based on my personal observations, there are in fact many politicians who are like that. If due to their own weaknesses which result in misconstrued messages, I guess there is no one else to blame except themselves. Next time, they should learn to speak unequivocally and unambiguously.

Then, there are politicians who love to play to the gallery in the presence of a partisan crowd. They got excited and started saying things that they are not supposed to say. Later, instead of saying sorry, they find the easiest way out - by blaming misquote, misunderstanding and misinterpretation on the reporters. Again, I think it is not difficult to verify if truth is what we are seeking for.