Former Bernama editor-in-chief Azman Ujang believes that Paris-based press freedom watchdog Reporters Sans Frontières (RSF) is stuck with "old methodologies" in measuring the degree of freedom enjoyed by the media.

                                                                                   

He said this was perhaps why Malaysia is ranked below countries such as Myanmar and Cambodia.

 

Azman in a forum titled 'Freedom of expression: Role of the media' last night argued that the media landscape in the country had changed quite dramatically over the past few years.

 

"I mean, come on, I don't think Myanmar has Malaysiakini or The Malaysian Insider .

 

"What have they ( Malaysiakini and The Malaysian Insider ) not written about? They have written everything under the sun and got away with it.

 

"Yet, Malaysia is still ranked lower than Myanmar and Cambodia," he lamented at the forum organised by the Chevening Alumni of Malaysia.

 

Malaysia is ranked 147 th , behind Cambodia and Myanmar - 144th and 145th respectively - in the 2014 World Press Freedom Index, an annual survey released by RSF, or Reporters Without Borders.

 

Meanwhile, Azman commended Malaysiakini for it is now widely considered a mainstream media.

 

He also questioned fellow panel speaker Malaysiakini editor-in-chief Steven Gan as to why the latter sought a publication permit for the news portal.

 

According to Gan, it is Malaysiakini’s aim to ensure that its content is made available to every Malaysian, not just those who have access to the Internet.

 

"We also want to the government to recognise that all media organisations have the right to publish," said Gan.

 

The government had last month rejected , for the second time, Malaysiakini's application for a publication permit for a daily newspaper, despite the courts having ruled twice that the news portal has the right to publish.

 

The Home Ministry said the rejection was because the news portal “often causes controversy” by publishing news that could “distress” the people.

 

Living in a ‘news bubble ’

 

Meanwhile, Gan, who is also Malaysiakini co-founder, said the proliferation of news content on the Internet has resulted in the onus increasingly being placed on readers to “separate the wheat from the chaff”.

 

"Instead of relying on journalists and editors, news consumers today will have to do the hard work to determine what they read is true or at least a closer version of the truth," he said.

 

He however argued that the tasks of journalists - in distilling, interpreting and reporting news - were still relevant today as news consumers needed credible sources of information.

 

Commenting on the phenomenon of hyper-personalised news, where readers only read what they want while ignoring others, Gan expressed the worry that news consumers could end up living in their own ‘news bubble’.

 

“I'm not sure how this will affect democracy. Perhaps it's too early to tell.”

 

Asian Broadcasting Network group editor Balan Moses, another speaker at the forum, stressed that the campaign for freedom of expression did not lie with the media alone.

 

"Why can't everyone do it? It's everyone's responsibility and not just the journalists," he said.

 

As for the need of a media council in the country, Moses said the topic had been discussed "to death" but this was always shot down by the "powers that be".

 

He nevertheless believes that a good press council should comprise of all segments of the society, not just media practitioners.

 

"It must be stressed that media owners cannot be dictating in the press council," said Moses whose career with the New Straits Times spanned for more than 30 years.

 

When asked whether journalists today were asking "difficult" questions, Moses said the new generation of journalists was contented to ask the run-of-the-mill questions.

 

"This is because most journalists work for organisations that are sympathetic for the government of the day.

 

"As such, the future of Malaysian journalism lies with these people (online media journalists) and not print media," he said.