Media council to be formed by June - minister

The founding board of the Malaysia Media Council (MMC) is expected to be established by the time the National Journalists’ Day (Hawana) 2025 is observed in June, said Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil.

He said the MMC Bill 2024 was passed in the Dewan Negara today, marking a historic to establishing a more democratic, free, and ethical media landscape.

“The next step is to obtain the royal assent from His Majesty the King before it comes into force. We expect that by Hawana, the founding board of MMC can be formed, and the process of establishing the council can be expedited.

“Alhamdulillah, I believe we will be able to ensure efforts to enhance the credibility of media practitioners, with the MMC itself setting high standards and governance,” he said during his weekly press conference in Putrajaya today.

Fahmi, who is also the government spokesperson, reiterated the government’s commitment to empowering the media industry in Malaysia by safeguarding media freedom while ensuring responsible, accurate, and ethical dissemination of information to the public.

The Bill was passed in the Dewan Rakyat on Feb 26.

The legislation paves the way for the establishment of a self-regulatory body to protect media freedom and uphold journalistic ethics.

This year’s Hawana celebration, to be held in the federal capital, is set to bring together media organisations from across Asean to strengthen ties and cooperation while addressing current challenges in the media industry.

Media practitioners from Asean will be invited to participate in several programmes in conjunction with Malaysia’s Asean chairmanship this year.

- Bernama

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