YOURSAY | Govt comms team must roll with the punches

YOURSAY | ‘Dealing with criticism comes with the territory.’

Fahmi: Govt comms team 'depressed' by hateful social media comments

BrownJaguar5869: Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil is probably one of the most visible faces of the government after the prime minister, and as government spokesperson, naturally he becomes a punching bag for everything people are unhappy about.

His communications team can put out policy explanations, facts and updates every day, but there is a bigger problem.

Most people now consume news through social media, and social media algorithms don’t necessarily reward accurate or useful information.

They reward engagement. Anger gets engagement. Outrage gets shared. Rage bait travels faster.

A boring but factual explanation of government policy may reach 20,000 people, while one angry, misleading post can reach a million.

Then the algorithm sees what you engage with and feeds you more of the same.

Eventually, your timeline starts looking like everyone in Malaysia thinks the same way you do.

So yes, government communications can and must improve. But we also need to understand that the environment they are communicating in has completely changed.

You are no longer just competing with another political narrative. You are competing with an algorithm that has discovered anger is very good for business.

Drkam: I have to admit, I find it rather strange for a communications minister to say his communications team is “depressed” by hateful comments on social media?

If your job is government communications, dealing with criticism - fair, unfair, nasty or downright ridiculous - comes with the territory.

Governments everywhere must face it. Why should this team get a special exemption?

If I don’t think I can handle a particular job, I simply don’t apply for it. Once you accept the job, you inherit both the perks and the punches.

Previous governments had their critics too - and their communications teams had to defend some pretty indefensible bosses.

So, YB, this isn’t about you or your team feeling comfortable. It’s about doing the job. And if the job is too big for the team - or the PKR advisers - no problem. I’ll happily show you where the exit is.

PurpleMoose5046: Fahmi, being the communications minister in the Madani government with the current crisis going on, it is not easy.

Well, using Gemini AI to try to solve the current complicated issues entailed in Constitution monarchy and the rule of law is not helping.

Your busy boss, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, accompanied by Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail and Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Johari Abdul Ghani away for three to four days in Shanghai for the World Skills Conference 2026 and in Hangzhou for the Sixth Global Digital Trade Expo.

This AI is very busy bringing business for the Madani government. He leaves the home in your good hands instead of Deputy Prime Minister Zahid Hamidi.

Do your best for whatever you can.

PurpleDragon0476: If your communications team is feeling “depressed,” then maybe they shouldn’t have taken jobs in communications.

This is what governments all around the world have to do; why should your staff get special treatment just because of your reformasi failures?

Sealthedeal: Indeed. How many U-turns has this government done?

Bad legislation in the first place. How many promises to their electorate have they kept? How many laws have they passed to suppress freedom of speech?

Now don't bleat at the public response to a government that now uses the authorities to suppress their detractors and those who fight for human rights.

PKR is done, and everyone knows it.

Knucklehead2: Just asking - since your staff seem weighed down, did your team actually engage with that Istanbul outfit, the so‑called “AI ops” company, that got exposed for propping up Anwar with fake accounts and fabricated news?

The same Turkish clown show that Anthropic caught running dashboards of artificial likes and views?

Boboi: I'm sorry, but the Community Communications Department (J-Kom) has done a poor job.

These guys are using methods from the 1980s and 1990s - top-down, patronising, propaganda-ish, one-dimensional and, most nauseatingly, trying to elevate Anwar as the biggest success on the land.

It didn't work for former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak; it certainly won't work for Anwar.

BrownGoose2785: I think Fahmi is right. Even normal netizens feel stressed out when dealing with internet bullies and unreasonable people online.

The staff members tasked with monitoring and replying to these comments are human too; of course they're going to feel the heat and pressure.

Nowadays, there are so many people who just read the headline without reading the actual article.

That's the problem. They might get misinformed, and then post random, irresponsible comments online just to create trouble.

Internet access in Malaysia is so free and open; everyone should appreciate it and use it wisely, right?

OrangeCat19: Social media makes it too easy for people to comment anonymously without checking the facts.

Add organised cybertroopers and political hatred, and the truth gets buried under insults, spin and misinformation.

The result is that factual information is often drowned out. Even genuinely positive developments can be twisted into something negative simply because they come from the opposite political camp.

Criticism is healthy, but when facts no longer matter and emotions run high, it damages public trust and real nation-building. Who loses? All of us.

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