KUALA LUMPUR: The Dewan Negara today passed the Malaysian Media Council (MMC) Bill 2024, which aims, among others, to pave the way for a more democratic, independent and ethical media in Malaysia.
The bill, tabled for the second reading by Deputy Communications Minister Teo Nie Ching, was passed by a majority voice vote after being debated by 17 Senators.
When winding up the debate, Teo said a code of conduct must be approved at the MMC’s annual general meeting to allow the council to establish its own regulations without government interference.
“We want to empower the media council. We believe it can self-regulate, and therefore, we will grant it the authority to approve its own code of conduct, including procedures for handling grievances,” she said.
Teo added that the MMC Committee would have the authority to invite any individual, whether a member or non-member, to participate in its investigations.
“If the committee finds that a news report is unethical, it can suspend the membership of the individual concerned.
“If a suspension is deemed insufficient and a more serious action is needed, it may recommend the Royal Malaysia Police to take action or the Information Department to suspend the individual’s media accreditation card,” she said.
Teo explained that the bill provides for two government representatives on the MMC Board, as it is a body established through government legislation and is accountable to the Communications Ministry.
“Therefore, it is appropriate for the government to have representation on the council for government matters, and as stipulated in the bill, these representatives must be from the media industry, such as RTM and Bernama,” she said.
Teo stressed that those appointed to represent the government must come from the media industry and not merely serve as government agents.
“I believe their involvement in MMC will have a positive impact, and I would like to emphasise that there are 21 members on the council, meaning the government representatives make up only a small fraction. I trust the other members will do their best to ensure no government interference.
“If the two government representatives propose any motion or do something that threatens media freedom, I believe the 19 other council members will not endorse such an initiative. We believe in the wisdom of the majority, which is a core principle of democracy,” she said.
In her winding-up speech, Teo acknowledged that the Bill was not a silver bullet for resolving arising issues, including fake news. She emphasised that the government, including the Communications Ministry, is undertaking various efforts to curb the problem.
She said the ministry, through the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), introduced the artificial intelligence fact-check assistant or AIFA on Jan 28 to help the public quickly and easily verify information.
“Since its launch until Feb 23, the AIFA chatbot has processed 57,782 messages, averaging 2,140 messages per day. Additionally, there is the MyCheck Malaysia portal under Bernama, while under the MCMC, there is the Sebenarnya.my portal, both serving as fact-check platforms.
“We acknowledge that tackling fake news is a complex challenge for the government. However, various initiatives have already been implemented, and we welcome suggestions on how we can further improve efforts to address this issue,“ she said.
Regarding efforts to enhance Bernama’s performance on the international stage, Teo said that the news agency has established collaborations with international news agencies such as Anadolu and China Media Group that help Bernama stay updated on the latest global industry practices, ensuring its relevance and competitiveness.
According to Teo, Bernama has long operated globally, establishing correspondent bureaus in Jakarta, Indonesia; Manila, the Philippines; Bangkok, Thailand; and Singapore as early as the 1970s.
Besides that, she said the news agency is a member of several international news agencies, including the Organisation of Asia-Pacific News Agencies (OANA), which comprises 41 news agencies from 33 countries.
“Bernama also has dedicated news segments for the Chinese and Tamil communities, with a Mandarin News Desk and broadcasts of Mandarin News and Tamil News on Bernama TV.
“We want to ensure that Bernama can disseminate accurate information to all segments of society in Malaysia,“ she added.
Act 780 was enacted to establish and incorporate Bernama specifically as the national news agency to disseminate news throughout the country.
Since its establishment, Bernama has been playing an important role in ensuring the dissemination of information and news reporting on government policies is implemented effectively, in addition to being the main source of reference for local and international media organisations.
