Media scanning: Sunday columnists

Catch of the Day. This Sunday, the 'Catch of the Day' must go to The Malay Mail editor, Akhirudin 'Rocky' Attan, who wrote in NST's Nuances:

Not that I ever thought those journalists of ours were not brave. I know all the journalists with Media Malaysia (JMTM?), some extremely well. [...]

They are not cowards but I also know that they are not the bravest people on earth. And they are not ashamed to tell you that they have fear in their hearts, too. [...]

For the Media Malaysia members whose courage has been questioned by some tough-talking politicians and fellow journalists (after it was reported that some of them wanted to return home following the abduction of Malaysian journalists near Baghdad), [...] Take photographer Anuar Hashim, one of the three journalists who survived the abduction, and political commentator Shamsul Akmar, who was condemned repeatedly by a certain Cabinet minister who was unhappy with an article the journalist wrote from Baghdad.

Instead of sticking to their brief (which was to go to Baghdad to report and take pictures and stay out of trouble), the two NST journalists also let their hearts go.

Little Yasmin Wa’adi, who lost both legs and a brother, is in Malaysia because Anuar and Shamsul thought they had to — could — do something for the poor girl.

Wouldn't it be fair to also give a mention to JMTM chef de mission Ahmad A. Talib for having played a part in bringing Ya Yasmin to Malaysian headlines?

Other pieces that I read this morning:

The Op-Ed Pages. Both Star executive editor Wong Chun Wai and NST assistant political editor Shamsul Akmar write on the looming gerenal election.

Shamsul Akmar: NGOs and the polls game
On the one hand, the Election Commission says non-governmental organisations registered under the Societies Act can contest in the next general election, provided they register with the EC. On the other, Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said NGOs should not contest under the banner of their organisation but their members could do so individually. His deputy Abdullah Ahmad Badawi echoed the sentiment.

As in previous elections, most of the NGOs that threw their weight behind political parties do not subscribe to their ideologies. But they did it on the ground of better-the-political-devil-they-know. At the same time, most political parties are aware NGOs, given their small scope of causes, will never pose a threat to their existence.

Wong Chun Wai: Message goes out – get ready for polls
Over the past few weeks, the Prime Minister and his deputy have been dropping hints to Barisan component leaders to gear up for the elections. At the opening of the MIC general assembly, Dr Mahathir Mohamad told Barisan parties to resolve their internal bickering, if they have any.

MCA leaders would have to seriously examine their priorities, as well as that of Barisan, as the clock ticks away. They have to prove to the Chinese community that they can place the people’s interest first and that message would have to be emphasised at the general assembly.

The feud in the MCA has been a fight over party and government positions – nothing else. It is clear that the patience of Barisan elders is running thin and the MCA leaders must resolve their differences now.

Editorials. The NST runs an interesting piece: Candidature for sale?
In Malaysian politics, lobbying carries a narrow and perverse meaning.

We are referring to the peculiar brand of lobbyists in national politics. These are the people — mostly aspiring Yang Berhormat — who are quick to echo the views expressed by the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister, but they do little to champion economic and social justice issues. [...]

Although lobbying within bounds is acceptable, backroom politics need not be characterised by back-stabbing, wayang kulit and poison-pen letters. Apart from money politics, our political culture is tainted by the poison-pen letters — a practice increasingly seen in the MCA — which are nothing more but receptacles of conspiratorial evil against some national leaders and against one another. Any complaint of abuse of power against the leaders should be lodged with the authorities, not cowardly composed in unsigned epistles.

Rather than contributing to an unhealthy political culture, Umno and the BN components should engage with the grassroots and stabilise party membership and national support. More importantly, they should go beyond the present efforts in creating a framework to engage with the electorate. There is no single bullet solution to purge the BN of its inner contaminants. We believe the solution comes in the form of a wide-ranging and comprehensive reassessment of all aspects of its political framework and culture.

If you have not reached a fatigue level on meritocracy, Meritocracy may not be the best but it still breeds more good than ill by NST's Weekend Guest, lawyer Loong Caesar, and Bombing court of public opinion by Star's associate editor Bunn Negara are two good reads.

You won'y miss much if you did not read Sunday Star's editorial on anti-porn staregies, Munir Majid on problem-solving ala SARS-management, Ahmad A. Talib on US travel advisory on Malaysia, and Awang Selamat on SARS, UMNO-politics, conspiracy theory related to The Economist.

I admit this is my bias over this Sunday's reading list.

NY Times: Minority report

Continuing the Blair saga. The questions rival journalists asked about the Jayson Blair saga is this: Did Blair’s race play a role in his treatment?

New York Times executive editor Howell Raines has finally answered the big question May 14, admitting he gave Blair, a black reporter, “one chance too many.”

“Our paper has a commitment to diversity and by all accounts he appeared to be a promising young minority reporter. I believe in aggressively providing hiring and career opportunities for minorities….Does that mean I personally favored Jayson? Not consciously. But you have a right to ask if I, as a white man from Alabama, with those convictions, gave him one chance too many by not stopping his appointment to the sniper team. When I look into my heart for the truth of that, the answer is yes.”

Raines made his stand in a town-hall-style meeting between New York Times employees and the newspaper's management about the Jayson Blair scandal. The unprecedented meeting was held at the Loews Astor Plaza Theatre, and reported - almost buried - on Page A31 of NYT, May 15.

Read the intrigues in this story by NY Times media writer Jacques Steinberg: Editor of Times Tells Staff He Accepts Blame for Fraud

But Washington Post's Howard Kurtz has a different perspective: To the Editors: How Could This Happen?

Raines said he would not resign as the newspaper's executive editor, but acknowledged that many reporters view him as "inaccessible" and "arrogant," and vowed to improve the newsroom climate.

This blog is intended for the reading pleasure of editors in Malaysian press. They are the vanguards who will continue to uphold our journalistic veracity and hallmarks as they have been holding up very well in the past.

Media frauds and post-scandal profits

Scary but true. More to The New York Times' sacking of Jayson Blair who the paper claimed to have 'committed frequent acts of journalistic fraud', including stealing material from other newspapers, falsifying stories, inventing quotes and lying about his whereabouts.

The guy is is taking steps to cash in on the scandal. He has hired literary agency David Vigliano Associates to explore book and TV deals. Daily News New York said Blair has been approached by Ian Rae, the seasoned tabloid TV producer who created "A Current Affair.", who offered him a TV project.

Turning tarnished journalistic veracity into post-scandal profits is not new in the US.

Five years ago, journalist Stephen Glass ('I lied for esteem') was sacked by The New Republic for falsified reporting. He has just come out with a novel published by Simon & Schuster, a Viacom company. The book is called "The Fabulist".

Subject matter? It's about a journalist with questionable ethics!

Malaysiakini links to Screenshots

Many thanks! Malaysiakini has put a frontpage link to this blog starting today. The URL: www.malaysiakini.com/jeffooi/.

A reader from Melbourne, Francis Foo, first made the proposition to Steven Gan, and the Editor has given his consent.

The immediate benefit is that Malaysiakini, with its substantial captured audience, will drive a lot of traffic to this blog.

Admittedly, gaining more eyeballs is a boon, but to put up with higher expectation of a wider audience will be a challenge.

Nevertheless, in the absence of blogs sponsored by mainstream media in Malaysia - in the likes of MSNBC, Guardian - it will surely help in expanding the blogosphere beyond Ooh Yeoh and Jeff Ooi and beyond Malaysiakini in the near future.

Please email me if you think I have said things wrongly. I am ready to eat humble pie and have eggs on my face if I boo-boo.

P/S: There will be light blogging in the next few days. I am travelling.

TEST 4:
May 17: World Telecommunications Day

The world has changed, and is still changing drastically. I had a conversation with Yap Lih Huey of Star's BizWeek last week in conjunction with World Telecommunications Day tomorrow.

I shared with her some of my reflections on the convergent technologies that have totally changed our lives - private and business. I also talked about MCMC's illusive Broadband Master Plan, and the knowledge generation's expectations of it.

Yap has stayed and worked in Boston for a number of years before returning to Malaysia. She has seen how that change has taken place in the world's major knowledge capitals, and how it impacted global business, making it precariously dependent on ICT.

I do not know how much of my conversation with BizWeek gets into print tomorrow, tough. The editor has the final say.

TEST 3:
NST's papers sideline Khir Toyo

No photo opps. Selangor menteri besar cum Malaysian Youth Council (MBM) president Dr Mohamad Khir Toyo doesn't seem to enjoy good press and photo opportunities in Dollah Kok Lanas' papers.

This is evident in the editorial treatment of the National Youth Day 2003 celebrations yesterday, themed "Driving the Nation's Excellence", throughout NST's stable of papers.

The New Straits Times features the event on its frontpage main story today, with a colour photo that shows the winners of the Youth Organisation Prime Award 2003. In the picture were just PM Dr Mahathir Mohamad, UMNO Youth chief Hishammuddin Tun Hussein and MCA Youth chief Ong Tee Keat.

Berita Harian runs the story as a second headline on the frontpage today, and two other related stories on Page 9. Again, Khir Toyo is totally blocked out from the three colour photos it used.

The most noticeable swipe the NST group took on Khir Toyo was probably the one by The Malay Mail senior journalist V. Vasudevan: Be transparent. It spotlighted recent controversy over the award of prime land to the well-heeled and civil servants in Dengkil and Sepang that has triggered calls for more transparency in this sensitive matter.

Vasu secured four responses from prominent figures to support his story: Kuala Lumpur Society for Transparency and Integrity president Tunku Abdul Aziz Tunku Ibrahim, Federation of Malaysia Consumers Association (FOMCA) president Prof Hamdan Adnan, Bandar Klang State Assemblyman Teng Chang Kim (the whistle-blower who exposed the land deals) and Serdang MP and former Exco member Yap Pian Hon.

According to the Malay Mail story, all except MP Yap said the awarding of state land to indivuduals - including the children of two Selangor exco members and the MB's driver, was lacking in transparency.

The story highlighted the fact that Khir Toyo had gone on record to say he wanted an enquiry into how the names of the recipients were leaked out. The Malay Mail asks: Why would there have to be an inquiry when Khir said the whole process was transparent?

Excerpts:

Transparency is the operative word here as the current arrangements do not in any way enlighten people on how the public is awarded land.

When does a parcel of land become available to the public? How is the public to know when this happens?

What is the criteria for applicants? If Government servants are getting it, which category of Government servants is eligible?

Questions which are of interest to the public but have never been answered by the State Government.

It has been reported as recent as May 6 that the Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) investigation into graft allegations against Khir Toyo is still in progress.

On May 4, Utusan Malaysia's Awang Selamat dispensed a prescription to Khir Toyo to rid off his headache: Be transparent.

Excerpts:

Pada pandangan Awang, apa yang perlu diberi perhatian cuma satu perkara sahaja - ketelusan. [...]

Menteri Besar hendaklah boleh menjawab dengan penuh yakin jika timbul pertanyaan kenapa si anu dapat, si anu tidak. Atau, kenapa yang sudah lama menabur bakti tidak dapat, tapi yang baru pula dapat.

Utusan Malaysia today gave extensive coverage on the event, in Pages 1, 2, 3, 8 and 9. The only instance Khir Toyo has a photo opp was when he presented a RM300,000 mock-up on behalf of MBM to the PM, witnessed by Hishammuddin

In contrast, The Star uses a colour photo on Page 2 today, showing Khir Toyo and his wife and the First Couple and Hishammudin recorded at the Youth Day celebration at Putra Stadium.

It is a known fact that the paper has an excellent working relationship with the MB as evident - coincidental or otherwise - in Op-Ed pieces it published several weeks prior to a conferment of a datukship by the Selangor government to its senior editorial staffer.

Check here and here in The Star archive, or here in my blog.

You have to read in between the lines.

TEST 2:
Catcha: Another (foot)print

Post Meridien? I wonder how many of you are aware of a new free magazine hitting the streets a couple of weeks ago? It's called PM magazine, 100% owned and published by Catcha Sdn Bhd. The publisher is CEO Patrick Grove, and Editor-in-Chief is Luke Elliot. Utusan Princorp handles the printing.

This title is in addition to Catcha's print product, Juice Weekly, targetting the swinging young crowd - and the cliched PMEBs - in market centres.

The confusing thing is in Page 3. PM's masthead says the magazine is a free monthly publication, while the Editor's Note says it's free every fortnight.

The inaugural issue of PM magazine was cover-dated April 23 - May 6. It featured lifestyle choices.

Revenue Stream. It's interesting how Catcha manages and derives its revenue-mix from online to print products. I am not sure whether the PM fortnightly will cannibalise the advertising money of its weekly JUICE, which is available on both sides of the Causeway.

There are 6 FPFC ads - oops... full-page full-colour - in the entire 48-page config. Nokia took up the backcover adspace while Citibank and Proton Iswara took the inside front/back covers, respectively. The rest are Heineken (Page 5), Coca-Cola (Page 21) and Catcha.com (Page 43) itself.

No ratecard or circulation figures were mentioned in the mag.

Contact PM 03-74909999 if you need information about the distribution channels for the next issue.

TEST 1:
SARS: Death sentence for quarantine-violators in China

Tough measures for tough time. You'll need to understand the politico-bureaucratic-speak in China, but a death sentence is a death sentence.

Official Xinhua news agency announced yesterday that China is improving its legal system to cope with public health emergencies in the wake SARS epidermic.

Singapore Straits Times lifted an AFP story which said: China's judiciary issued an interpretation of the country's infectious diseases law on Thursday that calls for execution or life imprisonment for Sars patients who violate quarantine restrictions.

Excerpts:

'Intentionally spreading sudden contagious disease pathogens that endangers public security or leads to serious personal injury, death or heavy loss of public or private property will be punishable by 10 years to life imprisonment or the death penalty,' Xinhua news agency said of the ruling.

The interpretation, issued by the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate, went into effect on May 13, but was publicised in full in Thursday's Legal Daily.

As at yesterday, the nationwide SARS death toll in China has reached 271, and the cumulative number of cases has tottaled 5,163.