Online News Portals in Malaysia - A Revisit of the Regulatory Regime Governing the Media in the Era of Media Convergence
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.32890/uumjls.11.1.2020.8263Keywords:
online news portals, regulatory framework, new media, traditional mediaAbstract
Online news portals such as Malaysiakini, Malaysia Today and many others have been instrumental in providing alternative news and information to the Malaysian public. These portals are currently treated differently from print media as they need not procure a licence or permit before publishing online content. Conversely, print media proprietors are mandated by the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984 to hold valid printing licences and publication permits before offering their services. Further, the presence of the no censorship guarantee of the Internet appears to render online news portals and other online publications to be free from legislative control. This is undesirable as there appears to be two different sets of regulatory frameworks for traditional media and new media. Hence, this paper will trace the historical development of online news portals in Malaysia, analyse the existing regulatory regime which govern print media and new media, and examine the potential application of these laws to regulate online news portals. By adopting a qualitative approach, the study employed a combination of doctrinal and comparative analysis. A doctrinal analysis was adapted to explore the current regulatory framework in order to address the legal predicament faced by online news portals. Further, the study applied a comparative analysis method by examining current practices and experience in the United Kingdom (UK). For this reason, the study scrutinised relevant statutory provisions and other secondary sources comprising textbooks, academic journals, seminar papers, and other pertinent materials found in newspapers and/or reputable websites. In conclusion, it is submitted that the same set of laws and regulations should be applied to govern print media and online news portals here, similar to the practice adopted by the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO) in the UK.
References
Aaron D Davidson. (1998). I want my censored mtv: Malaysia’s censorship regime collides with the economic realities of the twenty-first century. Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law, 31, 97. http://heinonline.org/HOL/Page?handle=hein. journals/vantl31&id=111&div=&collection=journals
Ahmad, Z. A., & Buyong, M. (2017). Content analysis of online news portal: Issues and challenges. Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, 14(6), 164–174.
Alivi, M. A., Ghazali, A. H. A., Tamam, E., & Osman, M. N. (2018). A review of new media in Malaysia: Issues affecting society. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 8(2). https://doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v8-i2/3849
AP News. (1986). Malaysia Bans Asian Wall Street Journal for Three Months. AP NEWS. https://apnews.com/9370327765f 7075afc1063a993f36b61
Ariffin, M. Y. M., & Jaafar, N. I. (2009). Online newspaper in Malaysia: A preliminary study. Malaysian Journal of Media Studies, 11(1), 83–94. http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/do wnload?doi=10.1.1.672.8057&rep=rep1&type=pdf
Azlan, A. A., A., Rahim, S., Hassan Basri, F. K., & Hasim, M. S. (2012). Malaysian newspaper discourse and citizen participation. Asian Social Science, 8(5). https://doi.org/10.5539/ass.v8n5p116
Blackman, C. R. (1998). Convergence between telecommunications and other media: How should regulation adapt? Telecommunications Policy, 22(3), 163–170. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0308-5961(98)00003-2
Buang, S. (2015, September 17). Our media law limitations. New Straits Times. https://www.nst.com.my/news/2015/09/our-media-law-limitations UUMJLS 11(1), Jan 2020 (117-142)
Carvalho, M., Sivanandam, H., & Ghazali, R. (2015, August 6). Govt Considers Registering Portals. The Star Online. https://www. thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2015/08/06/Govt-considers-registering-portals-Minister-Proposed-amendments-to-cyber-laws-will-strengthen-social
Chinnasamy, S. (2018). New Media Political Engagement and Participation in Malaysia. Routledge.
Dass, M. J. (2009, September 8). PM reaffirms censorship-free Internet. The Sun, 1.
Erlindson, M. (1995, April). Online newspapers: The newspaper industry’s dive into Cyberspace. https://scholar.google.com/ scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C5&q=Online+Newspapers%3 A+The+Newspaper+Industry%E2%80%99s+Dive+into+Cy berspace.+paper+presented+at+the+University+of+Western +Ontario%2C+April&btnG=
Freeman, K. S. (2013). News consumption behavior of young adults in Malaysia. International Journal of Social Science and Humanity, 121–124. http://www.ijssh.org/index.php?m=cont ent&c=index&a=show&catid=37&id=478
George, C. (2003). The Internet and the narrow tailoring dilemma for “Asian” democracies. The Communication Review, 6(3), 247–268. https://doi.org/10.1080/10714420390226270.002
George, C. (2005). The Internet’s political impact and the penetration/ participation paradox in Malaysia and Singapore. Media, Culture & Society, 27(6), 903–920.
George, C. (2006). Contentious journalism and the Internet: Towards democratic discourse in Malaysia and Singapore (Rev. ed.). University of Washington Press.
Halim, Z. A., & Salim, M. R. (2005). The media system and co-operative regulatory systems in the media sector of Malaysia. Hans-Bredow-Institute for Media Studies.
Hamidah Atan. (2009, September 8). No Internet censorship despite cyber threats, says Najib. The New Straits Times, 1–2.
Hussein, S. Mohd. (2000). The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Act 1998—Its implications on the information technology (IT) industry. Information & Communications Technology Law, 9(1), 79–88. http://www.informaworld. com/10.1080/136008300111619
Ismail Nawang, N. (2014). Greater freedom in the cyberspace? An analysis of the regulatory regime of the Internet in Malaysia. 5(4), 5. UUMJLS 11(1), Jan 2020 (117-142)
Ismail Nawang, N. (2015). Political blogs and freedom of expression: A comparative study of Malaysia and the United Kingdom [University of Edinburgh]. https://era.ed.ac.uk/ handle/1842/10658
Ismail Nawang, N. (2017). Combating anonymous offenders in the cyberspace: An overview of the legal approach in Malaysia. 2017 2nd International Conference on Anti-Cyber Crimes (ICACC), 13–18. https://doi.org/10.1109/Anti-Cybercrime.2017.7905255
Ismail Nawang, N., & Mustaffa, A. (2017). Online news portals in Malaysia: Should they be subjected to the existing traditional media laws? World Applied Sciences Journal, 35(9), 1718–1722. https://doi.org/10.5829/idosi.wasj.2017.1718.1722
Joo Chung, C., Kim, H., & Hyun Kim, J. (2010). An anatomy of the credibility of online newspapers. Online Information Review, 34(5), 669–685. http://www.emeraldinsight.com/ doi/10.1108/14684521011084564
Kasim, A., & Mohd Sani, M. A. (2016). The 2013 general elections in Malaysia: An analysis of online news portals. Kasetsart Journal of Social Sciences, 37(2), 119–125. https://linkinghub. elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S2452315116300108
Kim, W. L. (1998). Malaysia: Ownership as control. Development Dialogue, 2, 24.
Kitley, P. (2001). Subject to what?: A comparative analysis of recent approaches to regulating television and broadcasting in Indonesia and Malaysia. Inter-Asia Cultural Studies, 2(3), 503–514.
Kong, L. (2008). Activist Irene Fernandez acquitted (updated). The Star Online. https://www.thestar.com.my/news/ nation/2008/11/24/activist-irene-fernandez-acquitted-updated
Lee, C. (2002). Telecommunications reforms in Malaysia. Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, 73(4), 521–540. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8292.00203 Malaysian communications and multimedia commission (MCMC). (2019). Internet Users Survey 2018. https://www.mcmc.gov. my/skmmgovmy/media/General/pdf/Internet-Users-Survey-2018.pdf
Manning, M. (1983). Rights, freedoms and the courts: A practical analysis of the Constitution Act, 1982. Emond-Montgomery. UUMJLS 11(1), Jan 2020 (117-142)
MIMOS. (n.d.). Milestones – MIMOS Berhad. Retrieved 18 January 2020, from http://www.mimos.my/about-us/the-company/ milestones/
MSC Malaysia. (2019, June 12). MDEC. https://mdec.my/what-we-offer/msc-malaysia/
Mustaffa, N., Ibrahim, F., Samani, M. C., & Rahim, M. H. A. (2010). Persepsi khalayak terhadap kredibiliti media di Malaysia. Jurnal e-Bangi, 5(2), 153–160.
Nain, Z. (2000). Globalized theories and national controls: The state, the market and the Malaysian media. In M.-J. Park & J. Curran (Eds.), De-Westernizing Media Studies (pp. 139–153). Routledge.
Nain, Z. (2018). Digital News Report 2018—Malaysia (pp. 131–132). http://media.digitalnewsreport.org/wp-content/ uploads/2018/06/digital-news-report-2018.pdf
Netto, A. (2002). Media freedom in Malaysia: The challenge facing civil society. Media Asia, 29(1), 17–23. http://www. tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/01296612.2002.11726658
Newman, N., Fletcher, R., Kalogeropoulos, A., & Nielsen, R. K. (2019). Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2019 (p. 156). https://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/sites/default/files/ inline-files/DNR_2019_FINAL.pdf
Rachagan, S. S. (1993). Law and the electoral process in Malaysia. University of Malaya Press.
Ramachandran, S. (2008, August 31). Cyber Crimes: The net is not in a legal vacuum. New Sunday Times. http://www. malaysianbar.org.my/information_technology_and_ cyberlaws_2005_2007/cyber_crimes_the_net_is_not_in_a_ legal_vacuum.html
Russo, M. (2006). Are bloggers representatives of the new media under the freedom information act? Columbia Journal of Law and Social Problems, 40, 225.
Sani, M. A. M. (2005). Media freedom in Malaysia. Journal of Contemporary Asia, 35(3), 341–367. http://www.tandfonline. com/doi/abs/10.1080/00472330580000201
Shukry, A. (2015, July 27). Malaysia’s brief, rich history of suspending newspapers. The Edge Markets. http://www. theedgemarkets.com/article/malaysia%E2%80%99s-brief-rich-history-suspending-newspapers
Steele, J. (2007). Malaysia’s untethered net. Foreign Policy, 161, 86–88. UUMJLS 11(1), Jan 2020 (117-142)
Tiung, L. K., Meri, A., Nayan, L. M., & Othman, S. S. (2016). Kegunaan dan kepuasan portal berita dalam kalangan belia Malaysia. Jurnal Komunikasi: Malaysian Journal of Communication, 32(2), 790–816.
Tong, Y. S. (2004). Malaysiakini: Threading a tightrope of political pressure and market factors. In S. Gan, J. Gomez, & U. Johannen (Eds.), Asian Cyberactivism: Freedom of Expression and Media Censorship (pp. 270–317). Friedrich Naumann Foundation.
Zweigert, K., & Kötz, H. (1987). Introduction to Comparative Law (2nd Rev. ed.). Clarendon Press.
Published
Issue
Section
How to Cite
Research impact
Harvested 2026-09-26Counts differ between services because each indexes a different body of literature. None of them is the whole picture.
