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How did the independent news portal (INP) report political news during GE14?

Mohd Nasir, Nur Shakira and Ahmad, Zeti Azreen (2018) How did the independent news portal (INP) report political news during GE14? In: GE 14: AN ANALYSIS, 28 Jun 2018, Gombak, Malaysia. (Unpublished)

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Abstract

Mass media in Malaysia are renowned for their pro-government reporting. Their consistent positive slant towards Barisan Nasional (BN) and its coalition, has made them known as the government’s machinery instead of a watchdog in society. During the GE14 campaign the positive coverage given to BN by the mainstream media remained obvious. The then ruling government used all media platforms under their control including social media, to tout on BN’s accomplishments and the goodness they bring to the nation hoping to win votes. This pro-government approach was not without consequences as most BN’s controlled media constantly lost viewers and readership; a factor that might weaken the coalition influence. On the other hand, the content of the independent news portal (INP) appear to be the opposite. The INP addressed issues, claimed too sensitive or taboo for their mainstream counterparts to report. Unlike the mainstream media, INP provides space for the opposition and was perceived critical towards the ruling government. As a result, they were often dubbed as representing the voice of the opposition. This study argues that the role of INP during general election campaign should not be underrated as they are gaining strength in readership and able to reach a huge number of voters through other social media platforms. In addition, the nature of INP that is non-partisan promotes independent journalism that do more justice to readers and subsequently produced informed voters. A content analysis has been adopted to analyse political news from two established INPs during the GE14 campaign period. The findings among others revealed that the news portals have remained neutral in their reporting but constantly critical towards both the ruling government and opposition parties. This indicate both news portals continue to practice independent news reporting in covering political news during GE14 campaign.

Item Type: Conference or Workshop Item (Slide Presentation)
Additional Information: 7971/87292
Subjects: P Language and Literature > P Philology. Linguistics > P87 Communication. Mass media
Kulliyyahs/Centres/Divisions/Institutes (Can select more than one option. Press CONTROL button): Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences
Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences > Department of Communication
Depositing User: Nur Shakira Mohd Nasir
Date Deposited: 15 Jul 2021 21:02
Last Modified: 15 Jul 2021 21:02
URI: http://irep.iium.edu.my/id/eprint/87292

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