James Wong Wing On
There is now a growing body of opinion, albeit not very strong yet, suggesting that the alternative media, such as malaysiakini, should not be seen as "pro-opposition" but be "independent" and "objective". It is of course highly desirable that all media be "independent" and "objective", but why only expect and demand it from the alternative press?
If we ourselves are objective enough, we would certainly realise that the alternative media, both print and cyber, has a fundamental role to play in the illiberal political environment we are in, where the mainstream media has been manipulated into a propaganda machine for the ruling elites and their backers.
The true meaning of alternative media is thus to provide alternative news based on facts, and alternative opinions, also based on facts, to Malaysians so that they can compare these views with the mainstream media.
Of course, the commitment to the provision of alternative news and opinions does not mean that pro-government news and opinions have no place in the alternative media. They have, as long as it is based on facts and reasoned arguments, and as long as the writers are prepared to be disputed by others. They must also not brand or label any alternative news or opinions as "pro-opposition" or "pro-Anwar".
First, not all alternative news and opinions stem from the opposition, or are welcomed and accepted by the established opposition parties and their leaders, despite that such news and opinions are also treated with hostility by the ruling elites. As the level of education increases, many Malaysians have outgrown both the ruling and opposition elites in terms of ideas on how to improve our country.
Second, it is undeniable even to the most neutral and independent observers in this country that many relevant news and opinions from the opposition are not given a fair run in the mainstream media simply because of their origins. To recognise and to find ways and means of rectifying this illiberal situation should not be construed simplistically as being "pro-opposition" or "pro-reformasi".
We should discard once and for all, the notion that people outside the establishment who are critical are necessarily the "Parisan mob", "lumpenproletariats" or "Jacobins" described in the scripts of the Special Branch or other Cold War warriors� moribund paradigm.
The other side of the same coin is the equally moribund notion that anyone in the establishment, must be all-knowing, responsible, altruistic and benevolent. Such notions, too, must be discarded.
Indeed, alternative media is a form of affirmative action like the New Economic Policy in overcoming the maldistribution and circulation of news and opinions. Until and unless the illiberalism in the mainstream media is rectified, there is room for a certain degree of counter-illiberalism in the alternative media, where alternative news and views must nevertheless be based on the journalistic commitment to factual truth and reasoned thinking.
But before we ourselves try to be gurus to the alternative media, it would be more liberal of us if we could summon enough moral courage to help liberalise the illiberal mainstream media.
JAMES WONG WING ON is a graduate of economics and political science from Monash University, Australia; a former DAP MP and now a senior writer and columnist in Sin Chew Jit Poh.
malaysiakini.com
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