After 55 Years, Malaysia's BERNAMA Remains Steadfast In Facing Ever-Changing Global Media Landscape

By Hasnah Jusid KUALA LUMPUR, May 20 (Bernama) -- Upon reaching the age of 55, the Malaysian National News Agency (Bernama) remains steadfast in carrying out its mission of disseminating the latest news and information despite the ever-changing global media landscape. As Malaysia’s sole and official news agency, Bernama continues to grow in line with technological advances in new the process of news and content production, while at the same time developing and strengthening its brand to meet the demands of the public. Starting with the use of a teleprinter in its news processing and dissemination process, Bernama now offers various products, contents and services through numerous platforms, such as Bernama Newslink, Bernama.com portal and Bernama Images. Over the past 50 years, the news agency had also expanded its wings to enter the broadcasting market through Bernama TV and Bernama Radio and Digital Media platforms, hence making Bernama a more inclusive entity in the Malaysian media landscape. The rapid development of communication technology has also prompted Bernama to always strive to find ways to be a leader in news and content production by exploring new worlds of journalism, such as Fact-Check and data journalism. Bernama has also forged cooperation with other news agencies around the world for the exchange of news and information in order to be able to provide a true picture of various world events to its audience and customers. In order for Bernama to remain relevant, several veteran journalists are of the opinion that the news agency needs to be more vocal and open so that it can be a trusted and preferred source of news for the various sections of the community. Veteran journalist Johan Jaaffar, for one, is of the view that although the news agency was expanding its wings in the world of domestic and foreign news dissemination by providing broadcasting services, it still needs its own mould and approach, especially in news writing and reporting for Bernama TV to ascertain its direction. He said Bernama needs to be seen as different, especially from Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM), in its news writing, articles and discussions of current issues. “Bernama cannot be the mouthpiece of the government alone. It must also play a role of being the eyes and ears of the people, while at the same time being the platform for the people to voice out their opinion about the government and its policies,” he said. For example, he said Bernama needs to have more discussions or discourses on current issues involving the public interest, such as the issues of national food security and price hikes, which should be discussed thoroughly and in depth with the presence of experienced moderators. “Bernama needs to be more vocal and open,” he said, adding that more articles of human interests should be generated so they could be carried by the newspapers. He also called on Bernama to come up with more analysis on the latest news or alternative information related to the country’s economy and financial situation, which is currently being monopolised by The Star and The Edge. “Very few of such analyses appear in Malay newspapers. Bernama should start doing it,” he said. Meanwhile, Malaysian Press Institute (MPI) chief executive officer Dr Chamil Wariya said as the national news agency with various platforms, Bernama should ensure that its products and services are marketable to ensure its survival. “The content of Bernama TV news channel, for example, should not be produced for local viewers only, but also for regional and international viewers as the news market is global,” he said. However, Chamil said it would not be easy as it required Bernama and Bernama TV to strengthen their brand as the preferred news channel of Malaysians. Not only that, he said Bernama should also be creative in making optimal use of social media, especially TikTok, which is popular among all levels of society, to disseminate the news through interesting short videos. Bernama was established under an Act of Parliament on April 6, 1967, and was officially launched on Aug 30, 1967, in conjunction with the 10th anniversary of Malaysia’s Independence. It became fully operational on May 20, 1968. The first news released in conjunction with the opening of the Bernama news service featured the then Minister of Information and Broadcasting Senu Abdul Rahman in the news item titled ‘Balloons Up, Doves Released and Here It Is’. -- BERNAMA