DR MAHATHIR: CODE OF ETHICS WILL MAKE BLOGGERS MORE RESPECTED

KUALA LUMPUR, July 28 (Bernama) -- Dr Mahathir Mohamad Wednesday called on
bloggers to adhere to a certain code of ethics and ensure their blog articles
are backed by truth in order for blogs to become a respected medium for the
betterment of the society.

The former prime minister said the blogging ethics should be voluntary
because these were for the bloggers' own good and from which they would build
their reputation in the eyes of the people.

Dr Mahathir, himself a blogger, said the society had access to blogs, a
medium which he said was "almost beyond the control of any authority", and that
if bloggers were ethical and write the truth, more people would make blogs their
source of information.

If bloggers adhered to these ethics, he said, "I think eventually people
will come to respect blogs."

"If we are not saying the truth, people will desert blogs like (how they
desert) the ordinary media today," he said in his keynote address at the Asian
Bloggers and Social Media Conference 2010, here Wednesday.

The two-day conference, themed "Reflections of the Social Media Revolution",
is organised by My Events International and is attended by about 400 people
across Asia.

Dr Mahathir said although bloggers were free to blog what they want, they
should do so in a responsible manner and not abuse the medium.

"(Bloggers) should not say nasty things or curse people; don't do that
because
people will get annoyed and they can take action against you," he said, adding
that "even if we don't like a person, we should not say things which are not
true (about that person)."

Dr Mahathir, who runs a popular blog at http://chedet.co.cc/chedetblog/,
said
it was imperative for bloggers to be able to back what they say.

He said that although bloggers had the advantage in terms of freedom, they
must
make use of the freedom to shape the opinion towards building a better world
community and for the betterment of the people.

"No one can stop or correct you because you are in charge; you are the
writer,
the editor and the publisher... when you have the weapons, don't use it
indiscriminately. Bloggers must always exercise restraint and avoid anything
that is not true and things that hurt people," he said.

Dr Mahathir said while some blogs were very good, there were others which
were "worthless" and that certain skills were needed to sort out blogs which
reported the truth from those that contained mere propaganda.

"Problems arise because there are so much news coming in; you get confused
and when you get confused you make the wrong decision. So you have to sort out
the news," he said.

Dr Mahathir also said that the ordinary press would not be able write
everything because of space constraint.

He said that because of such constraint he turned to blog to provide him
with the space to express his views.

Dr Mahathir also said that his blog was being read by people from many
countries, including from Israel.

If bloggers write with responsibility, they and their blogs would become
popular, he added.

-- BERNAMA