Fitting the Bill

Journalists, media associations, industry experts and members of the public continue to express concerns that the Malaysian Media Council will become another form of government control. — Illustration by Foo Chern Hwan

THE FIGHT for media freedom in Malaysia remains controversial despite ongoing efforts to realise a self-regulatory body to oversee the fourth estate, following distrust among practitioners over possible administrative influence in its drafting.

Journalists, media associations, industry experts and members of the public continue to express concerns that the Malaysian Media Council (MMC) will become another form of government control, especially after a relaunch of the code of ethics for journalists by the government in February and the plans to table the MMC Bill as a government bill.