KUALA LUMPUR, May 26 — The print media is likely to remain relevant for another decade or more as newspapers have always been a medium of record for various agencies including government bodies, libraries and higher learning institution, said veteran journalist Balan Moses.
He said online journalism is impermanent because what is published in this hour may not be there in the next, especially when it is a developing story.
“So what happens an hour or 10 hours ago is eclipsed by time. So how do one go back to appreciate a story,” he said in Bernama TV’s The Nation programme that discussed the topic, ‘Is the Death of Print Media Imminent?’ today.
Asked on his message to all journalists ahead of the National Journalists’ Day (Hawana) 2023 celebration that kicks off tomorrow, Balan, who began his career in journalism in 1978, told media practitioners to work hard and watch whatever they do regardless of medium, be it print, online or broadcast.
“The future of the nation depends on what you report, how you report and the analysis you present so that the country can move forward,” he said adding that Hawana 2023 should be celebrated by journalists of the past and the present for their contributions to the nation.
Balan said the work journalists have been doing and the service they provide have shaped this nation over the past 50 to 60 years.
Hawana 2023 will be held in Ipoh, Perak from tomorrow to May 29 and will see industry players and other experts discussing the survival of the traditional media in the digital age as well as ways to attract advertising revenue in a forum titled ‘Future of Media.’
A host of exciting activities also await visitors at the Hawana Mini Carnival from May 27-28 from 10 am to 6 pm at Concourse 2, Mydin Mall Meru.
Earlier, crisis management analyst Nordin Abdullah when appearing in The Brief programme on Bernama TV, said conventional media must think of strategic decisions and allocate resources to ensure what appear on their social platforms are efficient and well managed in terms of journalistic ethics and standards.
Asked on the challenges faced by journalists in raising sensitive topics, Nordin said a good journalist will know how to bring them to light and deal with them in a culturally appropriate manner.
“If we look at the history of some of the big issues in Malaysia, journalists have played a big role in some of the large issues that have become global. Malaysia can do it. We have been doing it for some time so we can deal with cultural sensitivities,” he added. — Bernama
