Time running out for newspapers

Of course, none of this means Malaysiakini, The Malaysian Insider and other new media outlets will have an easy ride. For starters, it's still very difficult to attract enough revenue relying solely on online advertising, which in the Malaysia is still in its infancy.

Brian Yap, The Malaysian Insider

Faced with a perfect storm of a global economic crisis, dwindling readership and advertising, and an inability to monetise their online efforts, newspapers all over the world are facing challenging times.

In the US, the situation is particularly dire. From national institutions like the New York Times to mid-sized publications like the Christian Science Monitor, all the way down to small local papers, newspapers are having to answer tough existential questions. Some have even ceased printing and are moving towards online-only operations. Those less fortunate are simply closing shop altogether.

Newspapers in Malaysia, however, have yet to reach this state. Readership has yet to drop, while advertisers still regard it as the medium of choice. The Internet might have become a force to be reckoned with in the political arena, but the reality is that most Malaysians still get their news from traditional media like newspapers and TV.

This does not mean, however, that the likes of The Star and Utusan Malaysia can sit back and expect their good fortune to continue for too much longer.

For one, most Malaysians don't trust them. If we did, March 8 wouldn't have happened. The unapologetic viciousness in which the mainstream media attacked the opposition leading up to the last general election was, simply put, disgusting. The electoral results were a clear repudiation of not only BN, but also the mainstream media.

A momentary lapse of bias did take place after the elections, but it wasn't long before the flirtation with self-reflection was tossed out like yesterday's edition.

Now, the newspapers are back to their same old tricks. Datuk Zaid Ibrahim's point about Utusan's refusal to mature and change, even as the Malay community has, is a timely and potent one. And despite being popular with the urban middle class, The Star has shown little interest in being more politically aligned with its readers. There's no other way to explain why Aminah Abdullah was a front page worthy personality, but news of her opponent's victory in the Penanti by-election was relegated to Page Six.

Despite their repeated offences, most of us are still loyal newspaper readers. We might not trust what is printed, but we have also developed a unique filter that has made reading between the lines such a part of Malaysian culture.

As long as our newspaper habit stays intact, the advertisers too will remain. However, while the main players are sitting comfortably at the moment, I believe their time is running out. In a free media landscape, some of our current crop of newspapers would have folded a long time ago. Though the newspapers might decry the PPPA from time to time, without the licensing requirement that is part of that law, competition would probably have drastically affected even the top-selling papers, all of which are owned or linked to political parties in the ruling coalition.

But the PPPA is only delaying the inevitable. Given the lameness of broadband here it's hard to predict when, but eventually the Internet will become the default source of news for Malaysians. And when that happens, will readers be turning to the same BN-owned media outlets they were distrustful of, or will they turn to the more credible crop of independent media brands?

Of course, none of this means Malaysiakini, The Malaysian Insider and other new media outlets will have an easy ride. For starters, it's still very difficult to attract enough revenue relying solely on online advertising, which in the Malaysia is still in its infancy. So yes, you can be more trusted than The Star, but I doubt the paper cares too much when it is swimming in its profits. Plus, there are myriad other issues facing online news organisations too, such as the challenge of maintaining readership and control over content in a world of links and copy-and-paste journalism.

Also, to give the newspapers some credit, they do a far better job of covering local interest stories, which are often neglected by the politically and nationally minded online publications. If I can get past the main section of The Star without having a seizure, I do like to read its Metro section which keeps me informed on the little things going on in my neighbourhood, city and state. The Internet is the ideal medium for what some call hyperlocal news, but fortunately for the newspapers, it hasn't boomed here yet. Like everything else, however, it's only a matter of time.

As someone who loves newspapers in general, someone who spent years learning about the various aspects of the industry, and someone who absolutely must pick up a copy of the local paper wherever I travel, it's not pleasant to envision a future where the medium becomes less relevant here. Yet, as someone who wants to see Malaysia change for the better, I simply cannot wait.

Brian Yap is a journalist who writes from the place where politics, the arts and technology meet. web.me.com/brianyap