Malaysia’s contemporary broadcast media regulation through the eyes of regulators

Abstract

This paper aims to gauge the perception of media regulators in Malaysia on the contemporary media landscape and regulation processes in Malaysia, specifically focusing on the broadcast media. The researchers aims to understand the regulation procedures conducted, the steps taken to resolve conflicts of regulation if any and also the regulators perceptions on freedom of speech, self regulation and media governance. This study employed the qualitative method of in-depth interviews with five regulators from three different regulatory bodies, namely the Ministry of Home Affairs, Malaysia Communication and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) and Communication and Multimedia Content Forum (CMCF). The interviews proved that contrary to the common belief, the public sphere in Malaysia has a strong influence on the regulators as all regulatory bodies act upon public complaints. The study also showed that there are formal and informal procedures and conflict resolution strategies applied on case-to-case basis. The regulators painted a positive picture of good relationship with the broadcast media with much communication between the two entities. They agreed that the current media law in Malaysia is sufficient, albeit a need to improve the standard operating procedures. They also believe in shared responsibility with the industry rather than self regulation.