SAYING the media in the country must have total freedom, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has welcomed members of the press to continue being critical of his administration.

In his speech at the National Journalists’ Day 2023 celebration, the prime minister told media personnel they should not feel the need for self-censorship when it comes to criticising the government.

At the same time, Anwar called on media practitioners to get rid of their culture of writing in favour of the government of the day and neglecting the opposition’s view.

Anwar said the media should give the opposition space to air their opinions.

The message is clear: the media must be brave and balanced. The latter refers to the media’s impartiality and fairness when presenting an issue. It is about the media presenting all sides of an issue that they are reporting on without any supporting bias.

In the simple words of David Cox – a writer and television producer who has contributed to many publications, including the Guardian, the Times, the Independent, the Daily Telegraph, the Observer, the Sunday Times and the Evening Standard – balance is the allocation of equal space to opposing views. (Cox, “Impartiality imperilled” 2007 available here)

As opposed to balance, bias is when an issue is presented from one viewpoint without showing the other side of the issue. (See “Balance and bias in the media” available here)

The call to the media is: be brave, balanced, without bias. – May 29, 2023.

* Hafiz Hassan reads The Malaysian Insight.

* This is the opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insight. Article may be edited for brevity and clarity.