A summary based on Vijay Menon's article, "Looking Back and Looking Ahead: Press in ASEAN" from around the 80's and 90's. For a class presentation.

1. Looking Back and Looking Ahead:
the Press in ASEAN
Article by Vijay Menon, from the 80’s and
90’s

2. Contents
 Objectives
 Quotable quotes
 Indonesia
 Malaysia
 Thailand
 Philippines
 Exercise

3. Objectives
 Comparison of freedom of press among other
Asian countries to gauge degree of difference
across countries
 Understand why the freedom of press is only so
much.
 Know other factors limiting the freedom of press
(philosphies, race, religion, gender)

4.  See Rant on Asian Dramas
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1oV_MzzNSk
&feature=channel_video_title

5. Quotable Quotes
 “Our liberty depends on the freedom of the
press, and that cannot be limited without being
lost.”
--Thomas Jefferson
 “The liberty of the press is a blessing when we
are inclined to write against others, and a
calamity when we find ourselves overborne by
the multitude of our assailants.”
--Samuel Johnson

6. Indonesia…
 And its philosophies.
1) Pancasila stresses the consensual and holistic
character of the society; it discourages
individualism and individual rights. Pancasila is
viewed as a national development, of which
philosophy stresses social justice, national unity.

7. Indonesia…
 And its real practice.
2) Chief Editor of Indonesia’s Kompas listed 5 roles
of the press: strengthen and inject creativity in
basic consensus; comprehend/report sensitive
social issues; encourage public initiative; report
inadequecies and failure with intent to correct.

8. Indonesia…
 And perceptions of press.
3) Chief Editor of Jakarta Post insists: all the media
exercise self-censorship, but the threat of media
bans still endure.
Indonesian Constitution uses the press to be a
force which encourages healthy development.
Press must be “constructive and creative” and not
“destructive”.

9. Random quote
 Freedom to be an hoonest writer for a public
journal means to overcome internal constraints
on professionalism such as self-censorship,
irresponsibility and inaccuracy, apart from
corruption.
--Asad Latif, senior Singaporean writer

10. Malaysia…
 And its philosophies.
1) Malaysia’s national ideology, Rukunegara
stresses national unity, democracy, social
unity, progressive thought and traditional
culture.

11. Malaysia…
 And its real practices.
2) Malaysian mass media tended to concentrate on
events important to their respective
communities. They forward competing ethnic
claims and voice the aspirations, hopes, fears of
their own racial group.
Because of fragility of race relations, govt places
high priority on the integrative function of mass
media.

12. Malaysia…
 And its perceptions.
3) Opposition, press and non-govt orgs bemoan
that there is less press freedom because of
legal, extra-legal and political controls.
While Malaysia has a long way to go before it can
be considered free, there are encouraging signs
of a more liberal attitude to mass comm.

13. Thailand…
 And its philosophies
1) Media did not subscribe to a well-defined
national ideology, in persuasion and practice they
seemed to accept the role and responsibility
enunciated by their counterparts in the region.

14. Thailand…
 And its real practices.
2) Thai journalists have adopted the doctrine of
social responsibility. Press freedom is seen as a
gradual evolving process, not tandem to
democracy in Thailand.

15. Thailand…
 And its perceptions.
3) Since a press gagging law was
lifted, newspapers were no longer subject to the
threat of arbitrary closure. Licensing was also
liberalised.
The newspapers also serve a function of a society
“watchdog”. While print is more free, radio and TV
are still restrictive.

16. Random quote
 ….to be free, we have to repudiate colonial
textuality. We must resist the temptation to
typecast communities in terms inherited from
colonialism.
--Asad Latif, senior writer

17. Philippines…
 And its philosophies.
1) Similar to Thailand, they do not have a fixed
ideology.

18. Philippines…
 And its real practice.
2) Philippines appear to have opted for the Western
liberal model of press, but does not see itself as
an adversary in the democratic experiment. It
sees itself as a partner in this act, an ally in govt
education, disseminating culture and values.

19. Philippines…
 And its perceptions.
3) Robust exercise by the press of its function as a
social critic of public policies is accepted by govt
and people. Their thesis that its democracy can
be the framework for sustainable economic
growth is bearing fruit.

20. Random quote
 Papers in large Asian countries must steer away
from their mainstream preoccupations and
articulate the concerns of the marginalised
communities. Marginalisation can mean murder
when its victims are minorities.
--Asad Latif, Senior writer

21.  See Strangers:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RpjHSiQLPmA
 What were the
Cultures and discrimination
Issues?

22. Exercise—Forward to 2011
 Go to https://www.cia.gov/ >Library>The World
Factbook
 Find the above countries
(Thailand, M’sia, Philippines, Indonesia) and
search for population percentages of various
races, religions, gender.
 Also look at telecommunications statistics.
 Pin point on the most interesting facts of your
search and analysis.