Development of Journalism in Indonesia - Term Paper Example

? Journalism in Indonesia Lecturer: Mass media are often the tools of information dissemination over a wide area or region as illustrated by the role of newspapers, magazines, television, radio, internet among others. Such tools find home in news agencies and media houses whose mandate involves the conveyance opinions, current affairs, and analysis of events as they unfold. Responsible journalism involves the use of the above tools to provide fair, accurate, and unbiased information on the issues that affect the society. To achieve this, freedoms and protection should be accorded professionals in this line of work in order to uphold the civil rights and the rule of law. Media freedom is deemed as a critical aspect in the development of developing democracies in the wake of social awareness and reforms. Indonesia has received a fair share of mass media revolutions that dates back to its rich history of authoritarian rule to the current state. This paper seeks to explore the development of mass media since independence focusing on the factors that promote media freedoms to encourage democratic growth. For one to understand the extent of mass media freedom in the present day, it is important to examine the history of media broadcast since Indonesia gained its independence. The relationship between the government and the media in Indonesia can be described as axiomatic with the media being on the receiving end. The media in Indonesia has always been at the heart of major transitions in the political arena. After independence, the media became organs for various political parties and their agenda, which saw an increased political biasness among media institutions. As such, the media were illustrated as pawns controlled by the political parties since they picked sides. A journalistic agency was established to remedy the media involvement in the prevailing politics and instil professionalism among the stakeholders. Although the gesture was noble, nothing much was achieved and consequently, most newspapers were easily described as political mouthpieces in the 1950s.1 Notably, President Sukarno abandoned liberal democracy to adopt a guided system that sought to influence the media and direct their activities. In its regulations, the regime alienated the opposition and propagated its political manifesto through the media. The year 1965 saw the ascent of General Suharto to power with the seizure of the only legal radio and television station in Indonesia. His government enforced stricter regulations that monitored and controlled the press and their organisation through the department of information. The government demanded mandatory membership to the PWI thus crushing the remains of press freedom at the time. Newspaper editors and journalists would receive threats after publishing investigative articles against the government or the Suharto’s family. In addition, bribery was a common occurrence for individuals seeking favourable article publications to boost their image. The threats and corruption served to impede press freedom, integrity as well as the quality of information disseminated.2 Some journalists stood their ground and formed a new organisation, which sought a difference from their government-controlled counterparts. This followed the closure and revocation of licenses of major publications by the government after they published articles criticising the government. The new organisation had not political affiliations whatsoever and focussed on freedom of the press an aspect that did not go down well with the government. Consequently, members of the new organisation faced arrests, discriminations, and victimisation for their work. Protesters and demonstrators derived from various non-governmental organisations and the society demanded reforms after the publication of provoking articles. The collapse of the oppressive regime marked the introduction of reforms that have allowed significant strides in media freedom. Presently, press freedom in Indonesia is considered as the most vibrant in the southeast region of Asia following years of constitutional and legal provisions that serve to facilitate the freedom of expression, speech, and press.3 However, various court rulings seem to send mixed signals to contradict the spirit and direction of press freedom leaving room for improvement and enhancement of these rights and freedoms.4 For instance, a magazine editor was subjected to a jail term after publishing photos of a model only for his sentence to be overturned following an appeal. Either way, it is only fair to indicate that media freedom has made enormous strides since independence to its status where influence is relatively minimal due to legal provisions. Press freedom can be attributed to the political stability experienced in Indonesia, which a largely Muslim country practicing democracy. The stability encourages the government to focus on social and economic development, which includes providing protection to the citizenry and support of various professionals including journalism. In addition, political stability is a key factor in promoting economic development as advertised by positive journalism. Positive publicity encourages investors in their role of fostering economic growth in the country; therefore, it is critical that the government ensures a favourable environment to promote the image of the country. Similarly, freedom of the press is often used as unit measure for social and political relations in various countries. The government of Indonesia strives to promote social freedoms, which consequently places the country at helm of diplomatic relations in the southeast region of Asia. Activism activities against efforts to control mass media serve by political elements is critical in cultivating press freedom in Indonesia. The society relies heavily on the press for accurate information on current affairs, and as such, the watchdog role of the Indonesian press cannot be understated. The society is often irate following reports of media oppression or control, as they desire raw and independent information to discern current affairs. In this view, protestors are often drawn from the society to accord their support to media freedoms and independence. There are numerous publications, radio, and television stations in Indonesia, which is an enormous improvement since independence. Presently, Kompas is regarded as most widely read newspaper in the country since its establishment in 1965 by the Kompas-Gramedia. Most people acknowledge the paper’s for its high quality and investigative journalism, the overly advantage by the publican can be attributed to the New Order regime, which awarded licenses to wealthy conglomerates. As a result, media houses established in the era hold the advantage with regard to infrastructure and experience. This places emerging and newly established press at a disadvantage since they tend to publish and distribute regionally. Competition in the information industry has its benefits among other detrimental effects that influence a country’s democracy. The effects are dependent on the how healthy the competition among the media agency is. Competition seeks to increase revenues by attracting the attention of the public, which results in increased advertising and subscription prices.5 Healthy competition provides diversity in terms of information sources and analysis that serve to enrich the content distributed through mass media. Notably, this encourages transparency and accountability within the government aspects attributed by the presence of varying watchdogs. The enriched content provides the public with a wide volume of information that can be easily analysed to paint a clear image of the truth. On the hand, unhealthy competition among media agencies in Indonesia poses a threat to emerging democracies and political stability. This follows media obsession with topics that are often controversial such as crime and disaster, which have the capacity to divide the nation by instilling fear and insecurity. Fierce competition often holds the capacity to influence the government into action against media freedoms resulting in authoritarian practices. In addition, radical groups may take advantage of a polarised society to engage intolerant activities that terrorise citizens thus destabilising an otherwise harmonious existence. In present day Indonesia, the number of publications and broadcast media presents unprecedented competition that may get out of control if not monitored with regard to the law. Statistics indicate over 200 newspaper brands in circulation that include daily and periodic publications, which places the number in circulation at over 7 million copies daily.6 If not monitored, the media is at risk of diluting their content to produce publications that are of low informational value. The competition can be described as unhealthy as it leads to duplication of information over a variety of mass media brands. With this in mind, it is critical to engage the stakeholders in meaningful debate that will foster healthy competition and improve the quality of information flow. This would see implementation of new policies to guide the scope of journalistic practices towards healthy competition. In the hope to enhance democracy, public involvement is critical since the process entails giving governance to society. Stakeholders derived from civil societies and eligible voters are crucial to provide meaningful opinions on current affairs. This move serves to decentralise government’s power while assessing its performance and immediate concerns. Public participation through debates and public forums also serves to address historical injustices associated with previous regimes. This is a fundamental aspect for the development of emerging democracies such as Indonesia. It is evident that media freedom has come a long way in Indonesia surviving hostile regimes to become an efficient model of free press in the region. References/ Reading List Censorship. (n.d.). Indonesian Journalism Censorship. Retrieved from http://censorship.wikidot.com/indonesian-journalism-censorship Freedom of the press. (2012). Indonesia. Retrieved from http://www.freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-press/2012/indonesia Reporters Without Boarders. (2001). Indonesia. Retrieved from http://en.rsf.org/report-indonesia,64.html Logan, S. (2008). Asian Communication Handbook 2008. Asia: AMIC. Press reference. (n.d.). Indonesia. Retrieved from http://www.pressreference.com/Gu-Ku/Indonesia.html Wells, A. & Hakanen, E. (1997). Mass Media & Society. Connecticut: Greenwood Publishing Group. Read More