What the Chinese press say
TRADITIONAL media are facing challenges with the emergence of social media.
The relatively slower processing speed of traditional media and their time-constrained output capacity are causing news to lose their immediacy edge, not to mention the possibility of some editors and reporters not living up to their integrity and leaving a blot on the image of the industry, as a result, to cast a pall over the crucial question of readership.
The era of social networking has arrived — Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp, Line, Wechat — all competing aggressively against each other.
With the existence of these digital instant presses, everyone can be the chief editor. With the touch of a finger, thoughts and ideas can be transmitted to friends and families all round the world.
Knowing this, how can the government think of banning Facebook based on the fact it has been misused or “abused”?
Researches and investigations aside, the Communication and Multimedia Ministry should know that even when the people are barred from using Facebook, through proxy and VPN, it is still not hard for them to remotely re-log on to their Facebook accounts.
Besides, the problem lies neither with Facebook’s structure, content reliability nor Internet users posting spams.
The real problem is in the readers themselves — for having lost their ability to separate the wheat from the chaff, as it were, and also the common sense to judge what is genuine and what is fictitious and baseless.
Whatever they hear, they believe; whatever they believe, they share. Just like that, the information is disseminated nationwide – and not infrequently worldwide as well.
Ultimately, the cause can be said to originate from the country’s education system which emphasises obeying and not thinking.
During exams, students know if they follow what the textbooks say, they will pass for sure. But with rote learning, how would they be able to cultivate critical thinking and carefully filter whatever is posted on the web?
When coming across those ‘cloaked’ statements which spread like wild fire — from one to hundreds and hundreds to thousands — everyone believes the words and sentences they read are the most appropriate evidence.
No one has the spirit to investigate or will give second thoughts to those ‘eye-catching’ embellished news. No one will question if these outrageous new items are actually reliable and based on concrete evidence.
Moreover, from years of accumulated “experience” in the ways of Facebook-ing, it is fair to say what comes after reading the news on social network is always the hitting of the “Like” button — without thinking and questioning whether the news is true or false.
Sometimes, even when a story is not completely read, the “Share” button is clicked. Naturally, it becomes a fire that cannot be extinguished.
It is most unfortunate that what our leaders see is only the appearance of things. The thoughts and hearts of the people change and whenever a situation is presented, we should not afraid to be bold with our actions.
The dying embers are glowing again. The policy suggested during the Malaysia Journalist Award prize-giving ceremony in 2013 is making a comeback.
Perhaps, the leaders have forgotten this old saying: “It will cause more harm to stop the free flow of people’s thoughts than to stop that of the rivers.”