Online journalism in indonesia

1 Chapter One: Introduction 1.1 Journalism and the Internet People have always been interested in the news, which is described as “new information about a subject of some public interest that is shared with some portion of the public” (Stephens, 2006:2) The earliest forms of news were spoken ones, shared in coffeehouses or shouted throughout the village After the news in written form began to exist in the fifth century B.C., news distribution progressed to written tablets, Roman acta, occasional newsletters, and the regular newspaper which arrived in early 17th century (Stephens, 2006:131) In today’s information society where communications technologies have acquired new importance, the Internet is a new news medium which enables us to retrieve news easily From spoken to written to printed and then electronic news, the general principle of “the fastest medium with the largest potential audience will be the messenger of the most breaking-news” applies Today the news race is being won by broadcast media and the Internet (Stephens, 2006:47) This study will look at the Internet more closely According to Downing et al (2004:4), compared to traditional mass media, the Internet is “much more productive and flexible and more accessible to more people as senders and receivers” The Internet has improved the way news is collected, sorted, and distributed, and the way news is made available to readers A survey done by the International Telecommunication Union and Nielsen shows that as of 2006 there were 964,271,700 Internet users in the world (ITU, 2005) and 36.5% of all active Internet users read online news (Nielsen in Sigmund, 26 October 2006) That is why it is winning the race The Internet, which Stephens called an “electronically amplified news organ”, helps readers to access the huge volume of available information This insight lends to the definition of online journalism as “the delivery of news collected, sorted, and distributed through the Internet for the readers to consume efficiently” (Stephens, 2006:296-7) Downing et al (2004:4) believe that currently there is need to see usage patterns of the new media to understand the social effects expected However, to discuss the social effects and consequences, the context in which media consumption takes place needs to be taken into account (Taylor and Willis, 1999:181) It is also necessary to consider the factors that affect readers as they consume media products These factors relate to the readers’ sense of identity, which changes as social interactions progress; they also influence on-going communication (Thompson, 2003:27, 55, 105) In the case of Indonesia, Hill and Sen (in Ferdinand 2000:119) suggest that the use of the Internet in Indonesia’s new democracy be seen within the holistic and complex process of “the emergence of an Indonesian ‘public sphere’ on the Internet” “Public sphere” is the space whereby the public discourse and the formulation of citizen’s political understanding take place Within this space, expressions and opinions are exchanged forming a web of discourses, and it is where journalism plays a major role (McNair, 2003:20) Habermas defined public sphere as: “a network for communicating information and points of view (i.e., opinions expressing affirmative or negative attitudes); the streams of communication are, in the process, filtered and synthesized in such a way that they coalesce into bundles of topically specified public opinions”, and play the role of an intermediary between the political system and the private sectors and functional systems (Young, 2000:170) Although this concept of public sphere by Habermas is very useful in understanding journalism, its focus on “people” is different from the sense of community which is the focus of Benedict Anderson’s theory According to Anderson, “community” implies a common emotional identity, develops a feeling of fellowship on the basis of (imagined) interaction, and establishes social membership and national consciousness (Schudson, 2003:69) Jakob Oetama (2005:42) – an Indonesian senior journalist – is convinced that it is particularly important for the Indonesian press to continue putting in the effort to turn “rakyat” (people), into “warga” (community) In this context, the notion of public sphere is best complemented with the “imagined communities” theory – which will be described later in this chapter – particularly because Indonesia is a large community and the larger a community is, the more it will depend on the imaginary (Laclau in Cheah and Culler, 2003:24) In a democratic community, journalism plays an important role by holding the key to a democracy’s checks-and-balances The importance of the role of the journalist is best defined by Cable News Network (CNN) war correspondent Christiane Amanpour: “What we and say and show really matters… It has an effect on our local communities, on our states, on our country, and on the state of the world” (Anderson, 2004:xi) In fact, journalists have such an impact- provoking role that the purpose of their work needs to be examined Gripshrud (in Schudson, 2003:14) puts it this way: “The core purpose of journalism is and should be about producing and distributing serious information and debate on central social, political, and cultural matters Journalists regulate much of what the public gets to know about the world they inhabit, and this activity is vital to a functioning democracy.” The inclusion of “democracy” in defining journalism has been a subject of controversy However, there is no way around it because one is unable to practice journalism freely without democracy (Anderson, 2004:225) Therefore, my use of Gripsrud’s quote is suitable not only because this study examines journalism – particularly online journalism – but also because it does so within Indonesia as a democratic society, in a time of political evolution While the term of “democracy” has many definitions, this study acknowledges the common notion of democracy as “distributed power” and “open flow of information”, and roots itself in the definition of democracy as understood and practiced in Indonesia (Suryakusuma, 2004) which will be discussed later 1.2 Historical Background of Journalism in Indonesia Indonesia is a developing country in South East Asia It is also the largest archipelago in the world, covering an area of 1,919,440 sq km and hosting a population of 234,693,997 (as per July 2007)1 Twenty centuries ago, up to the sixteenth century, the area Indonesia now occupies was under heavy influence of Hinduism and Buddhism, particularly the western islands Toward the end of the thirteenth century conversion to Islam gradually progressed from coastal toward central areas of the various islands At the beginning of the sixteenth century the first contacts with Portuguese, English and Dutch traders took place, bringing the influence of Christianity, particularly to the eastern islands Currently, the country’s cultural identity is colored by vast internal cultural diversity, western influence, and the guidance of various religions – the most prevalent of which is Islam The Republic of Indonesia was born when it declared its independence in 1945, after enduring colonization by the Dutch (1600s to 1942), and the Japanese (1942-1945) According to political observer Leo Suryadinata, Indonesia is a product of colonialism, with an artificial sense of nationalism It is artificial because the Dutch brought together all the conquered regions and provided the Https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/id.html retrieved 15 January 2008 various ethnic groups living in these regions with a sense of imposed “national” belonging or “peoplehood” (Suryadinata, 2002:2) The Indonesian people practice Pancasila democracy, which is an all-embracing political public space which ideally involves intense interaction in all discourses of the complex communities’ subsystems going beyond a political representation system (Hardiman, 2004) The core of Pancasila democracy is rooted in the inherited virtues of “musyawarah untuk mufakat” (deliberation), “kekeluargaan” (familial solidarity), and “gotong royong” (mutual cooperation) It is a “modernized traditional democracy” with an interest of maintaining the unity of the nation (Thaha, 2004:191-2) But Pancasila is not the only type of democracy Indonesians have known From 1945 to 1965, President Soekarno experimented with different forms of governance At the time there were conflicts between islands due to unequal distribution of wealth, internal conflict within the Muslim majority, unhappiness because of the domination of the Javanese race, division within the military, and anti-Sinicism (custom or trait peculiar to the Chinese) Soekarno practiced Liberal Democracy (1949-1957) and Guided Democracy (1958-1965) whereby the PKI (Partai Komunis Indonesia, or Indonesian Communist Party) gained power (Suryadinata, 2002:26, Faith and Castles, 1970:246) His rejection of communism led to the coup in 1965 and his arrest Then in 1966, Army General Soeharto took over the country and ruled with his bureaucratic authoritarian regime, known as the New Order, for 32 years (Robinson, 1998:52) Because the New Order was born out of a state of emergency, amid chaos and anarchy, the only hope for security, order and stability was a firm state and a highly centralized regime – armed with dwi-fungsi (dual function) of the military, which protected the State against both outsiders and dangerous insiders (Sulistiyanto and Erb, 2005:1) Protecting the state from insiders who were potentially threatening included controlling the journalists and their work Then-President Soeharto “controlled media using permission regulation, such as printed permit (SIC), publishing permit (SIT), and press company permit (SIUPP)” (Manan and Mursida, 2005:1)2 The rise of intellectuals in the 1980s saw groups of people who were willing to participate actively in politics Every meeting was an opportunity to discuss controversial issues that were controlled by the government Places of religious worship were used to hold both informal and semi-formal discussions Because the Ministry of Information denied university students licenses to operate, campus media were lost Nonetheless, students made photocopies and distributed “underground” publications (Lubis and Abdullah, 1981:100) The New Order was ended in May 1998 by the Reformation Movement – known as “Reformasi” – as Soeharto was unseated by the “people’s power” revolution Bacharuddin Jusuf Habibie, who was the country’s Vice President at the time, Manan, A of AJI and Mursida, L of IFJ Indonesia presented the report at IFJ Conference in Taipei, Taiwan in July 2005 Retrieved from www.ifj-asia.org/files/indonesia_-_aji indo_press_under_repression.doc on 15 January 2008 temporarily took office His appointed Information Minister, Lt-Gen Muhammad Yunus Yosfiah ended the status of Persatuan Wartawan Indonesia (PWI) as the sole organization for journalists, recognized the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI)’s right to exist, and streamlined the complex procedures to obtain an SIUPP (Hill and Sen, 2007:70) PWI was a journalist organization “authorized by the government” of which all Indonesian journalists were “obliged to become members”, whereas AJI is the radical alternative to PWI which “reject all kinds of interference, intimidation, censorhip and media bans” (Hill and Sen, 2007:55) Within 10 months of these changes, from May 1998 to March 1999, the Department of Information issued 740 new SIUPPs, and almost 300 new publications started appearing on the news stands, which is over 100% of the previously existing number of publications (Mann, 1999)3 When Abdurrahman Wahid became the president in late 1999, he dismissed the Ministry of Information in September that year (KPRI no 153, 1999) The Ministry was one of the most powerful of the New Order’s state apparati, held responsibility for media content and had been known to ban and censor (Hill and Sen, 1997:82, 2007:54) President Wahid said in a written statement for the World Association of Newspapers’s World Press Freedom Day, on May 2001: “Freedom of expression, communication and access to information are fundamental to the existence of civilization and human rights The press must be left unconstrained in its freedom, and allowed to regulate itself in Http://www.ifla.org/IV/ifla65/papers/049-107e.htm retrieved on 15 January 2008 direct responsibility to the public That is why, our cabinet has eliminated the Ministry of Information, which was so important to previous governments Information is a society’s full right and domain.” (Hill and Sen, 1997:82) His successor, President Megawati Soekarnoputri, reopened the ministry at a lower level of power and it operated as State Ministry of Information Her policy regarding the Press was not favorable During her presidency, journalists from two print media organizations were sent to jail for insulting the President and for defamation against one of Indonesia’s most powerful businessmen (CPJ, 2004) In 1994, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, nicknamed SBY, won the first direct presidential election Although he kept the State Ministry of Information, he not only tolerated freedom of the Press, but encouraged it His policy did not accord press freedom to foreign journalists who are banned from entering certain areas where there are militant separatist movements and other local unrests such as Aceh, Papua, Maluku, Sampit, Poso, and Palu Nevertheless, despite these restrictions, some scholars say that the Indonesian Press today is one of the freest in the world (Ong, 2005) Reporters Without Borders draw up an index that “measures the amount of freedom journalists and the media have in each country and the efforts made by governments to see that press freedom is respected” The Press Freedom Index of Indonesia in the last five years is as below4: Year Rank 2003 110 2004 117 2005 102 2006 103 2007 100 Http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=4118 retrieved on 15 January 2008 10 Freedom House – a non-profit independent organization based in the United States – has been documenting the level of Political Rights (PR) and Civil Liberties (CL) in Indonesia since 1973 Figure shows the level of political rights and civil liberties in Indonesia Figure 1: Freedom of political rights and civil liberties in Indonesia 1973-2006 Political Rights & Civil Liberties 2006 2005 2004 2003 2001-02 2000-01 1998-99 1999-2000 1997-98 1996-97 1995-96 1994-95 1993-94 1992-93 1991-92 1990-91 1989-90 1988-89 1987-88 1986-87 1985-86 1984-85 1982 1983-84 1981 1980 1979 1978 1977 1976 1975 1974 1973 PR CL Source: Freedom House Note: represents the most free and the least free rating Rate 1-2.5 = Free; 3-5 = Partly Free; 5.5-7 = Not Free Figure clearly shows that throughout the New Order from 1966 to 1998, both the political rights and civil liberties of the Indonesian people were severely restricted It was only after the New Order ended in 1998 that both became freer By 2006, the Freedom House categorizes Indonesia’s civil liberties as partly free, and political rights as free 114 Appendix 3: Topic Guide 115 Topic Guide Ideal sample: • A representation of UI / UGM students • Randomly selected from various faculties and departments • A balanced mix of male and female • Frequent Internet users • Interested in current affairs • Artificial group (unfamiliar) Statement: I’m here to hear your views There are no right or wrong answers to my questions When did you first start using the Internet? Which online services you use most often? Prompt: Email, surfing, IRC, discussion groups What are the names of online news sources you are familiar with? Stimuli: Which online publication is more likely to publish these news stories? (Distribute samples of news stories) What are the recognizable characters of news stories published by: • Kompas.com • Detik.com • TempoInteractive.com What you consider to be the advantages of online newspapers? What you consider to be the disadvantages of online newspapers? Do you think that online news raise public involvement of current affairs in Indonesia? Would you choose to or not to prefer online news (to conventional news media)? Which news source is most powerful in Indonesia? Prompt: TV, radio, newspaper, magazine, Internet 116 Appendix 4: Features of Online Newspapers Under Study 117 Features of Online Newspapers Under Study Features Photos Audio Video Animated Graphics Search Archive/Index Chat Forum/Message Boards Related Links e-Mail of Newspaper e-Mail List of Staff Text-only Version (Printer Friendly) Headline News by e-Mail Headline News by SMS Option to e-Mail News Story Online Polls Average number of advertisement on front page Slogan Free Access Web-based Feedback Facility Other language version Tempo Yes No No Yes Yes Yes No No Yes Yes No No No No No Yes 2* Kompas Yes No No Yes Yes No No No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No 12 Be the first, but first get the truth Bukan sekedar berita (Not only news) Yes Yes Yes Only for health columns No English, Japanese Sources: www.tempointeraktif.com, www.kompas.com, www.detik.com Detik Yes No No Yes Yes Yes No No Yes Yes No No Yes Yes No Yes 14+ Situs warta era digital (Digital era news site) Yes No No 118 Appendix 5: Interview Questions & Answers A Interview with Ninok Leksono, Chief Editor of Kompas.com B Interview with Yuli Sumartono, Director of Tempo C Interview with Merlyna Lim, a scholar 119 Appendix 5A Interview Questions Ninok Leksono, Chief Editor of Kompas.com (October 2004) Who are your target audience? What were your missions and visions when you first published Kompas.com? Are they still relevant today? Or has they changed over the time? How you position yourself socially and politically? How does Kompas.com differ with print Kompas? How many reporters you have? Do you provide them training? How you welcome public participation? Do you encourage/invite them to? How is your work procedure from news gathering to editing to publishing? Where are your news sourced from? 10 Do you receive any pressure from advertisers, higher authorities and/or special-interest organizations in any way? 11 How you maintain accuracy and objectivity of the reports you intend to publish? 12 Do you receive feedbacks from your audience? 13 What are the worst feedbacks you ever received from your audience? 14 Have you ever withdrawn any news you have published? When and why? 15 How you believe you have contributed to the society with your newsreporting? 16 What you hope to achieve in the future? 120 Answers from Ninok Leksono Target audience of Kompas Cyber Media KCM) is divided into two categories First, those who are print Kompas readers They are mostly midlle-aged people, with established income and positions, be it in bureaucratic office, who are in-charge of decision-making In addition to that, other members of this category are Indonesian diplomats abroad, Indonesian observers, and Indonesians who live abroad Second category is people of younger ages, who are Internet savvy That’s why we also provide columns such like jobs, match-making, etc Mission was to provide additional access to Kompas daily in the wake of new technology, namely the Internet We’re fully aware, that for a country like Indonesia, with vast geography, newspaper distribution has always been very challenging If we miss the early morning flight to eastern part of the country, then subscribers in regions such like Maluku, let alone Irian/Papua, would likely read Kompas the day after, since normal delivery of Kompas in those faraway regions is late afternoon, or evening With online service, people in those places can read Kompas daily at almost the same time as people in Java This service also benefit those audience mentioned in Question No 1, person who live abroad to follow current affairs of Indonesia The vision was to make Kompas daily and latest news about Indonesia available at for the audience all over the world using the Internet technology Obviously we keep abreast with the advancement of techology, so that in doing our mission, for instance, we have considered, and then applied new technology, such like mobile telecommunication for distributing KCM content Obviously size-wise – taking the million users of Internet into consideration - we’re still small player, so that in no way that we claim any leadership in the media However, looking at the increasing awareness of the society about online media, and the flexibility for acquiring online content, from cell phone or PDA in addition to PC, we are optimistic, that we are progressing Establishments – Presidential Palace, Armed Forces Headquarters, for instance, now invite us for their important events People start to see, that online media represent new type and futuristic journalism 121 Initially we uploaded only news form print Kompas daily Then we moved to add updated news, since the world runs not in 24-hour period like daily newspapers, but constantly, hour-by-hour, minute-by-minute Then we added with more columns not available in Kompas daily, such like “foodhunting and travel” These original KCM content target the second category of audience explained above KCM has 18 journalists, and we have been thinking of increasing the number Yes, we asked the training departement in the Corporate to train fresh recruited reporters We realised that such training was only elementary, so that regularly we hold incidental traing program to deepen the initial training, and this includes courses on language, media comparison, ethics in journalism, etc Initially we only welcome letter to the editor as the only form of public participation But lately we have reviewed that policy We plan to invite more participation, knowing that awareness would increase by more public participation We get the idea of encouraging the participation, but frankly speaking we are still looking for the right way We follow normal news gathering procedure Chief editor meets editors and reporters once a week to outline weekly trend Managing editor meets desk editors to outline tomorrow agenda, and desk editors meet, and/or assign, reporters for tomorrow or today events Or basically every reporter has already his/her own daily routine beat News are obtained from events, or from news agency Antara We also get news from Radio Sonora, since we have partnership agreement Obviously jornalists have their networks, so they can interview individuals who are newsworthy 10 Pressure from authorities was common during the New Order regime, but not anymore Sometimes complaints come from special-interest organizations, but not often Pressure from advertisers could be avoided by promoting good communication Yes, sometimes we stand in the middle position, between audience and advertisers, especially when advertisers ask for ads with strong effects, that in result they would disturb, or annoy, audience We our best to satisfy both audience and advertisers, since both are our dearest stake-holders 122 11 Accuracy and objectivity grow from tradition and practices We follow our “older brother” Kompas daily ,which has been known for its tradition of accuracy and objectivity But we include those two elements in our training soon after fresh reporters have been recruited, and then followed by routine reminder through meetings and conversations 12 Yes a lot Many feedbacks come immediately after news were published And they come from various places of the world, since Internet has a global reach 13 Basically we view that any feedback is serious and needs prompt attention It could be simple complaint, to accusation, and ranging from bad taste of ad design, or delay in responding a reader’s letter 14 Yes we have ever withdrawn news Normally during a politically sensitive time, or any time, when we – later on after a news had been published – thought the content was less credible, or potentially damaging the interest of certain party/individual, or even our own interest 15 Obviously we don’t want to claim any contribution, but allow us to explain in another way As we mentioned somewhere above, before the online era, people in remote regions of Indonesia used to receive Kompas daily later in the day, or day after Now they can access news from our site soon after all the news uploaded to the site, around am in the morning So if reading newspaper is normally am, then that is what is available for Indonesians who live in Jayapura, or Manado, or Ambon Those who live in America even read Kompas a day earlier, because of great time difference More than that, we have evolved from just put print Kompas daily to the Internet, to update news, so the news period has changed, not 24 hours, but every hour, with continuous stream of news provided by our newsroom So, audience all over the world don’t need to wait until tomorrow to know events Higher traffic has been detected every time a bomb explodes, or Election Commission declares winner of presidential elections It means that members of the society appreciate what we have been doing 16 We to increase the number of our audience, by providing more contents, faster news delivery And obviously through that endeavour, we hope to 123 get more revenue, so that we can be in better position to invest on our infrastructure, again to create more innnovative contents, and internally we can improve the well-beingness of our employees, so that every one of us can perform better 124 Appendix 5B Interview Questions Yuli Ismartono, Director of Tempo (February 2005) According to Wikipedia.com: “As long as there has been media there has been alternative media The line between the two is not always clearly defined Proponents of alternative media often argue that the mainstream media is heavily biased Causes of this bias include the political interests of the owners, government influence or the profit motive While sources of alternative media are also frequently highly (and sometimes proudly) biased, the bias tends to be different, hence 'alternative' In your opinion, who/which are the alternative media in Indonesia? Why they are categorized as alternative media? The Internet is commonly seen as a useful tool to help people build democracies where every citizen who wants to be heard on important public issues can effectively participate in public life In this case are all online publications categorized as alternative media? What are the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of and faced by alternative media in Indonesia? 125 Answers from Yuli Ismartono I agree that the line between mainstream and alternative media, in particular in Indonesia, is not clearly defined In fact, I see little difference between the two In Indonesia, alternative media usually refers to media published in the internet Actually alternative media should be all media that does not conform with the editorial system, financial and marketing systems of mainstream media Its approach to news and reports, come from totally different angles than mainstream media, and usually they counter the status-quo or established mainstream media But in Indonesia, there is little difference editorially and all media must think of profit-making in order to survive, because there is almost no grants given to alternative media One is likely to find alternative media away from urban centers, in small towns and villages, where the community make with their own system of conveying news and reports This is not to be confused with local newspapers which are mainstream media but only in smaller scale Alternative media can only survive in a society that is willing and can afford to contribute towards the existence of alternative media The internet may be seen as a tool to help build democracies But in reality, how many of Indonesia’s citizens can afford to own a computer and operate the internet? Very little The computer and the internet is a phenomena that is taking place only in urban centers Meanwhile the majority who live in the rural areas remain backward because they are not in the loop of things When the economy is more equitable, then the internet becomes a tool to build democracies Lack of idealism, lack of funds for sustainability There is also a lack of inventiveness and creativity Alternative media does not always have to be the internet Given the lack of resources to produce media in the internet, traditional forms of communication such as puppet shows and story telling can serve as an alternative media to disseminate news and other traditional ways of communication and information, especially educational information What distinguishes alternative media from mainstream media is the substance, not necessarily the method of its publication 126 Appendix 5C Interview Questions Merlyna Lim, a scholar (January 2005) Internet has become a medium to encourage public feedback and participation Was that one of the reasons you said that the Internet and society shape and reshape each other? Please kindly elaborate Ho, Kluber and Yang (2003) concluded that side-effects of information technology developments in Asia are: growing inequality between social classes and nations, and the acceleration of brain drains How you agree or disagree with the statement? Based on your previous research, you find online journalism to bring negative or positive effect to the society? Has it affected people’s belief, attitude and preferences in any way? Do you find that online versions of print newspapers have more of financial interest than social responsibility? The Malaysian government and Malaysiakini.com have been in a strained relationship since the beginning Do you believe that the euphemism of ‘national security’ policy had changed journalism from government’s servant to freedom-of-speech activist (especially Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia)? Glaser of Online Journalism Review stated that 2003 was a tumultuous year for online journalism, including the first “Internet war” and the rise in influence for Weblogs and citizen journalism And Wilson of USAToday.com noted that the best sites can move quickly to develop a story in multiple directions, add depth and detail, and give readers their own pathways to explore In your opinion, these facts contribute to the developing of second reality in news exposed to the online news readers? 127 Answers from Ms Merlyna Lim Yes, that could be one of some reasons, however, your example actually only represents one direction of technology (Internet) – society relationship where technology is always seen as ‘having impact’ on society (and not vice versa) This is of course valid in itself, but it’s only one side of coins I actually am mostly criticizing the one-sided technological determinism view Since I believe that as much as ‘impacts’ technology (read: Internet) can have on society, society too can have impacts on technology Of important is how the Internet as a technology and medium was shaped (localized, modified, etc.) by technologists, engineers, policy makers and other actors (at global and national level, as well as lower level – sub-national/local) – this contributes on how the Internet would impact society Yes, I agree These points are two of some possible (many) side-effects IT dev can have in Asia Yes, of course online journalism brings both effects and it can influence people’s belief, attitude and preferences However, my research also shows that most people have their own ‘habitus’ (inner identity), they have preferences that are shaped by religion, lifetime education, etc Thus before they read media, most people have already had ‘pictures in their minds’ (=metanarratives) and thus contents of media (online newspapers, etc) will always be interpreted based on these metanarratives Thus the level of change (influence) is located on the nexus of this interaction between someone’ mind/habitus/identity with the stories/arguments of media There’s no single answer to this Answers would be different depending on the socio-economic contexts of the online newspapers Of course, despite it’s being online or offline, media business always has a ‘financial element’ as one of its interests Well, it’s not so much about believing it or not Taking historical account into cases of these countries (as well as other countries in this world), it is evident that national security has always a tendency to suppress ‘unwanted’ voices Thus, naturally, there would always be some kind of resistance against this tendency However, it’s not the national security per se that has changed journalism from being a tool of propaganda of gov (gov’s servant, in your term) to supporting activists There’s more to it 128 Countries’ political contexts, historical accounts on the relationship of gov & press, etc also play important roles Yes and no Bluntly speaking, I am not so much into second reality exposure effects of the media Yes, I agree that media can influence readers’ views on certain reality However, mostly, readers actually have had already ‘pictures in minds’ on how to see “reality” presented by media see my answer #3 So, while websites enable readers to create ‘their own pathways’ in exploring stories/news, how they choose which stories they want to read and what stories they want to believe correspond more to the developing of (actually ‘developing’ is not the right term, perhaps ‘strengthening’) pre-existing reality they want to believe [...]... purpose of this study is to determine how the online media works in a country whose press is newly liberated, as in the case in Indonesia This study will examine the environment in which online journalism emerged in Indonesia It aims to identify and describe the processes by which online news are produced and consumed, as well as to ascertain the impact of online journalism in Indonesian politics The writer... production of online journalism in Indonesia represented by three selected online newspapers, the readership of the online newspapers, and the regulation governing newpapers The articulation of these factors is crucial to understanding the Indonesian public sphere generally and Indonesian online journalism specifically 1.5 Significance and Purpose of the Study There have been dramatic changes in the last... powers, advertising and state secrets 2.4 Online Journalism and Its Role in Indonesia As mentioned earlier, when the Internet first arrived in Indonesia, it was viewed as a technology of freedom (Hill and Sen, 2000:120) This probably explains the 1995 warnings of President Soeharto that the Internet would enable Indonesian activists to work against his regime (Hill and Sen, 2000:119) Indeed, the Internet... (in Ferdinand 2000:119) suggested that in order to understand the role of the Internet in Indonesia today, it is necessary to look at the bigger picture of the complex Indonesian public sphere According to Darmaputera (1988:26), in the Indonesian public sphere, unity and diversity coexist equally The differences within Indonesia have become the nation’s character, and to consider only the unity of Indonesia. .. Emergence of Online Media in Indonesia In October 1995, President Soeharto received warnings that there were certain “formless organizations” which were propagating communist teachings in the guise of concern for human rights and democracy (Harsono, 1996:6) This information referred to the Internet, which was unheard of at that time in Indonesia, because it was only used in a few higher academic institutions... February 2008 35 Figure 2: Online and offline communication model in Indonesia Source: Merlyna Lim, 2003 In Figure 2, Professor Lim argues that the two-step flow was responsible for the successful distribution of information in Indonesia and that during the reformation movement in 1998 the interconnectedness of online media users played an important role In Lim’s theory of “interconnectedness”, one reader... five years in 1990 (Lubis and Abdullah, 1981:100) As a result of this restraining and integrative culture, Indonesia gained the reputation of having one of the most controlled news media systems in the world (Freedom House, 1999) According to Hill and Sen the Indonesian press was regulated for both ideological reasons and economic interests by the Ministry of Information and the Ministry of Industry... decade in the way people in Indonesia communicate since the Reformation took place in 1998 The development of the Indonesian media is linked to the end of an authoritarian era as well as to the developments in electronic communications and the changing character of the information and communications industry Examples of the dramatic changes in the Indonesian media environment are: the change in license... without one controlling power In the case of Indonesia, De Tocqueville’s concept translates into the philosophical basis of Indonesia, i.e “Pancasila” – which means “five principles” The five inseparable and interrelated principles are: 1) Belief in the one and only God; 2) Just and civilized humanity; 3) The unity of Indonesia; 4) Democracy guided by the inner wisdom in the unanimity arising out of deliberations... of people are indirectly brought together Printed – and now online – newspapers play a part in enabling geographically separated readers to be together in the mind without direct interaction With online journalism, “news audiences are no longer necessarily determined by the geographic, political, or cultural (e.g., language) boundaries predominant in the world of analog media” (Pavlik in Albarran and ... determine how the online media works in a country whose press is newly liberated, as in the case in Indonesia This study will examine the environment in which online journalism emerged in Indonesia. .. promoting practice of democracy in Indonesia? The next chapter will discuss the methodology adopted to research online journalism in Indonesia involving the three prominent online news providers mentioned... described in Chapter Two Their studies focused on the ways online media were being utilized to fight for democracy in Indonesia This study will examine the role of online journalism in facilitating