Today is Tuesday. Did You Buy A Newspaper Today?
January 29, 2008
Today’s Tuesday, and that means it’s boycott the newspaper day! That means I will refrain from buying any government owned print media every Tuesday. This boycott has already been on-going for me for more than a year, and I am proud to say I have not contributed more than RM10 to any newspaper organization for the past 2 years.
This boycott the newspaper initiative is headed by Haris Ibrahim and Helen Ang, both of the People’s Parliament blog. The initiative is a form of protest against the lies and half truths that are frequently printed, which are all biased towards the government’s favor.
Who can forget the lies that only 4000 people took to the streets on Nov 10th 2007 during the Bersih rally? Who can forget the lies that the protestors were violent during the Bersih rally instead of the police who were the ones instigating the violence? Who can forget the lies that the newspaper frequently prints, like the unsubstantiated claim by the chief of police that the Hindraf leaders were linked to terrorism?
For ALL the details on this ‘Hartal’, head on to Haris’ blog here.
Just a quick note on something I found humorous:
Malaysiakini reported it this way:
Every Tuesday, lawyer-cum-blogger Haris Ibrahim will not buy newspapers. Neither will at least seven other individuals who have joined him in a boycott of Malaysia’s print media.
Haris, who runs The People’s Parliament - a website advocating change on several fronts - launched the campaign today at a press conference in Bukit Damansara, Kuala Lumpur.
Ironically, his intentions were announced before journalists covering the event, some of whom appeared offended by the campaign.
All I have to say is, I don’t think the campaign is aimed at journalists who does their job of reporting the truth. The campaign is most likely against the editors and owners of the newspapers. So I hope those journalists don’t get too hurt.
So what do you think of this initiative? Is it worth supporting? Please share your thoughts in the comment box 
P.S. Have been swamped with work lately. Everything will get cleared up by tomorrow, and should resume normal blogging by Friday. I’ve got tons to write, so stay tuned!
You Might Find These Interesting
- Government-owned Media Front Page News: Agong Allegedly Disapproves of Bersih
- Malaysia Government Building a Police State? The Culture of Fear and Intimidation (2)
- Bersih Gathering Aftermath: Reports/Views From Other Blogs
- Bersih Gathering: Mainstream Media Silence And Lies
- No Tear Gas And Water Cannon Used At Batu Caves Temple
Thank you for reading Malaysians Say The Darndest Things! If you like what you just read, you should consider subscribing to this blog in a feedreader. Alternatively, you could also subscribe via email, and you will get a daily digest of the day's posts. Your email is strictly protected and will never be used for spam or marketing purposes.
15 Responses to “Today is Tuesday. Did You Buy A Newspaper Today?”
Add your comment
Haha. My household only buys newspapers on Sat (for the jobs section) and Sunday (for the car sections). News? You mean newspapers carries news still?
January 29, 2008 at 12:10 pm
Apparently people still like reading news like bomoh’s helping to find a missing girl and also how a lady gave Badawi a rose. This is news la.
January 29, 2008 at 12:14 pm
Long time not buying the newspaper oledi, for they are just feeding us lies and nothing else,if we buy, we only contribute to their pockets and buying their lies
Enough is Enough!
January 29, 2008 at 12:33 pm
I read the news online. SAVE THE TREES… Save our Lungs… Save Oxygen
January 29, 2008 at 1:01 pm
Okay, I read the Sun then, it’s free
January 29, 2008 at 1:10 pm
We stopped buying newspapers a long time back. Read for free now.
January 29, 2008 at 1:48 pm
CW Woo,
Yeah lo, don’t legitimize their lies by giving them more money.
ahmog,
Yeah, online news as good as the ones in paper, maybe even better.
Joseph,
I’ve got today’s Sun as well. We’ll see how much independence the Sun will maintain since Vincent Tan bought it over.
hutchrun,
Good for you! I diverted all my newspaper buying to buy a Malaysiakini subscription. Certainly worth every cent so far.
January 29, 2008 at 2:02 pm
Today, I bought more newspapers than my usual quota because PP erroneously held their PC on Monday (duh…), so have to check if any papers covered the story mah!
January 29, 2008 at 2:38 pm
I totally support the “Boycott the newspaper every Tuesday” campaign initiated by Haris Ibrahim and Helen Ang.
Let’s stand united on this campaign and boycott the lies and half truth of the newspapers.
I never misses my daily newspaper but will go one step further by not buying newspaper tuesday,thursday and saturday for a start.
Hopefully,in the very near future ,I will be able to stop relying on the newspapers for my daily news.
January 29, 2008 at 3:13 pm
my household buys newspapers… but i don’t read them–AT ALL! does that count?
that and i’m conveniently in a different part of the world for the tuesday boycott 
January 31, 2008 at 12:45 am
elizabeth wong,
Don’t think it came up in the papers right?
Concerned Citizen,
That’s a great start.
seansean,
Enjoy Chicago btw.
Ah well, when you eventually move out from the household, you’ll get to make the decisions then
February 1, 2008 at 12:44 am
Today I saw in Pasar Seni notice boards pasted with sheets from mainstream newpapers. Immediately I remembered the article about PROPAGANDA you showed me last year, Kenny.
They’re feeding our subconscious with blatant lies every day. Give it enough time and all those without a strong conviction will soon buy BN’s lies.
February 1, 2008 at 3:37 am
Good idea! Will join the No-Newspaper-Tuesday movement!
February 3, 2008 at 10:01 pm
Henry,
That’s the power of news media in the country. Sometimes when I read, I have to ask myself, what’s the angle of the story and what are the papers trying to tell me.
ej,
Welcome to the movement!
February 10, 2008 at 2:31 pm
[...] to destroy a person’s credibility. How useful the papers are! Now you guys know why I have boycotted this paper for the past 2 [...]
March 6, 2008 at 4:07 pm