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PAS : KE ARAH PEMERINTAHAN ISLAM YANG ADIL
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HA...BAGUSLAH TU, LEPAS NIE BOLEHLAH PROMOTEKAN SI BEDEBAH ASTORA JABAT DARI
UTUSAN MELOYA GANTIKAN TEMPAT SI KADIR JASIN NIE...
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KL media chief Kadir Jasin steps down
Departure comes amid plummeting circulation of New Straits Times Press
papers and Umno soul-searching
By BRENDAN PEREIRA
IN KUALA LUMPUR
CHANGES are afoot at The New Straits Times Press as Datuk Kadir Jasin, the
group's plain-speaking editor-in-chief, makes way after 12 years at the
helm.
It is understood that the day-to-day running of the New Straits Times (NST)
newspaper will be handled by a committee, comprising senior editors and
experienced journalist Mazlan Nordin.
Political observers say the changes at one of Malaysia's oldest publishing
groups, a company linked to the ruling Umno, is a consequence of the party's
election post-mortem -- a continuous search for reasons that Prime Minister
Mahathir Mohamad's party performed below par at the polls.
After the November general election, there were rumblings in the Umno
hierarchy that the NST and its sister publications -- Berita Harian, Malay
Mail and Harian Metro -- were not effective in explaining issues in the
run-up to the polls.
There was also a concern that falling circulation in the group's stable of
publications had eroded its ability to influence readers seriously.
A series of articles in recent weeks are also said to have angered the
senior leadership in Umno.
One feature was particularly stinging in criticising the Umno Supreme
Council's decision that there should be no contest for the posts of
president and deputy president at the party elections in May.
Among other things, the article said: "The pretext of unity, as reason
enough to suspend party democracy and all its attendant negative
consequences, comes a little too late.
"What the Supreme Council has done is to put its own interests before that
of the nation's. That is nothing less than a dereliction of duty."
It is understood that Datuk Kadir, who rose up the ranks, met his senior
editors last Saturday and indicated that he was under some pressure, but
added that the pressure came with the job.
More than 28 months ago, Datuk Ahmad Nazri Abdullah, a close ally of Anwar
Ibrahim, resigned as chief editor of Berita Harian in a reshuffle that saw
the departure of supporters of the former Deputy Prime Minister.
After that, Datuk Kadir became Malaysia's undisputed media chief.
But he faced a daunting task of boosting the falling circulation of the NST,
Malay Mail and Berita Harian -- a task made more onerous with the sacking of
Anwar and the anger against the government that the episode unleashed.
Sales of all the newspapers -- viewed as pro-government -- plummeted as some
Malaysians questioned the credibility of reports and features.
At the same time, the sales of Harakah, the newspaper of the opposition
Islamic party, rocketed from 75,000 to 300,000, allowing PAS to reach a
larger segment of the population.
Datuk Kadir once wrote in one of his Sunday columns:
"Editors may not be elected like a Member of Parliament or a state
assemblyman. But they are subjected to daily 'voting' by the readers.
"If the readers do not like the policy of a newspaper or the manner it
treats an issue, they will not buy that newspaper. That is their right."
The group attempted to make its publications more attractive by revamping
the design of the NST and Malay Mail, and has also offered more space for
columnists with alternative views.
Circulation has only picked up slightly, sources say, prompting the decision
for a change at the top.
It is understood that a search for someone to fill the No. 1 post is
underway.
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