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| source from problogger.net |
Blog is defined as:
‘A Web site that contains an online personal journal with reflections, comments, and often hyperlinks provided by the writer’ (Merriam-Webster online)
(Statistic on Technorati.com)
Blogosphere in current decade has changed the communication flow and how information is shared and accessed. Pingdom (2011) states there are 152 million of blogs on the Internet over 2010 tracked by BlogPulse. Based on chart below, it showed blogs are more trendier in western countries compared to Asia-Pacific region.
Smeltzer (n.d) describes the state of mainstream media in Malaysia is mainly owned and controlled by ruling coalition within enforcement of restrictive laws such as Printing Presses and Publications Act, etc. Hence, mainstream media such as TV, newspapers and radio agencies have to practice self censorship which certainly leads to limited diversity of information, voices and opinions.
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| source from digital buzz blog |
However, citizens are given opportunity to receive uncensored voice out their opinion though alternative media. Smeltzer (n.d) explains Malaysian political blogs is aimed to confront the mainstream media and status quo control by serving spaces for bloggers to share information, circulate news, discuss issues and events with their readers.
As a result, Barisan Nasional lost its general election in 2008 due to disinterest access to cyberspace. According to New Straits Times (Smeltzer,n.d), Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said that:
‘We didn’t think it was important. It was a serious misjudgment. We thought that the newspapers, the print media, the television were important but young people were looking at text messages and blogs. (The influence of alternative media) was painful. But it came at the right time, not too late’
This shows the power of alternative media in influencing a nation's lives which traditional mainstream media can barely keep up in modern democratic world. According to Habermas (Thornton, 1996), normative notion of public sphere is part of social life whereby citizens could exchange view on important matters such as issues of political concern discussion in order to form public opinion so to achieve common good.
Indeed, bloggers are able to communicate and interact with wider audiences from different countries. Blogs encourage sharing of expertise and knowledge, exchanging of views in forum or discussion board. Besides, bloggers can make money either by selling or promoting products and services for certain organization.
References
Pingdom 2011, Internet 2010 in numbers [Internet], viewed 20 August 2011,
Sani & Zengeni (n.d), Democratisation in Malaysia: The impact of Social Media in the 2008 General Election, viewed 20 August 2011,
Thornton, A. 1996, Does Internet create democracy, viewed 20 August 2011,
http://www.zipworld.com.au/~athornto/thesis2.htm
Smeltzer, S.C (n.d), Blogging in Malaysia: Hope for a New Democratic Technology? viewed 20 August 2011,
http://www.cprsouth.org/wp-content/uploads/drupal/Sandra_Smeltzer.pdf
Smeltzer, S.C (n.d), Blogging in Malaysia: Hope for a New Democratic Technology? viewed 20 August 2011,
http://www.cprsouth.org/wp-content/uploads/drupal/Sandra_Smeltzer.pdf
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