CHAPTER I: Introduction
Sections
1. New Media and Democracy in Asia
2. New Media and Politics in Malaysia
3. Media-ization of Politics: Challenges to Democracy
4. Political Public Relations and Advertising
5. Online Campaign Strategies
Conclusion to Chapter
This introductory chapter sets out the landscape of the political environment in Asia since the emergence of new communications technology, which has challenged the dominance of traditional media. This development can be clearly seen in Malaysia, where the government, in 1996, introduced the Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC), a national information communications technology (ICT) initiative to attract world-class technology companies while grooming local players.
The expansion of digital technologies has impacted Malaysian politics, which saw the then-incumbent Barisan Nasional (BN) government losing two-thirds control of Parliament and five states to the then-opposition in the 2008 General Election. The 2013 General Elections also saw proliferation of new communications technology in political campaigning but the BN government maintained its grip on power, despite losing the popular vote. The 2018 was the watershed moment as Malaysians voted to peacefully oust the BN government, which had been in control since its independence in 1957.
This chapter will outline the evolution of the use of new media in political communication and discuss the effect of media-ization on the political process. It will also look at strategies that utilised by political actors to further their online media communications, such as political public relations and advertising, and explore how politics in Malaysia is becoming increasingly professionalised with the reliance on media and other technical professionals in the political process.
CHAPTER II: New Media, New Politics
Sections
1. The Internet’s Transforming Effect on Democracy
2. E-Democracy: Boon or Bane?
3. Political Movements and New Media
4. Alternative News, Alternative Facts - A Need for Media Literacy?
This chapter seeks to explore the developing online media environment and its ramifications on the political situation in Malaysia. It also aims to examine the benefits and disadvantages of e-democracy as well as the role new media in initiating and sparking the growth of grassroots civil society activism. Another consequence of the proliferation of new media in the public sphere is the appearance of propaganda in the form of “fake” or “alternative” news, which has caused confusion among the online audience, who do not have sufficient media literacy to authenticate the information that they receive.
CHAPTER III: Public Sphere in the Digital Age
Sections
1. Web 1.0 to 2.0: Development of the Online Public Sphere
2. Cyber-Warfare and Propaganda: Anonymity and Abuse
3. Regulating the New Media
This chapter will examine the development of Malaysia’s online public sphere in political communication, from the use of e-mail and usenet groups, to blogs and websites, and now, social media. It will also investigate the rise in the use of cyber-troopers to influence public opinion and support among Internet users. This chapter will also track the increase in online abuse – from fake accounts to the use of “bots” as well as abusive or hate speech. Even though the Multimedia Super Corridor Bill of Guarantees states that there should not be any Internet censorship, the government has been tightening regulations and increasing enforcement, notably with the introduction of the Anti-Fake News Act.
CHAPTER IV: Election Campaigns and New Media in Malaysia
Sections
1. The Role and Impact of New Media on Election Campaigns
2. General Elections in Malaysia
(a) 2008
(b) 2013
(c) 2018
The fourth chapter will trace the history and purpose, as well as the role and impact of the Internet on election campaigns. Next, it will sketch out the background of political campaigns and the use of communication strategies from the 2008 General Elections to the most recent one in 2018.
CHAPTER V: New Media and Political Change
Sections
1. Awareness and Information Dissemination
2. Feedback and Engagement
3. Accountability and Transparency
4. Networking and Cyber-Communities
5. New Media and Voter Persuasion
The last chapter will look at the changes in the political process and setting that has emerged due to the extensive use of new media which has now been entrenched in the Malaysian media scene. It will delve into the issues of the use of new media among Malaysian citizens, especially in Web 2.0 where there is two-way communication and the potential of new media being used for offline action. This chapter will also scrutinise how new media can be the Fifth Estate, as a watchdog to promote accountability and transparency. Finally, it will also investigate how new media can utilised by political actors to persuade voters, which is the ultimate aim to gain political power.
CHAPTER VI: Conclusion
The conclusion will wrap up the discussion in the previous chapters.
