Bob Teoh, former editor of Mysinchew, the English-language online site of Sin Chew, takes exception to the conflict by MalaysiaKini columnist Joshua Hong upon Sin Chew as well as the longtime chief editor CC Liew, now handling director of the company. Bob recalls the time CC rescued the paper when it was during the point of fall (and negotiated the paper's return from suspension in Operation Lallang) as well as led it through to the present-day success.
By Bob Teoh
Josh Hong's malediction against Sin Chew Daily obviously shows he has an mattock to grind with them as well as he does so over the decorum of satisfactory comment.
His past columns in Malaysiakini had irritated even blogs similar to http://shuzheng.wordpress.com to term him as "Joshy: New voice in Chinese bashing, though an aged racist" as well as "a variant of Ridhuan (Tee of Utusan),[who] has Malaysiakini to deposit his vomit." Shuzheng's denigration is most hardhearted to Hong as well as additionally over the gathering of satisfactory comment as well as you do not subscribe to it in the least. But the point is which those who live by the long knife will certainly die by it.
Mine is not to urge Sin Chew. Let me be transparent about my association with Sin Chew Daily which stretches approach behind to the mid-1980s till not long ago when they invited me to help out in their English news portal. you left after two years as well as 10 months to take up an appointment in Indonesia the year ago.
Hong aptly prefaced his column by quoting Oscar Wilde: "By giving us the opinions of the uneducated, broadcasting keeps us in hold with the ignorance of the community."
One must be pretty untaught not to be means to assimilate which mainstream media all over the world serves usually the single purpose: an apologia or counterclaim of the establishment. For instance, The Wall Street Journal invariably is an apologist of Wall St! reet. Wh at else do you expect? Pravda, the former Soviet state; as well as here in Malaysia, Utusan to urge Ketuanan Melayu. Similarly, Sin Chew Daily is the mainstream media. Surely you do not design it to fool around the purpose of amicable media.
It does not make the difference whether Barisan or Pakatan is the government of the day, mainstream media will regularly be mainstream media. Needless to say, with the acceleration of the convergence culture, mainstream media is or will be significantly altered in form as well as substance, thus democratising the media.
Now let me residence Hong's two strident attacks: C.C. Liew as well as Tiong Hew King.
Metro, Sin Chew are tops, NST bottoms next 80000C.C. Liew was left holding the baby approach behind in the mid 1980s when the prior owners ran Sin Chew Daily to the ground as well as [the company] was in jeopardy with liquidation. Salaries as well as EPF were not paid, creditors were knocking during their doors. It was afterwards you came to know C.C. Liew. He was Sin Chew chief-in-chief as well as perplexing to put out the fire, while you was the ubiquitous secretary of the National Union of Journalists. The incident was so bad which Sin Chew was left with small option though to close down.
Out of desperation to keep the paper afloat, the NUJ even suggested the members in Sin Chew to take the extreme pay moratorium as well as whatever is overdue as well as accrued is to be converted in to shares in the association with an NUJ repute upon the house of directors. This didn't happen.
But in the Oct 1987 Ops Lallang, former PM Dr Mahathir Mohamad close down Sin Chew Daily together with The Star as well as Watan. Sin Chew's search for the customer came to an end. It is the journal with the journal licence. Nobody w! anted to buy the paper. C.C. Liew went knocking during the doors of any as well as every "suitable" Chinese businessmen though no customer was found. The last door he knocked upon was in Sibu lost in Sarawak. Tiong Hew King listened to Liew's proposition as well as decided to put in his money in the unwell journal which Sin Chew Daily afterwards was. The rest is history.
Sin Chew Daily didn't turn the #1 journal with weekday circulation even bigger the English writings by accident or sucking up to the government. When faced with no jobs or pay for some 6 months approach behind in 1987, most of the staff as well as reporters chose to remain, sustained usually by their steadfast faith which their journal will see the light of day nonetheless underneath C.C. Liew.
They are the unsung heroes; young NUJ members as well as officers behind afterwards though who have risen through the ranks to turn Sin Chew Daily's comparison editors today. you have worked with them nearly three decades ago as traffic unionists as well as not long ago in their editorial rooms. Theirs is an unenviable pursuit of perplexing to keep the fine change in between their readers, their owners, their advertisers as well as the powers which be. Every day. These are no armchair journalists. you am blissful to have been means to be counted as the comrade, the crony as well as the veteran between them, albeit usually for 34 months.
On Hong's conjecture of Tiong's ostensible conspiracy with Umno as well as MCA to monopolize as well as muzzle the Chinese media, you have no comments as you had emigrated to Australia before the deal went through as well as had zero more to do with the local media until recently.
It is fitting which Hong, in running down Sin Chew Daily viciously, additionally cited the correct obiter dictum: "To error is human, to forgive divine. When the single has been forced to swallow the vast slice of humble pie, what else can you say?"
Yes, indeed Hong, what else can you say?
Bob Teoh
via email
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