masterwordsmith-unplugged

I was filled with much sadness when I read the NYT report by Rachel Donadio, Alan Cowell and Eamon Quinn (reporting from Vatican City, Paris and Dublin respectively) about a sex abuse scandal that spread across Europe, including Germany. There, Pope Benedict XVI apologized directly and personally to victims and their families in Ireland, expressing “shame and remorse” and saying “your trust had been betrayed and your dignity has been violated.”



I feel very sorry for the victims of the abuse that went on for DECADES and the fact that they have had to live with this for the greater part of their lives in silence and in pain. When they had the courage to speak up, they met a cold wall of disbelief. I truly pray that the victims will go through the process of inner healing. Sadly, he did not specifically speak of the form of punishment.

Excerpt from the report:

His message, in a long-awaited, eight-page pastoral letter to Irish Catholics, seemed couched in strong and passionate language. But it did not refer directly to immediate disciplinary action beyond sending a special apostolic delegation to investigate unspecified dioceses and religious congregations in Ireland. Moreover, it was, as the Vatican said it would be, focused particularly on the situation in Ireland, even as the crisis has widened among Catholics in Ireland, Austria, the Netherlands and Germany.

“You have suffered grievously and I am truly sorry. I know that nothing can undo the wrong you have endured. Your trust has been betrayed and your dignity has been violated,” the pope told Irish victims and their families. ...

Nowhere in the letter did Benedict address the responsibility of the Vatican itself. Many victims’ groups have criticized the Vatican for not recognizing the depth and scope of the abuse crisis sooner. Nor did he use the term punishment, or spell out any consequences for clergy or bishops who had not upheld canon or civil law. Indeed, he laid blame firmly with Irish Catholic leaders.

“I can only share in the dismay and the sense of betrayal that so many of you have experienced on learning of these sinful and criminal acts and the way church authorities in Ireland dealt with them,” he said. Addressing a section of his letter to abusers, the pope said they must “answer for it before Almighty God and before properly constituted tribunals” urging them to pray for forgiveness, “submit yourselves to the demands of justice, but do not despair of God’s mercy.” He did not specify the nature of the tribunals. CLICK HERE to read more.

In the realm of media, we dream of objectivity and writing that is free of bias. Ideally, any news item should demonstrate objectivity in that the reporter discusses both sides of the story without voicing his/her stand. Realistically, is objectivity possible and practical in Malaysia given the obvious circumstances?



Theoretically speaking, objective journalism, a style of writing that became more popular in the late 19th century, is supposed to be the norm today. During my Journalism classes, I remember the inverted pyramid formula where we were taught to list the most important facts (who, what, where, when,why, and how)first, followed by facts in decreasing order of importance. Objective journalism is descriptive writing executed in simple, concise and unemotional language that gets the point across easily. This allows readers to get the gist of the story without reading or watching the whole thing.

However, objectivity may be difficult to achieve depending on a few factors such as editorial decisions/definition of newsworthiness which are subjective decisions that could influence public perception of issues.

The way some prioritize issues may also influence public perception not forgetting how the whole story is framed and the angle used to project the news. Such decisions must also take into consideration the reaction of the readers.

If the news item is currently popular, writers could ride on the wave of popularity and feature the news more prominently for more reader responses to engage them in a forum. No matter how difficult it is, writers in MSM and new media must observe ethics in journalism and the principle of objectivity. All writers must make a concerted effort to present bias-free news and attribute their sources to increase news credibility.

I am raising these issues out of concern because of recent incidents which show how some media seem to lack objectivity in reporting and appear to have kissed goodbye to ethics in journalism. At the same time, there seems to be two different sets of standards when dealing with different media. You can read more about it in the Malaysiakini article called Why China Press punished, not Utusan?

Suffice to say that if journalists and editors uphold journalistic principles, such situations would not arise. The issue of law enforcement is another matter which I will not discuss.

If you have the time, please read these two brilliant papers on objectivity in reporting:

a) The Fading Mystique of an Objective Press written by Doug McGill

b) Objectivity as (Self-)Censorship : Against the Dogmatization of Professional Ethics in Journalism written by Horst Potker

c) Practising Objectivity or Imposing Censorship by racetalk

My former lecturers (during my undergraduate days as a mass communications student) were very strict with regards to journalistic principles, ethics, media and society theories/practises etc. To my former lecturers such as Dato Dr. Vincent Low, Prof. R Karthigesu, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mustafa Kamal Anuar, Dr. Khor Yoke Lin et al, I have never forgotten each one of you. I still hold you and those precious lessons you all taught me in my heart. For that, I thank you and may the Almighty bless you and yours always.

Do leave a comment if you wish to share your thoughts/views. Thanks. Have a lovely weekend!

The most frequent complaint of public hospitals is the long waiting list. Do you know that the Ministry of Health (MOH) has introduced the Full Paying Patient (FPP) scheme in 4 public hospitals in Malaysia. They are the Hospital Sultan Bahiyah in Alor Setar, Hospital Serdang and Hospital Sg. Buloh in Selangor and Hospital Sultan Ismail in Johor. This will be expanded to more hospitals soon. The FPP scheme allows doctors in government service to charge full fees to those patients who can afford it. Where do the lower income group, the Government servants and retirees go to get subsidized specialist treatment? Will they be pushed behind the line of the FPP queue? What will this do to the already long waiting list to see a government specialist?



Are you paying up to RM3000 in medical insurance every year and still have the nagging fear that this may not be enough cover when you need it most? The MOH has approved 43 new health tourism licenses to private hospitals. Medical centres are buying and trying to outdo each other in buying expensive high tech equipment. Private hospitals are adding more and more frills to their services. There is a lack of control by the authorities in the hospital charges. Will private health care be out of the reach of most locals and only affordable to the rich medical tourists?

What do you know about the 1Malaysia Clinic and its impact to you?

Not everyone is using public health care. But at the rate private health care costs are escalating, the day of affordable private health care may be out of reach of many people very soon. Come to this forum and find out what’s ailing our health care system.


HEALTH FOR ALL ( WHO declaration)

Excerpt from HERE:

In 1977, the World Health Assembly decided that the major social goal of governments and WHO should be the attainment by all people of the world by the year 2000 of a level of health that would permit them to lead a socially and economically productive life.


In 1981, the Assembly unanimously adopted the Global Strategy for Health for All by the Year 2000. This was the birth of the “Health for All” movement.

“Health for All” does not mean an end to disease and disability, or that doctors and nurses will care for everyone. It means that resources for health are evenly distributed and that essential healthcare is accessible to everyone.

It also means that health begins at home, in schools, as well as the workplace, and that people use better approaches for preventing means that people recognise that ill health is not inevitable and that they can shape their own lives and those of their families from the avoidable burden of disease.


This month the Sembang-sembang Forum are discussing health care issues. YB Dr. Jayakumar ( MP Sg. Siput ) will speak on problems in the Health Care Services. Details are as follows: