ID :
20603
Mon, 09/22/2008 - 15:29
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/20603
The shortlink copeid
RTM TO RESTRUCTURE, GO DIGITAL IN THREE YEARS
KUALA TERENGGANU (Malaysia), Sept 22 (Bernama) -- Radio Television Malaysia (RTM), Malaysia's national radio and television broadcasting station, is to undergo a restructuring over the next three years, with the emphasis on going digital and adding more regional and provincial news and issues on the RTM1 and RTM2 television channels.
Information Minister Ahmad Shabery Cheek said total digital broadcasting
would be achieved two years earlier than the five-year target.
He also said that television viewers of today were more inclined to know
what was happening in their vicinity than issues of a national nature.
"The trend has changed. Regional news is well received. What happens to a
boy in the backyard is, sometimes, more important than stock market news," he
told reporters after attending a breaking-of-fast reception with staff of the
Information Department here Sunday night.
"The people of Sarawak (East Malaysia state on Borneo island) want news on
Sarawak; those in Sabah (East Malaysia state on Borneo islad) want news on their
state. It is the same with the other states," he said, adding that it would not
be impossible to have simultaneous channels carrying provincial news with
digital broadcasting.
Ahmad Shabery said it was necessary for RTM, which was 34 years old, to
undergo a shift to maintain its relevance and not fall behind local private
television channels as well as government television channels of other
countries.
The minister called on RTM staff, especially those working in the states,
to upgrade their expertise and be ready to produce more provincial news.
He said RTM staff would be retrained and utilised to bring about the change
and streamline the existing system to compete with other disseminators of
information such as Internet blogs.
"I am giving personal attention to this change and I understand that the
RTM administration is fostering a change of mindset in the staff," he said.
Ahmad Shabery also praised BernamaTV for its presentation of news which he
said was well received by all quarters, including opposition political parties.
Although the news content of RTM1 and RTM2 was not exactly similar to that
of BernamaTV, this was a challenge which RTM should take up, he said.
-- BERNAMA
Information Minister Ahmad Shabery Cheek said total digital broadcasting
would be achieved two years earlier than the five-year target.
He also said that television viewers of today were more inclined to know
what was happening in their vicinity than issues of a national nature.
"The trend has changed. Regional news is well received. What happens to a
boy in the backyard is, sometimes, more important than stock market news," he
told reporters after attending a breaking-of-fast reception with staff of the
Information Department here Sunday night.
"The people of Sarawak (East Malaysia state on Borneo island) want news on
Sarawak; those in Sabah (East Malaysia state on Borneo islad) want news on their
state. It is the same with the other states," he said, adding that it would not
be impossible to have simultaneous channels carrying provincial news with
digital broadcasting.
Ahmad Shabery said it was necessary for RTM, which was 34 years old, to
undergo a shift to maintain its relevance and not fall behind local private
television channels as well as government television channels of other
countries.
The minister called on RTM staff, especially those working in the states,
to upgrade their expertise and be ready to produce more provincial news.
He said RTM staff would be retrained and utilised to bring about the change
and streamline the existing system to compete with other disseminators of
information such as Internet blogs.
"I am giving personal attention to this change and I understand that the
RTM administration is fostering a change of mindset in the staff," he said.
Ahmad Shabery also praised BernamaTV for its presentation of news which he
said was well received by all quarters, including opposition political parties.
Although the news content of RTM1 and RTM2 was not exactly similar to that
of BernamaTV, this was a challenge which RTM should take up, he said.
-- BERNAMA
