GROUP MEMBERS:

Zarith Arisya binti Khairul Adzha (3202000981)

Nadzirah binti Indra (3202000601 )
Syarril Rezza bin Badruz Zahi (3202030721)

COURSE:

Understanding Communication Theories (JMD 3113)

LECTURER’S NAME:

Mdm. Azira binti Azlin

TITLE:

Assignment 2
PART 1

Agenda Setting Theory is the impact of the media on the presentation of news items and
topics that affect the public mind. When a particular news item is given more priority and
attention than other news, the audience will instinctively see it as the most significant news and
information given to them. The media sets the priorities of which news comes first and then the
next based on how people think and how much influence it will have on the audience. Agenda
setting is accomplished through a cognitive process known as "accessibility." The media
provides the most relevant food for thought, portrays major societal issues, and reflects people's
minds.

Framing is a process of selective control. It has two meanings. The manner in which news
content is typically shaped and contextualized within the same frame of reference. The audience
adopts the frames of reference and sees the world in a similar way. This is how people attach
significance to a piece of news and perceive the context in which an issue is viewed. Framing is
concerned with how people value various pieces of news. For example, in the case of an attack,
defeat, win, or loss, the media frames the news in such a way that people perceive it from a
different perspective.

First article : Rina was cleaning bird droppings, says dept by FMT Reporters
Second article : Pasca Banjir | JKM perjelas isu Rina Harun by Astro Awani Youtube
Third article : MP says sad to see Welfare Dept defending Rina Harun’s waterjet ‘antics’ by
MalayMail

PART 2
I. On 26 December 2021, Women, family and community development minister Datuk Seri
Rina Harun Rina had drawn flak from netizens after a video of her surfaced using a water jet to
wash an apparently clean patch of pavement while surrounded by cameramen yesterday. She was
involved in cleaning up the SK Salak Tinggi relief centre and someone uploaded a video of her
cleaning the relief centre. The video became viral and received lots of hate comments on social
media.

A day after that, after Malaysians mocked her for allegedly hosing down already-clean drains,
the department published a clarification to explain that the women, family, and community
development minister was power-washing bird and lizard droppings.

After the press release was published, netizens still bashing and give a lot of hate comments
towards her.

II. The Malay Mail is a Malaysian newspaper that originally appeared on December 1, 1896,
when Kuala Lumpur was the capital of the then-new Federated Malay States, making it the
FMS's first daily newspaper. Professionals, managers, executives, and businessmen are their
primary target audiences (PMEBs). Through its own company, NSTP Berhad, the Malay Mail
was tied to another daily newspaper, the New Straits Times. On May 5, 2006, Media Prima
Berhad reintroduced the Malay Mail as a free afternoon edition, however it was still unable to
reverse its losses. It was then sold to Datuk Ibrahim Mohd Nor of Blue Inc, who tried a free
model with an emphasis on Klang Valley news in 2008 under the management of Datuk 'Rocky'
Ahiruddin Attan, but it failed. In 2012, a group of businessmen led by Dato' Siew Ka Wei of the
Ancom Group of Companies purchased the newspaper. Siew's introduction into the media sector
was marked by the formation of the Redberry Media Group, which included advertising assets
such as airports, buses, theaters, and billboards. Malay Mail has a few stockholders in common
with Redberry and Ancom. Tan Sri Mohd Al Amin Abdul Majid and Datuk Rocky are the other
directors of Malay Mail, in addition to Siew. The Malay Mail Online website
(www.themalaymailonline.com) was founded in 2013 and quickly became popular among people
looking for independent news. The website was redesigned and relaunched in 2018 as
www.malaymail.com. Malay Mail declared on October 25th that it will stop printing on
December 1st and go completely digital on December 2nd.

Astro Awani is a pay television news station in Malaysia. Its programming includes current
events, lifestyle, documentaries, interview shows, and a local and international magazine, among
other things. The channel debuted on September 6, 2007, as part of Astro's reorganization of its
news segment. Malaysia, Brunei, and Indonesia are the countries targeted. Astro awani network
sdn bhd is the company's owner.

Free Malaysia Today (FMT) is an independent, bilingual news web portal with information, in
both English and Bahasa Malaysia (Malay), with a focus on Malaysian current affairs, published
since 2009. Free Malaysia Today emerged from the aftermath of the 1990s Reformasi period in
Malaysian history, during which Malaysia's government, under Malaysian prime minister
Mahathir Mohamad, attacked various journalistic media in response to their efforts to investigate
the government — particularly its prosecution of Malaysian deputy prime minister Anwar
Ibrahim. At that time (and reportedly as recent as 2013) most of Malaysia's mainstream media —
including principal newspapers and the country's four main TV stations — were heavily
dominated by ownership of, or affiliation with, Malaysia's ruling long-time ruling Barisan
Nasional (National Front) party ("BN") and its coalition. This led to popular fears that objective
media coverage of political matters was not happening. During this period of BN-party media
domination and suppression (coincidentally during the rise of the World Wide Web), several
prominent online media sites emerged in Malaysia — featuring news, commentary and
investigative journalism — including Malaysia Today, Malaysian Mirror, Malaysian Insider, and
the Nut Graph. These sites were not subject to the same stringent rules and regulation as
mainstream media, giving greater editorial flexibility for the internet media. Among these new
sites was FreeMalaysia.com — notably notable for its aggressive expose's of suspected
wrongdoing in Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad's administration. FreeMalaysia.com was then
accused by the government of being a threat to "national security." The site later terminated
operations, but has been described as the "predecessor" of Free Malaysia Today.

III. Segambut MP Hannah Yeoh said she was disappointed with the Social Welfare
Department (JKM) for defending Datuk Seri Rina Mohd Harun over a video of her
power-washing drains, saying it has tarnished its own image by associating with the minister's
"antics". Last night, the department issued a clarification to explain that the women, family and
community development minister was power-washing bird and lizard droppings, after
Malaysians mocked her for seemingly hosing down already-clean drains. “But the minister's
antics have demeaned the JKM officers. It is not fair to them,” said the former women, family
and community development deputy minister. Yesterday, a video of Rina power-washing the
clear drains at the Sekolah Kebangsaan Salak Tinggi relief centre was shared online, leading to
Malaysians accusing the minister of putting up a show in supporting flood relief efforts. This
article was written on Monday, December 27th 2021 by Justin Ong.

FMT reporter also wrote this article on December 27th. Women, family and community
development minister Rina Harun had helped to clean bird dropping stains at a flood relief
centre, the social welfare department (JKM) clarified last night. Rina had drawn flak from
netizens after a video of her surfaced using a water jet to wash an apparently clean patch of
pavement while surrounded by cameramen yesterday. Since the water jet was already there, she
accepted the request and did the work with an open heart," it said. It said Rina and other
Keluarga Malaysia volunteers had also cleaned and rearranged the tables and chairs in the
classrooms in preparation for the new school session. Previously, Rina had responded to
criticism on social media of her wearing high heels at a flood relief centre, stating she did not
have time to change her shoes after attending Bersatu's general assembly earlier in the day.

The statement said JKM was very pleased with Rina's willingness to participate in the operation
which was not only involved in cleaning the area but also together with Malaysian Family
Volunteers tidying up the classroom, sweeping the floor and classroom windows, arranging
student desks and chairs so that the situation returns. As usual, the school session will open soon.
According to JKM, Rina also packed the tents used by the flood victims for storage for future
use. “JKM feels that it is unfair for netizens to make accusations and belittle the efforts and
involvement of YB Datuk Seri Rina in this clean -up operation,” he said. JKM also calls and
welcomes more people to come forward to register and get involved as Malaysian Family
Volunteers in the mission to help post-flood operations instead of creating and spreading useless
provocations. Astro Awani published the news video on their Youtube channel and it was posted
on December 27th, 2021.

IV. According to malaymail.com, it all started when Segambut MP Hannah Yeoh said she was
disappointed with the Social Wellfare Department (JKM) for defending Women, Family and
Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Rina Mohd Harun over a video of her
power-washing drains, claiming that the department had ruined its own image by associating
with the minister “antics.” The night of December 26th 2021, the Social Wellfare Department
(JKM) published a clarification to explain that the Women, Family and Community
Development Minister was power-washing bird and lizard droppings, after Malaysians mocked
her for allegedly hosing down already-clean drains. From the start, it highlights the
disappointment of Segambut MP Hannah Yeoh. The most quoted in this news is Women, Family
and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Rina Mohd Harun. malaymail.com
significantly wrote a short article because the main point of the news is to show the upsetness of
Hannah Yeoh, Segambut MP. The framing used is social (ibid) because at the time being, almost
all Malaysians talk about. I seriously agreed that the news article is biased because even though
they emphasize the disappointment of Segambut MP Hannah Yeoh, they keep on mentioning the
reason why Datuk Seri Rina Mohd Harun used the pressured power-washer. In my opinion,
malaymail.com really shows its support to Datuk Seri Rina Mohd Harun because of how
influential she is amongst the current members of ministers in Malaysia. freemalaysiatoday.com
started their news with the Social Wellfare Department (JKM) clarification that Datuk Seri Rina
Harun had helped to clean bird dropping stains at a flood relief centre. Datuk Seri Rina Harun is
the most quoted in the news since the main subject of this news article is herself. The picture
used in this article is the one she is using the water jet to clean on an apparently clean patch of
pavement at the relief centre. This news article can be considered as a short article even though it
has 7 paragraphs but on each paragraph, there is only a few lines of wording. It was written short
because it truly drew the attention to Datuk Seri Rina Mohd Harun cleaning the clean pavement
with a water jet. The framing used is also social whereby the netizens keep on talking about it
which results in national attention. I highly agree that the news article is not biased because
freemalaysiatoday.com wrote more flaws than her goodness. For example, in the last paragraph,
they mentioned Datuk Seri Rina Mohd Harun's previous criticism where she wore her high heels
at a flood relief centre, stating that she did not have time to change her shoes after attending
Bersatu’s general assembly earlier in the day. As far as I can see, the agenda really stands out
where freemalaysiatoday.com decided not to support Datuk Rina Mohd Harun’s action, but to
point out the real thing that happened during the day. That is why the caption for the picture used
is pointing out every netizens opinion about her action. Based on the Youtube video posted by
Astro Awani on December 27th 2021, they highlight that the Social Welfare Department (JKM)
denied that the Minister of Women, Family, and Community Development took images of herself
washing clean cement while participating in the post-flood activity on Sunday. Through the
statement, JKM also expressed its dissatisfaction with netizens who made charges and
underestimated Datuk Seri Rina Mohd Harun's efforts and engagement in the clean-up operation.
According to the video, the news starts with the JKM statement and the emphasis on that context
is very strong because of how supportive Astro Awani is towards Datuk Seri Rina Mohd Harun.
From this scene, we can totally see that this posting is biased because it supports the government
very strongly. The most quoted in this article is obviously Datuk Seri Rina Harun, Minister of
Women, Family and Community Development. In the Youtube video, only videos that go viral
nationwide were used and there is no picture of it. With a 1:06 minute Youtube video, it can be
considered short because Awani only tells the statement that denies the netizens' bashing. The
framing used in the Astro Awani video is natural because it identifies events as physical
occurrences and refrains from attributing any social forces to the causation of events.

PART 3
Overall, the media we chose really want us readers to grasp the issue positively. This is
because two of our media choices show their support for Datuk Seri Rina Mohd Harun which is
Astro Awani and malaymail.com. The other one, freemalaysiatoday.com is not being one-sided
because they listen to what the netizens were saying on that viral issue. Each agenda is different
because of how the news sources framed their perspectives towards the issue. Firstly,
malaymail.com emphasizes or focuses on the issue where they exclude any views by the netizens
because that would only disturb the agenda they’re trying to showcase. They also have described
the viral issue thoroughly so that whenever someone reads their news article, they understand it
clearly and with that case, their agenda is a success.

Next, is freemalaysiatoday.com took a surprising move in which they wrote mostly about the
flaws of Datuk Seri Rina Mohd Harun flaws rather than her goodness in an article. This can be
seen in the caption below the viral video which is being taken from Twitter. It says “Rina Harun
using a water jet on a apparently clean patch of pavement at the relief centre”. Not just that, FMT
also mentioned back her viral issue where she wore her high heels at a flood relief centre,
claiming that she did not have the time to change to a proper shoe. Even though they are not
biased too much to Datuk Seri Rina Mohd Harun, FMT still explained the issue with consent.
Finally, a Youtube video of a news story about the Social Welfare Department (JKM) denies that
the Minister of Women, Family and Community Development only took pictures washing clean
cement when involved in the post-flood operation on Sunday. Through the news reporter, JKM
also felt unfair when netizens made accusations and belittled the efforts and involvement of
Datuk Seri Rina Mohd Harun in the clean-up operation. Astro Awani strongly defends Datuk
Seri Rina Mohd Harun action because they support the government very much and are biased
towards them. That is why, whenever one reads this issue in Awani portal or watches the
Youtube video of Rina Harun viral issue, they could possibly change the society perspective
towards the shameful issue.

REFERENCE

Astro Awani. (2021a, December 27). Bukan sekadar “posing”, Rina Harun sedang cuci
kesan najis - JKM perjelas isu tular. astroawani.com.
https://www.astroawani.com/berita-malaysia/bukan-sekadar-posing-rina-harun-sedang-cu
ci-kesan-najis-jkm-perjelas-isu-tular-338531

Astro Awani. (2021b, December 27). Pascabanjir | JKM perjelas isu Rina Harun.
astroawani.com.
https://www.astroawani.com/video-malaysia/pascabanjir-jkm-perjelas-isu-rina-harun-194
1572

Media Frames. (2021, October 11). Diggit Magazine.

https://www.diggitmagazine.com/wiki/media-frames#:%7E:text=There%20are%20two%
20types%20of,are%20built%20on%20natural%20frameworks.

Ong, J. (2021, December 26). MP says sad to see Welfare Dept defending Rina Harun’s
waterjet ‘antics.’ Malaysia | Malay Mail.
https://www.malaymail.com/amp/news/malaysia/2021/12/27/mp-says-sad-to-see-welfare-
dept-defending-rina-haruns-waterjet-antics/2031302

Pasca Banjir | JKM perjelas isu Rina Harun #MaxisBiggestSales. (2021, December 26).
[Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOB9vyy8DvI

Rina was cleaning bird droppings, says dept. (2021, December 27). Free Malaysia Today.
https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2021/12/27/rina-was-cleaning-bird-d
roppings-says-dept/
A. (2019, October 27). Agenda Setting Theory. Communication Theory.
https://www.communicationtheory.org/agenda-setting-theory/

Wikipedia contributors. (2021, November 16). Malay Mail. Wikipedia.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malay_Mail

Wikipedia contributors. (2022a, February 13). Astro Awani. Wikipedia.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astro_Awani

Wikipedia contributors. (2022b, February 16). Free Malaysia Today. Wikipedia.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_Malaysia_Today