48
Vee Vian Thien
the government ’ s decision to retract its regulatory plans. Following 2009 proposals of
a Malaysia-wide Internet fi lter, politicians and civil-society activists greeted this proposal with furious criticism on the blogosphere. Less than a week later, the Malaysian
government retreated from this proposal, contradicting a Reuters report that it had
already issued tenders to software companies.
33
A Malaysian Form of “ Flash Mobs ” : Continuity in the Blogosphere ’ s Collective Action
In October 2010 police reports were lodged against three popular political blogs for
postings alleging corruption involving the information minister, coincidentally a
long-time critic of Malaysian bloggers.
34 These provided the impetus for another “ realworld ” mobilization of sociopolitical bloggers. A week after the police reports were
fi led, a group of bloggers, including former members of NAB, met in person and
resolved to replace NAB with Bloggers for Malaysia (BfM), whose objectives are signifi -
cantly less ambitious than NAB ’ s, perhaps in response to the diffi culties faced by NAB
in obtaining consensus on universal standards of blogger conduct. Instead, BfM
focuses on simply looking out for bloggers.
35 Both NAB and BfM share much in
common with “ fl ash mobs, ” powerful groups that form and dissolve rapidly. Much
like NAB ’ s relative dormancy after the initial uproar over legislative proposals in 2007,
there has been little reported action by BfM since October 21, 2010. However, the
distinguishing feature of these Malaysian “ fl ash mobs ” lies in the continuity of their
identity and composition.
The Wider Roles of the Malaysian Sociopolitical Blogosphere
In addition to gaining electoral visibility in 2008 and contesting linear regulatory
proposals between 2007 and 2010, the Malaysian political blogosphere plays several
other roles often associated in developed democracies with the mainstream press.
Blogs as the Fifth Estate
Falling through an Internet loophole in licensing and registration regimes that constrain the Malaysian mainstream media, Malaysian bloggers have taken it upon themselves to act as watchdogs of the government.
36 They report on issues omitted by the
mainstream media, set the public agenda in doing so, and provide refreshing, alternative viewpoints. For example, in early 2003, East Asia was affl icted by the fatal severe
acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) epidemic. Fearing widespread panic, the Malaysian
government required the mainstream media to downplay reporting on the issue,
prompting a frustrated Jeff Ooi to comb the Internet for international sources, collating and posting his fi ndings on his blog, Screenshots. Unexpectedly, Screenshots
Vee Vian Thien
the government ’ s decision to retract its regulatory plans. Following 2009 proposals of
a Malaysia-wide Internet fi lter, politicians and civil-society activists greeted this proposal with furious criticism on the blogosphere. Less than a week later, the Malaysian
government retreated from this proposal, contradicting a Reuters report that it had
already issued tenders to software companies.
33
A Malaysian Form of “ Flash Mobs ” : Continuity in the Blogosphere ’ s Collective Action
In October 2010 police reports were lodged against three popular political blogs for
postings alleging corruption involving the information minister, coincidentally a
long-time critic of Malaysian bloggers.
34 These provided the impetus for another “ realworld ” mobilization of sociopolitical bloggers. A week after the police reports were
fi led, a group of bloggers, including former members of NAB, met in person and
resolved to replace NAB with Bloggers for Malaysia (BfM), whose objectives are signifi -
cantly less ambitious than NAB ’ s, perhaps in response to the diffi culties faced by NAB
in obtaining consensus on universal standards of blogger conduct. Instead, BfM
focuses on simply looking out for bloggers.
35 Both NAB and BfM share much in
common with “ fl ash mobs, ” powerful groups that form and dissolve rapidly. Much
like NAB ’ s relative dormancy after the initial uproar over legislative proposals in 2007,
there has been little reported action by BfM since October 21, 2010. However, the
distinguishing feature of these Malaysian “ fl ash mobs ” lies in the continuity of their
identity and composition.
The Wider Roles of the Malaysian Sociopolitical Blogosphere
In addition to gaining electoral visibility in 2008 and contesting linear regulatory
proposals between 2007 and 2010, the Malaysian political blogosphere plays several
other roles often associated in developed democracies with the mainstream press.
Blogs as the Fifth Estate
Falling through an Internet loophole in licensing and registration regimes that constrain the Malaysian mainstream media, Malaysian bloggers have taken it upon themselves to act as watchdogs of the government.
36 They report on issues omitted by the
mainstream media, set the public agenda in doing so, and provide refreshing, alternative viewpoints. For example, in early 2003, East Asia was affl icted by the fatal severe
acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) epidemic. Fearing widespread panic, the Malaysian
government required the mainstream media to downplay reporting on the issue,
prompting a frustrated Jeff Ooi to comb the Internet for international sources, collating and posting his fi ndings on his blog, Screenshots. Unexpectedly, Screenshots