The Struggle for Digital Freedom of Speech
59
structure, low barriers to entry, and norm of inclusivity mean that BN supporters
cannot be excluded despite their fl outing the norm of responsible blogging by initiating vicious, unfounded attacks on non-BN bloggers. The ball is now in the political
blogosphere ’ s court; if it wishes to develop positive aspects of this conversation, the
blogosphere needs to innovate and evolve in order to seize the lead in the precious,
but increasingly precarious, dialogic space it has managed to create.
Notes
1. International Lesbian, Gay, Trans and Intersex Association, “ World: Illegality of Male to Male
Relationships, ” http://ilga.org/ilga/en/article/about_ilga .
2. See the Malaysia country profi le in this volume for further details.
3. These programs include the Multimedia Super Corridor, described in further detail in the
Malaysia country profi le in this volume.
4. John Palfrey and Urs Gasser, Born Digital: Understanding the First Generation of Digital Natives
(New York: Basic Books, 2008), 1 – 15, defi ne “ digital natives ” as people born after 1980 who “ all
have access to networked digital technologies. And they all have the skills to use those technologies ” (1).
5. Agus Sudibyo, “ Reformasi According to Malaysiakini, ” Southeast Asian Press Alliance , May 12,
2010, http://www.seapabkk.org/announcements/fellowship-2004-program/46-reformasi-according
-to-malaysiakini.html .
6. See the Malaysia country profi le in this volume for further details.
7. Ibid.
8. See, for example, the government ’ s insistence on going ahead with deeply unpopular plans to
build another megatower in Malaysia; “ Anti – 100 Storey Tower Group Calls for ‘ Cake Party, ’ ”
November 15, 2010, Malaysiakini, http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/148257 . Note in particular
its persistent refusal to repeal the draconian Internal Security Act, which permits detention without
trial, despite long-running calls for its abolishment. Amnesty International, “ Malaysian Parliament
Should Abolish Internal Security Act, ” September 4, 2008, http://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and
-updates/news/malaysian-parliament-should-abolish-internal-security-act-20080905 .
9. Zentrum Future Studies Malaysia, “ Pilihanraya umum Malaysia ke 12: Pengaruh kepercayaan
terhadap media dan kesannya terhadap bentuk dan corak pengundian Malaysia — Tumpuan pada
kumpulan responden 21 – 41 tahun ” [12th Malaysian general elections: The extent of faith in the
media and its effect on Malaysian voting shapes and patterns — Focus on the age group of 21 – 41
of respondents] (Edisi PDF untuk rujukan dan naskah lengkap kajian [PDF edition for reference
and a complete study]), http://www.scribd.com/doc/8751281/Zentrum-Studies-Pru12 . (The group
was headed by Associate Professor Abu Hassan Bin Hasbullah of the University of Malaya.)
10. Calculated from data available in Zentrum, “ Pilihanraya umum, ” 5 Jadual 4 [Table 4].
59
structure, low barriers to entry, and norm of inclusivity mean that BN supporters
cannot be excluded despite their fl outing the norm of responsible blogging by initiating vicious, unfounded attacks on non-BN bloggers. The ball is now in the political
blogosphere ’ s court; if it wishes to develop positive aspects of this conversation, the
blogosphere needs to innovate and evolve in order to seize the lead in the precious,
but increasingly precarious, dialogic space it has managed to create.
Notes
1. International Lesbian, Gay, Trans and Intersex Association, “ World: Illegality of Male to Male
Relationships, ” http://ilga.org/ilga/en/article/about_ilga .
2. See the Malaysia country profi le in this volume for further details.
3. These programs include the Multimedia Super Corridor, described in further detail in the
Malaysia country profi le in this volume.
4. John Palfrey and Urs Gasser, Born Digital: Understanding the First Generation of Digital Natives
(New York: Basic Books, 2008), 1 – 15, defi ne “ digital natives ” as people born after 1980 who “ all
have access to networked digital technologies. And they all have the skills to use those technologies ” (1).
5. Agus Sudibyo, “ Reformasi According to Malaysiakini, ” Southeast Asian Press Alliance , May 12,
2010, http://www.seapabkk.org/announcements/fellowship-2004-program/46-reformasi-according
-to-malaysiakini.html .
6. See the Malaysia country profi le in this volume for further details.
7. Ibid.
8. See, for example, the government ’ s insistence on going ahead with deeply unpopular plans to
build another megatower in Malaysia; “ Anti – 100 Storey Tower Group Calls for ‘ Cake Party, ’ ”
November 15, 2010, Malaysiakini, http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/148257 . Note in particular
its persistent refusal to repeal the draconian Internal Security Act, which permits detention without
trial, despite long-running calls for its abolishment. Amnesty International, “ Malaysian Parliament
Should Abolish Internal Security Act, ” September 4, 2008, http://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and
-updates/news/malaysian-parliament-should-abolish-internal-security-act-20080905 .
9. Zentrum Future Studies Malaysia, “ Pilihanraya umum Malaysia ke 12: Pengaruh kepercayaan
terhadap media dan kesannya terhadap bentuk dan corak pengundian Malaysia — Tumpuan pada
kumpulan responden 21 – 41 tahun ” [12th Malaysian general elections: The extent of faith in the
media and its effect on Malaysian voting shapes and patterns — Focus on the age group of 21 – 41
of respondents] (Edisi PDF untuk rujukan dan naskah lengkap kajian [PDF edition for reference
and a complete study]), http://www.scribd.com/doc/8751281/Zentrum-Studies-Pru12 . (The group
was headed by Associate Professor Abu Hassan Bin Hasbullah of the University of Malaya.)
10. Calculated from data available in Zentrum, “ Pilihanraya umum, ” 5 Jadual 4 [Table 4].