MALAYSIAN MEDIA COUNCIL ACT 2025

Malaysian Media Council LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 868 MALAYSIAN MEDIA COUNCIL ACT 2025 1 2 Laws of Malaysia Act 868 Date of Royal Assent ... ... 27 May 2025 Date of publication in the Gazette ... ... 6 June 2025 Publisher’s Copyright C PERCETAKAN NASIONAL MALAYSIA BERHAD All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording and/or otherwise without the prior permission of Percetakan Nasional Malaysia Berhad (Appointed Printer to the Government of Malaysia). Malaysian Media Council LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 868 MALAYSIAN MEDIA COUNCIL ACT 2025 ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS Part I PRELIMINARY Section 1. 2. Short title and commencement Interpretation Part II MALAYSIAN MEDIA COUNCIL 3. Establishment of Council 5. Functions of Council 4. 6. 7. Common seal Powers of Council Membership of Council Part III BOARD OF COUNCIL 8. Board of Council 10. Tenure of office 12. Secretary of Council 9. 11. 13. 14. Chairman Remuneration and allowances Employees of Council Committees 3 4 Laws of Malaysia Act 868 Part IV GRIEVANCE MECHANISM AND DISCIPLINARY PROCEEDINGS Section 15. Grievance mechanism 16. Matters in respect of disciplinary powers Part V FINANCE 17. Malaysian Media Council Fund 18. Expenditure to be charged on Malaysian Media Council Fund Part VI GENERAL 19. General meetings 20. Safekeeping of records and accounts of Council 21. Guideline, directive, etc. 22. Code of conduct 23. Protection against suits and legal proceedings First Schedule Second Schedule 5 Malaysian Media Council LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 868 MALAYSIAN MEDIA COUNCIL ACT 2025 An Act to provide for the establishment of the Malaysian Media Council and to make provisions for other matters connected therewith. [ ] ENACTED by the Parliament of Malaysia as follows: Part I PRELIMINARY Short title and commencement 1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Malaysian Media Council Act 2025. (2) This Act comes into operation on a date to be appointed by the Minister by notification in the Gazette. 6 Laws of Malaysia Act 868 Interpretation 2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires— “member” means a member of the Council admitted as a member from any categories of membership as specified in section 7, and includes the Chairman of the Board as specified under subsection 9(3); “non-media member” means individual including academician, media trainer, non-governmental organization, and public not from the media industry; “media industry” means any— (a) news agency, which is a news organization incorporated under any Malaysian law for the purpose of collecting, verifying, and disseminating news, information, images, and videos; (b) newspaper organization, which is a news organization that publishes printed or digital reading materials on a daily or periodic basis; (c) broadcaster, which is a radio or television station that broadcasts for public listening or viewing, including materials available in digital format via the internet; (d) media practitioner; (e) independent media practitioner; (f) foreign media, which is a media company owned or controlled by foreign media organizations, who has media practitioners in Malaysia and publish news and journalism content in Malaysia or particularly about Malaysia; (g) media publisher; (h) media company; and (i) media association, but does not include the advertising industry, online service providers and entities that aggregate or develop news from other sources; Malaysian Media Council 7 “journalism” means the practice of collecting, organizing, analysing and conveying information or news to the public done by journalists, bloggers, analysts or any person involved in publishing and shared whether in printed or digital form through any medium of publication, radio and television broadcasts, or digital media; “Board” means the Board of Malaysian Media Council established under section 8 of this Act; “Council” means the Malaysian Media Council established under section 3 of this Act; “Minister” means the Minister charged with the responsibility for communications; “media publisher” means an individual who is responsible for overseeing the publication or broadcasting of news content in print, online and broadcast media, in preparation of final published edition to the public; “media practitioner” means a journalist, editor, photographer, videographer and graphic designer or any person involved in the creation, production and dissemination of content for a media company and such person shall be an employee of a media publisher; “independent media practitioner” means a person producing news content for a media company but is not an employee or a person publishing news content and commentaries which are hosted on online media; “Chairman” means the Chairman of the Board and the Council appointed under section 9 of this Act; “media association” means any non-profit entity, trade union or association consist of media practitioners representing the interests and welfare of the media parties; “media company” means an organization or business entity that creates, produces, distributes and manages media content in printed, broadcast or digital form, and shall have not less than ten media practitioners as employees of that media company. 8 Laws of Malaysia Act 868 Part II MALAYSIAN MEDIA COUNCIL Establishment of Council 3. (1) A body corporate by the name of “Malaysian Media Council” is established. (2) The Council shall have perpetual succession and a common seal. (3) The Council may sue and be sued in its corporate name. (4) Subject to and for the purposes of this Act, the Council may, upon such terms as it deems fit— (a) enter into contracts; (b) acquire, purchase, take, lease, hold, sell and enjoy any movable and immovable property of every description or any interest in such property vested in the Council; and (c) convey, assign, surrender, yield up, charge, mortgage, demise, reassign, transfer or otherwise dispose of, or deal with, any movable or immovable property or any interest in such property vested in the Council. Common seal 4. (1) The Council shall have a common seal which shall bear such device as the Council may approve and such seal may from time to time be broken, changed, altered and made anew as the Council thinks fit. (2) Until a common seal is provided by the Council, a stamp bearing the words “Malaysian Media Council” may be used and shall be deemed to be the common seal of the Council. Malaysian Media Council 9 (3) The common seal of the Council shall be kept in the custody of the Chairman or such other person as may be authorized by the Board, and shall be authenticated by the Chairman or by any two members of the Board as authorized by the Chairman in writing. (4) All deeds, documents and other instruments purporting to be sealed with the common seal of the Council and authenticated in accordance with subsection (3) shall, until the contrary is proved, be deemed to have been validly executed. (5) Any deed, document and other instrument which, if executed by a person not being a body corporate, is not required to be under seal may in like manner be executed by a member of the Board or employee of the Council as authorized in that behalf. (6) The common seal of the Council shall be officially and judicially noticed. Functions of Council 5. (1) The Council shall have the following functions: (a) to set standards and establish a code of conduct for media practitioner and independent media practitioner in accordance with the standards of ethical and responsible journalism; (b) to promote the highest standards of ethical and responsible journalism, media independence and the rights of media practitioner; (c) to regulate the ethics and professional code of conduct of the media practitioner and independent media practitioner; (d) to encourage communication between media practitioners, the Government and the public; (e) to suggest any reforms to laws relating to media independence; 10 Laws of Malaysia Act 868 (f) to facilitate and coordinate matters in respect of training, capacity building and professional development of journalists and media organizations among members of the Council; (g) to establish, manage and maintain a database which contains information of media practitioners and independent media practitioners for the purpose of collecting data and statistics, for the continued development of media industry and journalism; (h) to determine any grievance mechanism and disciplinary proceeding against member of the Council; and (i) to do such other things arising out of or consequential to the functions of the Council under this Act which are consistent with the purposes of this Act. (2) The functions of the Council under subsection (1) shall be performed by the Board subject to a resolution passed from time to time by the Council in the general meeting. Powers of Council 6. (1) The Council may do all things necessary or expedient for, or in connection with, the performance of its functions under this Act. (2) Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (1), the Council may— (a) establish standards of ethical and responsible journalism, including a code of conduct for media practitioner and independent media practitioner; (b) determine matters in respect of membership, administration and management of the Council; (c) determine and impose any fees, charges or payments in relation to membership of the Council and services rendered by the Council under this Act; Malaysian Media Council 11 (d) conduct inquiry on any complaint or information received against media practitioner and independent media practitioner through grievance mechanism; (e) utilize all properties of the Council in such manner as the Council may think expedient including raising of money for the purposes of the Malaysian Media Council Fund by securitizing or mortgaging the properties; and (f) require member of the Council to furnish any information for the purpose of performing its function under the Act. (3) Powers of the Council under paragraphs (2)(a), (b), (c) and (d) shall be exercised by the Board subject to a resolution passed from time to time by the Council in the general meeting. Membership of Council 7. (1) Members of the Council shall consist of any person, association or media company as follows: (a) a category consisting of media company, represented by their respective media publisher or nominated senior management; (b) a category consisting of media association, represented by any nominated member of the association, media practitioner and independent media practitioner; and (c) a category consisting of non-media member. (2) Each application for membership of the Council shall be made to the Board together with the payment of fees as the Council may determine under paragraph 6(2)(c). (3) Membership of the Council shall be renewable every year together with the payment of fees as the Council may determine under paragraph 6(2)(c). 12 Laws of Malaysia Act 868 Part III BOARD OF COUNCIL Board of Council 8. (1) For the purpose of carrying out the functions of the Council and managing the affairs of the Council, a Board shall be established comprising of— (a) the Chairman; (b) two members to be nominated by the Minister, representing the Government; (c) four members of the Board representing members of the Council in the category as specified under paragraph 7(1)(a), which shall be nominated and elected by the members of the Council in such category, and shall comprise of, at least one woman representative and one representative from Sabah or Sarawak; (d) four members of the Board representing members of the Council in the category as specified under paragraph 7(1)(b), which shall be nominated and elected by the members of the Council in such category, with at least one memb