Refreshing The Malay Mail

Like many of us Bloggers, the Malay Mail also went on a three-week hiatus. It came back with a weekend edition with a "new" look May 20-21, 2006, and this morn welcomes our eyes witha refreshing innovations.

Nice packaging for a start -- easy on the eyes.
And for Bloggers, pay RM1-lah for the comeback kid, it's worth it jest for pages 18&19 which features your fellow community members.

In small print at RH Top Korner headed

on the chopping
blog
by amir hafizi

The RH page has header

free download rush
when free media porgrammes are only a click away
(an advertising plug here for the World Wide Web channels?)

The facing page will definitely arrest Bloggers' attention this morning, headed:

community
of bloggers
wants to see
communists
amir muhammad's controversial movie sparks net debate

This topic is a little "stale", but that can't be helped as The Malay Mail went for a holiday -- plus brainstorm? -- to prepare for its re-launch. At first glance, I like the feel of the nu'e look, but as for "news", let's wait and see.

But can the paper inform its Readers like me whether it plans to remain an "afternoon tabloid", or as it had been doing for some time before it took a break, "become" a morning paper as it hit the newstands like The NST and the Star?

The bloggers covered in today's edition are:

1. ktemoc konsiders
@ktemoc.blogspot.com

2. mental jog
@www.lucuialai.org

3. bibliobibuli
@thebookaholic.blogspot.com

4. sashi-isms
@www.shashiweb.com


AND ON PAGE 9, its DEPUTY EDITOR
Yushaimi Yahaya
has an "interesting" human perspective on
two newsmakers with his/her comment
entitled

You're beautiful, it's true ...


DESIDERATA, being a journalist, -- now f'eelan'' -- has always had a keen and special interest in the media, both print and online, and welcomes The MM's return, and wishes it a long life so that
THE FOURTH ESTATE EVOLVES INTO A VIBRANT FORCE
an essential component for a VIBRANT, PARLIAMENTARY DEMOCRACY LIKE OURS.

MEANWHILE, The Star on page N20 has a news report on the subject; Communism is now the flavour of the month!? ~~~~~~~


Monday May 22, 2006


Differing views after MPs watch The Last Communist

KUALA LUMPUR: The banned musical documentary “The Last Communist” is not offensive, said Culture, Arts and Heritage Minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim.

“The plot isn't controversial and there's nothing that could be deemed as offensive from the cultural viewpoint,” he said.

The controversial movie was shown to MPs and the media at a private viewing session here yesterday.

“In terms of aesthetic values, it was not very artistic. Perhaps, it would have been better if the film was made as a documentary. Maybe it would have been more interesting,” he said.

The facts found in the film could be found in books on Chin Peng, which are sold in bookshops, and there are no new facts.

“We will give our views if we are asked, but the decision on whether it should be aired is not up to this ministry. It is up to the Home Ministry,” said Dr Rais after viewing the 90-minute movie by young filmmaker Amir Muhammad.

About 30 MPs attended the special viewing, presented by the National Film Corporation.

Senator Datuk Jin Shamsuddin said: “There are some loose bits which could have been better done. During the Emergency, there were many prominent people involved in the frontline and they should have been interviewed as well.”

Opposition Leader Lim Kit Siang said he was not there to look into artistic standards but whether it should be banned.

“But hard as I tried, I couldn't find anything to be outraged about. It does not glorify the communists or Chin Peng and it does not promote communism,” he said.

PAS MP Datuk Kamaruddin Jaafar said it was a production portraying the struggle of the Communist Party of Malaya.

“There was nothing to justify such a severe measure (of banning),” he said.


DESIDERATA: wonders if any of the Home Affairs and Internal Security ministers of deputies watched the movie. The Star did not interview them for the news update. If not, why do we bother to feed them? No, I don't mean the journalists -- it's the ministerial people.

And finally, some Artistic Company for Amir,
if it's any consolation...

From The Star, page W37, hidden at the RH Bottom Korner, alONE and LONEsum~~~



Chinese
filmmaker
faces ban

BEIJING: the Chinese director
of a film set around the 198
Tiananmen democracy protests
risks a five-yaer ban for
showing it at the Cannes film
festival without government
approval, state media said
yesterday.
Lou Ye, 40, violated the rules
by sending Summer Palace
directly to the prestigious
festival, the Shengtou Xinbao
newspaper reported.
"Apart from a fine, it's
extremely likely that Lou Ye
will face the punishment of not
being able to shoot movies in
China for a five-year period,"
the paper reported. -- AFP