Online journalism should be controlled

Online journalism is not a new thing for us today. It has vastly changing the way news is brought to the reader. It has became a trend in which everybody in this whole wide world can write on anything they want to, express feelings on certain topic and even bring defamation on anybody. People are free to write and publish anything as there are no gatekeepers in the Internet world as compared to the mainstream media. I believe that with this heaps of freedom, it may bring harm to somebody, and even worse the nation. It is said that anyone who does have the gear, can become a journalist and names, as well as an entire organizations can be simply made up, and who is there to say that the articles are not fake.

The benefit of immediacy can give rise to some serious ethical issues. The desire to publish brand new information and the ease of alternation may cause all the information and news be accessible before it can be verified. When we write, we are being the writer, editor and publisher as well. There is nobody who can stop us from publishing anything as everything is not under special surveillance of the authority. We have the complete authorization on what we published and that makes the information is less credible. But why it is said to be less credible? It is because as everyone can write about any single thing, we are not abide to any journalistic ethics. We cannot assume everybody who publish their stories stick to the journalistic ethics, or obey some journalistic ethics, because this journalistic ethic is not born with us naturally, it has to be learnt. What is worried is that this can lead to confusion and misinformation to the readers as there are no verification of facts. 

When information is flowing through online fast, and stories are being pounded out in a hurry, carelessness and oversight can come into play as different people or organizations are competing in spreading news, especially breaking news. They might not get the clear information on how an event is truly happened as well as  the credible sources. Everybody is competing in publishing news the fastest they can without any clarification and verification on the issue. 

Another problem that make online journalism should be controlled is that, some news may be just rumors. It is worrying as people may be shocked and it can trigger chaos. For example, if somebody published a story about 'Malaysia will be attack by a gang of terrorist', it is sure will create insurrection in every people who read the articles as it involves life matters. When linking to another side, the unethical news could be leading the reader to false information, as it may be hard to find out if the information is in fact accurate, perhaps never. 


From all the reasons stated above, it is best suggested that online journalism should be controlled. The authority should take immediate action such as providing special surveillance to monitor the ongoing Internet news. It is to ensure the citizen will be secured with only the correct information, and can avoid misunderstanding and misinformation. Moreover, it can help to reduce the spreading of rumors, and people will only be feed with only rational and credible news. Yet, on the other hand, regulations 'protect our freedom'by not allowing dissident acts to encroach upon the foundations of which our society is built upon.