Sin Chew Daily breaks record

Since the day Parliament was dissolved on 13 February until 17 February or even a couple of weeks before that, the Opposition had no chance of making front-page headline news in Sin Chew Daily. That was totally monopolised by the BN. But from 18 February to 20 February – three successive days, yes 3 days – the DAP was on the front-page.

Sin Chew Daily broke its editorial record for putting the opposition on the front-page for three straight days during an election period. Normally, the BN would occupy the entire front page from the day of the dissolution of Parliament to polling day.

With the opposition making the front page for three days, can we conclude that Sin Chew Daily was being fair to opposition?

Wait a minute… what was the news that was being highlighted for three successive days on the front-page? It was all about Fong Po Kuan quitting Batu Gajah. Why was similar infighting among BN component parties such as the conflict in the Taiping constituency not given similar treatment? And there are more cases in Penang and Johor.

Clearly, in the eyes of the Sin Chew Daily editorial board, the opposition only has a chance of making to the front page of the paper when it is bad news for them. Why is it that only good news from BN can be published as headline news but not positive news about the opposition?

Very soon, we can expect that the BN election manifesto will be similarly highlighted and brought to the readers' attention. In contrast, the election manifestos of the various opposition parties will be relegated into the inside pages of the newspaper.

In conclusion, highlighting the Fong Po Kuan’s story for on the front-page for three straight days reflects Sin Chew Daily's biased electoral coverage of the 12th Malaysian General Election.