Social Media has created a platform for the censored voice!

With the Malaysia elections around the corner, the press has been hot and heavy with news regarding Samy and Jeff Ooi. Samy Vellu with his cheating ways. Jeff Ooi with his unorthodox foray into the political scene.

An IT consultant by profession, Jeff Ooi had a keen interest in politics, joining as a member of Gerakan Rakyat Malaysia, a major party in the Barison National, in 2000. Then in 2003, he started his blog, Screenshots to air his political views. Over the years, he has gained a huge following of avid supporters of his blog, who share his interest in politics in Malaysia. In 2007, he announced his decision to join the Democratic Action Party and contest polls in Penang.

Malaysia. A closed door to open views and honest opinions, the papers are often censored to a high degree. Blogs have opened an avenue for those repressed and waiting to speak up. While the take up rate is rather slow, it is slowly catching on with more popular bloggers such as LiewCF and KennySia gaining recognition in the blogsphere. It is rather amazing how social media is slowly changing the face of politics in Malaysia. Blogs have given Jeff Ooi a chance to speak up and a chance to gain confidence to contest polls. If not for the blogosphere, he might not have had the opportunity to openly share his political viewpoints. Had he been unable to share his politcal viewpoint, he would still be a member, futilely hoping change, like the rest of the population.

Jeff Ooi is one inspiring story. Hopefully, this story will inspire others to aspire for change. The belief that you, as an individual, can make the change. In the internet, all voices have equal weight, and people ought to leverage on this equality to drive change.

Which brings me to my next example, where social media is a platform for the censored… erm, flesh. Dreamgirl Malaysia! Malaysia’s first online reality search for models. As we all know, Malaysia has strict regulations with regards to baring of skin on national television. To overcome this barrier, producers in Malaysia decided to go online instead. In this edition, there will be skin, there will be bikinis; wipe that drool off your face men. Episodes will be available for free and no sign up is required, so keep an eye out when it finally airs.

Social media is gradually changing the landscape of traditional media, and at some point in time, traditional media will need to learn to incorporate functions of social media or else be left to wither in the long run.