MEDIA FRAMING AND SOCIAL COHESION: PEACE JOURNALISM IN MALAYSIAN RELIGIOUS-CULTURAL CONFLICT REPORTING (2013-2025)
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.55197/qjssh.v7si1.1192Keywords:
peace journalism, conflict reporting, religious conflict, cultural conflict, Malaysian mediaAbstract
This systematic article review critically examines the role and effectiveness of Peace Journalism (PJ) as an alternative framework for mitigating interethnic tension and enhancing national harmony in Malaysia’s diverse religious and cultural landscape. Conventional reporting often exacerbates tensions, making PJ, which emphasizes conflict resolution, context, and multi-perspective reporting, crucial. Employing a qualitative, systematic synthesis approach, fifteen peer-reviewed journal articles and academic sources published between 2013 and 2025 were analyzed. This review integrates Galtung’s Peace Journalism Theory and Framing Theory to assess the structural and socio-cultural constraints impacting PJ implementation. Findings confirm the prevalence of conflict/war-oriented frames in both international and domestic religious coverage. The limited adoption of PJ is attributed to complex structural constraints (e.g., regulatory frameworks, editorial policies, self-censorship) and a bias towards majority-group and authoritative perspectives, limiting exposure to alternative voices. The study establishes that PJ's theoretical potential is compromised by practical and systemic pressures. It recommends comprehensive institutional reforms, journalist empowerment, and strategic leveraging of citizen journalism to facilitate a proactive media role in social cohesion and peacebuilding.
References
[1] Du Toit, P. (2019): Handbook: A conflict-sensitive approach to reporting on conflict and violent extremism. – European Union and Internews 144p.
[2] Galtung, J. (1969): Violence, peace, and peace research. – Journal of Peace Research 6(3): 167-191.
[3] Ibrahim, F. (2010): Media framing of peace and war news: a comparative study between Malaysian TV stations and the global media. – Journal of Media and Information Warfare (JMIW) 3: 37-54.
[4] Lee, C. (2025): Securitising the Allah ‘Socks’ Issue: Competing Religious-Political Discourses in the KK Mart Case. – In Race, Religion, Royalty in Malaysia: Discursively Reproduced, Resisted, Renegotiated, Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland 28p.
[5] Lee, S.T. (2020): Peace journalism. – In The Routledge Handbook of Mass Media Ethics, Routledge 17p.
[6] Loyn, D. (2007): Good journalism or peace journalism? – Conflict & Communication 6(2): 5p.
[7] Onoja, J.P., Hamza, O., Collins, A., Chibunna, U.B., Eweja, A., Daraojimba, A.I. (2021): Digital transformation and data governance: Strategies for regulatory compliance and secure AI-driven business operations. – Journal of Frontiers in Multidisciplinary Research 2(1): 43-55.
[8] Rodarte, A.K., Richardson, R. (2024): Hierarchy of Influences. – Edward Elgar Publishing 130p.
[9] Shamsuddin, K.A., Liaw, J.O.H., Ridzuan, A.A. (2015): Malaysia: Ethnic issues and national security. – International Journal of Humanities and Social Science 5(1): 136-143.
[10] Steele, J. (2009): Professionalism online: How Malaysiakini challenges authoritarianism. – The International Journal of Press/Politics 14(1): 91-111.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 SURAYATUL NATASYA KERISTIFA, ANIS ELLYANNA MANSOR, KARIMAH AWI, MUNDZIR ZAHIR, ABDOLREZA ALAMI
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
