Kajian Malaysia, Vol. 36, No. 1, 2018, 63–103 MALAYSIAN CHINESE LANGUAGE NEWSPAPERS AND NATIONAL IDENTITY: A STUDY OF THE ROLES OF SIN CHEW DAILY IN CHINESE CULTURAL PRESERVATION AND NATION BUILDING Ng Miew Luan1* and Lee Yuen Beng2 1Faculty of Communication and Creative Design, SEGi University, Selangor, MALAYSIA 2School of Communication, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Pulau Pinang, MALAYSIA *Corresponding author:
[email protected] Published online: 27 April 2018 To cite this article: Ng, M. L. and Y. B. Lee. 2018. Malaysian Chinese language newspapers and national identity: A study of the roles of Sin Chew Daily in Chinese cultural preservation and nation building. Kajian Malaysia 36(1): 63–103. https://doi.org/10.21315/km2018.36.1.4 To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.21315/km2018.36.1.4 ABSTRACT As the leading Chinese language newspaper in Malaysia, Sin Chew Daily remains focused on emphasising and preserving Chinese cultural and nationalist discourses. On one hand, Sin Chew Daily continues to play a significant role in supporting government policies such as the promotion of ethnic relations and nation-building efforts within multicultural Malaysia. On the other, as a Chinese language newspaper, Sin Chew Daily has never neglected its role in preserving Chinese culture. Using the mixed methods approach, namely content analysis as the first phase of data collection and in-depth interview as the second phase of data collection, this paper examines the agenda of Chinese cultural preservation and nation-building within the context of ethnic relations and national identity by Sin Chew Daily. Based on the relationship of the media and society, and the market and the State, this paper will argue how Chinese cultural preservation through news reporting of cultural rights and Chinese education remains the priority for Sin Chew Daily as compared to the agenda of nation-building.