Watching the Watchdog 2.0 Utusan

Section 1: Coverage of Political Parties and Coalitions 1.1 Volume of Coverage of Parties & Coalitions Figure 1: Volume of Coverage of Political Parties & Coalitions

USNO 0.00 0.00 SUPP 0.00 0.00 Warisan 0.05 0.12 STAR 0.22 0.40 PRM 0.42 0.60 PBS 0.82 0.94 Other 1.41 1.96 Gagasan Sejahtera 2.04 2.06 IKATAN 2.31 2.38 PCM 2.66 3.03 PBRS 3.23 3.77 PAS 4.49 5.19 UMNO 6.30 6.50 PKR 8.84 9.28 BN 20.68 0.00 5.00 10.00 15.00 20.00 25.00

• BN received the most coverage (20.68%), followed by DAP (9.28%) and PKR (8.84%).

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Figure 2: Volume of Coverage of Political Parties & Coalitions: Government vs. vs. Independent/Other

GS 10.01

Independent 4.19

PH 26.29

BN 59.52

0.00 10.00 20.00 30.00 40.00 50.00 60.00 70.00

• Once parties/coalitions’ coverage volumes are combined, BN received the highest level of coverage (59.52%), followed by PH (26.29%) and GS (10.01%).

1.2 Tone of Coverage of Political Parties & Coalitions Figure 3: Raw Tonal Coverage Volume of Political Parties & Coalitions Attacked Positive 1% 8%

Negative 19%

Neutral 72%

• The Neutral tone was used the most (72%), followed by Negative (19%) and Positive (8%).

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Figure 4.1: Attacked Political Party & Coalition Coverage

USNO 0.00 Warisan 0.00 LDP 0.00 Other 0.00 UPKO 0.00 UMNO 0.00 SUPP 0.00 SAPP 0.00 PSM 0.00 PRM 0.00 PRS 0.00 PCM 0.00 PBS 0.00 MIC 0.00 MCA 0.00 Gerakan 0.00 Gagasan Sejahtera 0.00 AMANAH 1.75 PH 1.75 PDP 1.75 PAS 1.75 BN 1.75 PBB 5.26 STAR 7.02 IKATAN 7.02 PPBM 8.77 PBRS 14.04 DAP 14.04 PKR 15.79 0.00 2.00 4.00 6.00 8.00 10.00 12.00 14.00 16.00 18.00

• PKR received the highest coverage of Attacked tones (15.79%), with DAP and PBRS receiving (14.04%) respectively.

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Figure 4.2: Negative Political Party & Coalition Coverage

USNO 0.00 Warisan 0.00 UPKO 0.00 SUPP 0.00 PRS 0.00 STAR 0.22 SAPP 0.34 PSM 0.34 IKATAN 0.56 PBS 0.89 PCM 1.12 PDP 1.23 PAS 1.23 AMANAH 1.34 PRM 1.34 Gagasan Sejahtera 1.34 PPBM 1.45 Other 1.68 PH 1.79 Gerakan 1.90 UMNO 2.01 LDP 2.23 PBB 2.35 PBRS 2.79 MCA 3.46 MIC 9.61 BN 9.61 PKR 12.29 DAP 17.09 0.00 2.00 4.00 6.00 8.00 10.00 12.00 14.00 16.00 18.00

• DAP received the most Negative coverage (17.09%), followed by PKR (12.29%) and BN and MIC (9.61%).

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Figure 5.1: Positive Political Party & Coalition Coverage

STAR 0.00 USNO 0.00 Warisan 0.00 LDP 0.00 Other 0.00 AMANAH 0.00 UPKO 0.00 SUPP 0.00 SAPP 0.00 PSM 0.00 PRM 0.00 PRS 0.00 PBS 0.52 IKATAN 0.78 PBRS 1.30 PPBM 1.55 PBB 1.55 DAP 2.07 PH 2.33 UMNO 2.85 PAS 2.85 MCA 2.85 PKR 3.37 PCM 4.15 PDP 4.66 Gerakan 7.77 Gagasan Sejahtera 8.29 MIC 15.03 BN 32.38 0.00 5.00 10.00 15.00 20.00 25.00 30.00 35.00

• BN received the highest amount of Positive coverage (32.38%), followed by MIC (15.03%) and GS (8.29%).

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Figure 5.2: Neutral Political Party & Coalition Coverage

USNO 0.00 UPKO 0.00 SUPP 0.00 PRS 0.00 Warisan 0.07 SAPP 0.07 STAR 0.11 PRM 0.15 AMANAH 0.37 PSM 0.49 LDP 0.67 PBS 0.86 Gagasan Sejahtera 1.42 Other 1.57 PBB 1.80 PH 2.06 PPBM 2.70 PCM 3.00 IKATAN 3.03 PDP 3.45 PBRS 3.45 MCA 4.12 MIC 4.38 PAS 5.92 Gerakan 5.96 DAP 7.38 UMNO 8.39 PKR 8.39 BN 23.23 0.00 5.00 10.00 15.00 20.00 25.00

• BN received the most Neutral coverage (23.23%) followed by PKR and UMNO (8.39%).

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Figure 6: Tone of Coverage of Political Parties & Coalitions: Government vs. Opposition vs. Independent/Other

11.34 12.64 GS 4.09 10.87

4.10 4.40 Independent 3.94 8.70

22.93 9.89 PH 44.38 52.17

61.63 73.08 BN 47.59 28.26

0.00 10.00 20.00 30.00 40.00 50.00 60.00 70.00 80.00

Neutral Positive Negative Attacked

• PH had the highest Attacked coverage. • BN received the highest coverage for Neutral, Positive, and Negative tones.

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Section 2: Coverage of Politicians and Political Figures 2.1 Volume of Coverage of Politicians & Political Figures Figure 7: Volume of Coverage of Politicians & Political Figures

Anwar Ibrahim 5.15

Abdul Rahman Dahlan 6.42

Chow Kon Yeow 7.15

Mahathir Mohamad 7.23

Abang Johari Tun Openg 11.17

0.00 2.00 4.00 6.00 8.00 10.00 12.00

• Only the top five politicians are shown on this graph. • Out of those selected, Abang Johari Tun Openg received the most mentions by a significant proportion (11.17%), followed by (7.23%).

Figure 8: Volume of Coverage of Politicians & Political Figures: Government vs. Opposition vs. Independent/Other

Others 25% BN 35%

GS 1%

PH 39% • When the mentions of individual politicians and political figures are combined and merged into their respective coalitions, we can see that coverage of figures from both major coalitions is skewed towards PH (39%). • There was more coverage of PH compared to BN.

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2.2 Volume of the Use of Politicians & Political Figures as Sources Figure 9: Volume of the Use of Politicians & Political Figures as Sources

Abdul Rahman Dahlan 4.00

Chong Chieng Jen 4.23

Kadir Syeikh Fadzir 4.47

Rais Hussin 5.66

Ahmad Zahid Hamidi 6.29

Abang Johari Tun Openg 8.41

0.00 1.00 2.00 3.00 4.00 5.00 6.00 7.00 8.00 9.00

• Only the top 5 most mentioned politicians/those who have a weightage of more than 4% are shown on this graph. • Out of these 5, Abang Johari Tun Openg received the most coverage (8.41%), followed by (6.29%).

Figure 10: Volume of the Use of Politicians & Political Figures As Sources: Government vs. Opposition vs. Independent/Other

Others 33% BN 39%

GS 5% PH 23% • When the mentions of individual politicians and political figures are combined and merged into their respective coalitions, we can see that coverage is skewed towards BN (39%), which received more coverage than PH.

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2.3 Tone of Coverage of Politicians & Political Figures Figure 11: Raw Tonal Coverage Volume of Politicians & Political Figures Attacked Positive 0% 11% Negative 21%

Neutral 68% • Of all the tonal categories used in the coverage of politicians and political figures, the Neutral category was used the most often (68%), followed by the Negative category (21%).

Figure 12.1: Negative Coverage of Politicians & Political Figures

Mah Siew Kong 4.62

Azmin Ali 5.96 Abang Johari Tun Openg 7.18

Anwar Ibrahim 8.03

Chow Kon Yeow 11.92

Abdul Rahman Dahlan 12.29

Mahathir Mohamad 15.21

0.00 2.00 4.00 6.00 8.00 10.00 12.00 14.00 16.00

• In terms of the tone of mentions of politicians and political figures, Mahathir Mohamad received the highest negative coverage (15.21%), followed by Abdul Rahman Dahlan (12.29%).

Figure 12.2: Attacked Coverage of Politicians & Political Figures

Nur Jazlan Mohamed 7.14 7.14 7.14 Hadi Awang 7.14 Abang Johari Tun Openg 7.14 Abdul Rahman Dahlan 7.14 14.29 Chow Kon Yeow 14.29 Ambiga Sreenevasan 28.57

0.00 5.00 10.00 15.00 20.00 25.00 30.00

• Ambiga Sreenavasan was attacked the most (28.57%), followed Chow Kon Yeow and Baru Bian (14.29%).

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Figure 13.1: Positive Coverage of Politicians & Political Figures

Baru Bian 4.32

Abdul Rahman Dahlan 6.24

Ahmad Maslan 7.67

Azalina Othman Said 8.63

Ahmad Zahid Hamidi 10.55

Abang Johari Tun Openg 12.47

Anwar Ibrahim 14.39

0.00 2.00 4.00 6.00 8.00 10.00 12.00 14.00 16.00

• In terms of the tone of mentions of politicians and political figures, Anwar Ibrahim received the most positive coverage (14.39%), followed by Abang Johari Tun Openg (12.47%).

Figure 13.2: Neutral Coverage of Politicians & Political Figures

Ahmad Zahid Hamidi 3.51

Abdul Rahman Dahlan 4.34

Mahathir Mohamad 5.46

Chow Kon Yeow 6.28

Abang Johari Tun Openg 12.15

0.00 2.00 4.00 6.00 8.00 10.00 12.00 14.00

• Abang Johari Tun Openg received the most neutral coverage (12.15%), followed by Chow Kon Yeow (6.28%).

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Figure 14: Tone of Coverage of Politicians & Political Figures: Government vs. Opposition vs. Independent/Other

Attacked 28.57 Neutral 31.03

Others Negative 10.88 Positive 11.99 Attacked 7.14 Neutral 0.79 GS Negative 1.22 Positive 0.00 Attacked 42.86 Neutral 34.51 PH Negative 57.46 Positive 30.94 Attacked 16.67 Neutral 25.71

BN Negative 27.45 Positive 50.96

0.00 10.00 20.00 30.00 40.00 50.00 60.00 70.00

Overall, PH received the highest coverage for Attacked, Neutral, and Negative coverage. Others received the highest coverage for Positive coverage.

2.4 Tone of the Use of Politicians & Political Figures As Sources: Attack Politics or Negative Campaigning Figure 15: Attack Politics: Which Politicians and Political Figures Employ 'Attack Politics' Most Often?

Chong Chieng Jen 3.19

Rais Hussin 3.19

Salleh Said Keruak 3.19

Muhyiddin Yassin 4.26

Abdul Rahman Dahlan 5.32

Kadir Syeikh Fadzir 7.45

Najib Razak 9.57

0.00 2.00 4.00 6.00 8.00 10.00 12.00

• This graph is weighted to show attack politics as a proportion of overall use as source. • was the politician most likely to engage in attack politics (9.57%), followed by Kadir Syeikh Fadzir (7.45%).

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Figure 16: Attack Politics: Which Coalition Employs Attack Politics Most Often?

BN 28%

Others 50%

PH 14%

GS 8% • This graph is weighted to show attack politics as a proportion of overall use as source. • Overall, Independent/Others (50%) party politicians engaged in attack politics more often than others. BN engaged in more attack politics than PH.

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Section 3: Coverage of Issues 3.1. Volume of Media Coverage of Policy Issues vs Non-Policy Issues Figure 17: Coverage of Policy vs Non-Policy Issues

Policy Issues 24%

Non-policy Issues 76%

Note: Non-policy issues received more coverage than Policy issues.

Figure 18: Policy Issues Oppressive Religion Legislation National Security 1% 7% 2%

Foreign Policy 9% Vision 35%

Education 12%

Environment 1%

Economy/Development 33%

Note: Vision received the most coverage, followed by Economy/Development, and Education.

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Figure 18.1: Breakdown of Vision/Policy/Programme Other 12% GG Manifesto 1% 1Malaysia 28% PH Manifesto 7%

TN50 BN Manifesto 6% 23% NEP 3%

PH Welfare TransformasiNEM 15% 4% 1% Note: 1Malaysia received the most coverage, followed by BN manifesto and PH welfare.

Figure 18.2: Breakdown of Economy/Development Issues Other 10% 1MDB Housing 20% 6%

Infrastructure 6% Inflation/GST 1% Recession FTA 12% 9%

Welfare 5% Growth 14% Privatisation Poverty Unemployment 12% 5% 0% Note: 1MDB received the most coverage, followed by Growth and Unemployment.

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Figure 19: Non-Policy Issues

Ethnicity 14% Electioneering 25% Religion 4%

Democracy & Human Rights 6% Gender 2%

Mudslinging Socioeconomic 3% sectors 12%

Territory 34% Note: Territory received the most coverage, followed by Electioneering and Ethnicity.

Figure 19.1: Breakdown of Socioeconomic Sectors

Other Middle 13% class/Professionals 14% Cost of living 2% Rural 5% Urban Working class 1% 14% RELA/Wataniah 7% Aristocracy/Monarc Senior hy 1% Citizens/Retirees Civil service 3% 4% Chinese new villagers Military and police 6% 4%

Plantation/estate FELDA workers 13% 13% Note: Middle class/professionals issues received the most coverage, followed by Plantation/estate workers and FELDA issues.

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Figure 19.2: Breakdown of Territory Issues

Semenanjung// 3

Bangsa 10

Sabah Independence 0

Sarawak Independence 3

Terengganu 35

Selangor 55

Sarawak 118

Sabah 45

Penang 28

Perlis 29

Perak 97

Pahang 29

Negeri Sembilan 91

Malacca 121

Kelantan 44

Kedah 27

Johor 87

Putrajaya 41

Labuan 120

Kuala Lumpur 188

0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200

Note: received the most coverage, followed by and .

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