Astro Awani's live telecast of the State Funeral for the late Lee Kuan Yew may have drawn the ire of some of its subscribers, but their complaints have been officially rebutted by the Malaysian government themselves.
Upset subscribers took to the Malaysian news channel's Facebook page to accuse the channel of being pro-Singapore, going on malicious rants and questioning the channel for giving prominent coverage to the late statesman.
Multimedia and Communications Minister Ahmad Shabery Cheek however finds no wrong in Astro Awani doing so and has spoken out against the detractors, TODAY reports.
The minister noted that Malaysian should not view the live telecast as a mark of respect for Singapore's founding Prime Minister, but as a news programme that viewers would want to watch, as it contains news value.
He also noted that being a broadcast channel, Astro Awani has to keep viewership intact by keeping up with social media, meaning that the channel has to carry out a live telecast as well.
Astro Awani's live telecast of the State Funeral for the late Lee Kuan Yew may have drawn the ire of some of its subscribers, but their complaints have been officially rebutted by the Malaysian government themselves.
Upset subscribers took to the Malaysian news channel's Facebook page to accuse the channel of being pro-Singapore, going on malicious rants and questioning the channel for giving prominent coverage to the late statesman.
Multimedia and Communications Minister Ahmad Shabery Cheek however finds no wrong in Astro Awani doing so and has spoken out against the detractors, TODAY reports.
The minister noted that Malaysian should not view the live telecast as a mark of respect for Singapore's founding Prime Minister, but as a news programme that viewers would want to watch, as it contains news value.
He also noted that being a broadcast channel, Astro Awani has to keep viewership intact by keeping up with social media, meaning that the channel has to carry out a live telecast as well.