A clear and present danger
A clear and present danger
Even without looking at the news, newspaper readers all over
Indonesia must have become aware over the past few weeks that the
current monetary crisis is hitting this country's newspaper
business, and hitting it hard: The thinner newspapers which they
are holding, and the fewer ads which those newspapers contain,
are an unmistakable indication.
A number of smaller newspapers and periodicals, especially in
the provinces, are reported to have already been forced to close
down. Others are close to meeting the same fate. In fact, even in
Jakarta, some of the country's leading newspapers are feeling the
crunch and have been forced to reduce the number of their pages
and take internal measures in order to increase their chances of
survival.
For Indonesia's newspapers, the soaring price of newsprint has
become a threat -- a clear and present danger, more immediate and
more feared by newspaper publishers than the dreaded possibility
of a revocation of their publishing licenses. After all, whereas
a newspaper has to be judged guilty by the powers that be of
having in any way erred -- such as endangering public order or
stability -- in order to have its license revoked, the present
crisis strikes without discrimination, though naturally the
economically sound stand a better chance of surviving, for now.
Economic and social implications aside, one may be tempted to
see this as a kind of natural selection and hence beneficial, at
least from the business point of view. One can, of course, hardly
argue against the point that, as in any business, financial and
managerial soundness must be among the main foundations on which
a newspaper publication must rest. However, in a developing
society such as Indonesia, newspapers have a role to fulfill that
goes beyond the mere provision of information. Providing the
public with a range of alternative facts and views on current
developments is one of those roles. Education is another. So is
entertainment.
It is for this reason that the demise of a good and
instructive newspaper, however small, is to be deeply regretted
-- not to mention the loss of employment at a time when every job
held helps to soften the blow of the ongoing crisis and
contributes to preventing a buildup of social tensions.
Presumably, there is little that newspaper publishers can do at
this point to reverse the downward trend of their businesses. The
best they can do as things stand now is to hope that the overall
economic situation will soon take a turn for the better and
stabilize so that, at the very least, adjustments can be made on
a more healthy basis.
As for the future, it is to be hoped that the adjustments
which the reform package promises to bring will also better
guarantee an adequate newsprint supply to enable publishers --
and not only of the media but also others such as those of books
and scientific periodicals -- to better weather any crises which
the future may bring.