Nezar: Policy Success Determined by Quality of Communication

Deputy Minister of Communication and Digital Affairs (Wamenkomdigi) Nezar Patria has asserted that the success of government policy is determined not only by the quality of its substance, but also by effective communication and public trust. According to him, changes in the digital communication landscape require the government to build adaptive communication so that every policy can be understood and accepted by the public. “What we are doing is competing for trust, public trust. This is the problem in our policy communication today. If it can be formulated, policy success is a formulation of the quality of the policy itself, communication practice, plus public trust,” Nezar said in a confirmed statement in Jakarta on Wednesday. He stated that if one of these elements is weak, the success of policy communication will face challenges. He stressed that a good policy does not automatically become a trusted policy. Nezar said changes in people’s behaviour in accessing information mean the government is no longer the sole source of information. This condition demands that policy communication be able to compete with various narratives developing in the digital space, as the public can now access, produce, and disseminate information through various digital platforms. “Now sources of information are scattered. The public does not need to wait for the media to get information. They do not need to wait for public relations to write a press release. As soon as an event occurs, they immediately look for various information sources that have social media accounts or accessible sites,” Nezar said. He added that the public also creates their own content and uploads it to social media. Sometimes the versions produced by content creators compete with official government information. According to Nezar, the challenge of government communication is increasingly complex because social media algorithms shape perceptions based more on sentiment than on facts. This condition triggers polarisation, echo chambers, and post-truth phenomena that affect how the public interprets a policy. “Algorithms work based on what we like and dislike. What matters is not the fact, but the sentiment. From sentiment, perception is formed. This perception then frames how we see problems and interpret reality,” Nezar explained. Therefore, Nezar stressed that government communication must prioritise a fast, empathetic, open, and dialogue-based approach to rebuild public trust amidst the dynamics of the digital space. In addition to strengthening the communication approach, Nezar assessed that the use of technology is a necessity to read the dynamics of the digital space quickly and accurately. According to him, social listening, sentiment analysis, and early warning systems can help the government anticipate potential communication crises, including the spread of AI-based deepfake content. Nezar said many countries have placed public trust as the foundation of government communication. He noted that policy communication practices in countries such as the United Kingdom, Taiwan, and Estonia can serve as lessons to strengthen public communication that is more adaptive, participatory, and oriented towards public needs. Nezar emphasised that information integrity is the main foundation in building public trust. He said government public relations has a strategic role as a translator of policy as well as a bridge between the state and society. “Public trust can only be obtained if we are honest with data. Never lie. It is better not to answer than to provide incorrect information, because that will destroy trust,” he said.