Having said that, the Indonesian media landscape is no small feat. In fact, it is one of the most complex in the region. Eight of the largest television networks in Indonesia are owned by commercial entities. With few regulatory constraints on news production models, major news outlets are hamstrung in their efforts to act as the true fourth estate. The same is true of newspapers, where their owners have sought out government funding in order to maintain afloat.
The biggest challenge is the sheer number of outlets competing for attention. As the largest media market in Southeast Asia, it's a crowded field. To keep up, many news outlets have opted to outsource news production or cut staff in order to make a buck. To add insult to injury, the aforementioned economic downturn has left many a newsroom in the dust. It's not surprising that the country's leading English-language newspaper, the Jakarta Post, announced in August that it was considering laying off two-thirds of its workforce.
To its credit, the Indonesian government has rolled out several initiatives in recent years to combat the digital divide. For instance, a study by Indikator Politik Indonesia in April found that 69.6 percent of respondents were more afraid of speaking out online than they were a few years ago. But the big question is, what's the best way to redress this imbalance? The answer to that question remains elusive.
One possible solution could be a Indowarta collaborative effort between Indonesian authorities, the private sector, and the state government. Among the most promising initiatives would be a panoply of information-sharing protocols, which would not only reduce the risk of information leaks, but also increase the likelihood that the best information will be presented to the public. This is particularly pertinent in light of the country's burgeoning political squabbles.
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