Kuala lumpur: As artificial intelligence (AI) becomes increasingly capable of mimicking writing styles, generating news reports, and producing content at unprecedented speed, a new question is emerging in newsrooms: can house style still serve as a media organisation's defining identity? The issue comes into sharper focus as Malaysia marked National Journalists' Day (HAWANA) yesterday, with industry veterans arguing that while house style remains important, relevance, audience engagement, and adaptability may ultimately determine the future of journalism in the digital age.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, former Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM) director-general Datuk Suhaimi Sulaiman said media organisations can no longer rely solely on house style to remain relevant in an increasingly competitive media landscape. He opined that understanding audience needs and producing content that genuinely serves readers are now more important than rigidly adhering to editorial conventions.
'To me, relevance is about understanding what the market wants and how we deliver it. We think too much about house style, but what matters is whether the news can be consumed and valued by the audience,' he told Bernama in conjunction with HAWANA. Suhaimi, who was former Malaysian National News Agency (Bernama) chairman, said house style still plays an important role in ensuring reports are complete, accurate, and consistent, but argued that editorial approaches must evolve alongside changing news consumption habits.
He said media organisations should be more willing to adapt their storytelling methods, including producing shorter, faster, and more digitally friendly content. 'If we become too attached to house style and refuse to change, we may end up producing reports that are well-written and comprehensive, but nobody reads them,' he said.
Drawing from his experience leading RTM, Suhaimi said efforts such as introducing shorter news formats and strengthening digital content helped attract new audiences and improve viewership. 'People asked, 'Did RTM really produce this?' But the changes worked. We introduced shorter news segments and programmes like 'Kanta 744', which aired for just 15 minutes. It attracted a new audience, our ratings improved and many were surprised that a government broadcaster could change,' he said.
Meanwhile, Malaysian Press Institute (MPI) president Datuk Yong Soo Heong believes house style remains relevant as an editorial framework, but should never become a barrier to innovation. The bigger challenge for media organisations today, he said, is ensuring news content resonates with readers' daily lives rather than merely reproducing official statements and routine narratives.
He argued that journalism must place greater emphasis on explaining how issues affect ordinary people if it hopes to remain relevant and meaningful. 'For example, when reporting on abandoned housing projects, stories often focus on government directives or actions against developers. Most people will not read that because it has little connection to their lives. But if you explain how much buyers are losing because they are paying housing loan instalments while also renting elsewhere due to delayed projects, then the story becomes relevant to them,' he said.
Yong said changing news consumption habits requires journalists and editors to think beyond traditional formats and continuously adapt to an evolving media environment. The former Bernama Editor-in-Chief and general manager hopes this year's HAWANA celebration will encourage media practitioners to strengthen their skills and improve the quality of their journalism to ensure the profession remains relevant.
The recipient of the HAWANA 2025 Award said media practitioners cannot afford to remain in their comfort zones, but must continuously expand their knowledge and keep pace with industry developments. 'You've got to change with the times. The challenges today are very different from what they were before. The media must evolve and cannot remain static. It is equally important for journalists to read widely because it helps them produce better stories. Improving storytelling skills is critical if we want to win the attention of audiences amid intense competition and the challenges facing the media today,' he said.
The highlight event of the National Journalists' Day (HAWANA) 2026 celebration is scheduled to take place on June 20 at the PICCA@Arena Butterworth Convention Centre in Penang under the theme 'Media Integrity, Foundation of Credibility'. The annual celebration, organised by the Communications Ministry with Bernama as the implementing agency, is scheduled to be officiated by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.