KUALA LUMPUR – Sin Chew Daily will feature the Jalur Gemilang on its front page in a move the newspaper describes as a step toward acknowledging its mistake and restoring public trust following a recent national flag blunder.
According to group chief editor Datuk Kuik Cheng Kang, the decision was made as part of efforts to draw awareness and learn from its mistakes.
“We have to rise from where we fall,” he told Scoop.
The announcement comes a day after National Press Club president Datuk Ahirudin Attan made the suggestion in a commentary published on Scoop, calling on the media – and Sin Chew in particular – to demonstrate patriotism as a gesture of goodwill and remorse.
Ahirudin, or Rocky Bru as he is popularly known, said everyone is prone to mistakes and Sin Chew should be forgiven for the unintentional faux pas.
“Fly the Jalur Gemilang on our social media pages. Sin Chew will do well to lead by displaying the flag next to its masthead, both print and online,” wrote Ahirudin, who is executive director of Big Boom Media, which publishes Scoop.
His remarks followed intense backlash over an image of the Jalur Gemilang published by Sin Chew, which has 200,000 print circulation, on April 15, which appeared without the crescent moon – an omission many deemed disrespectful and unacceptable. The image accompanied a front-page article covering the state visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping.
The blunder prompted criticism from several parties including YDPA Sultan Ibrahim.
Sin Chew has since explained that the error stemmed from an unintentional technical fault involving an AI-generated image. The newspaper issued a public apology and stated it has taken disciplinary action against the staff responsible. Editorial protocols have also been revised, particularly for the use of AI tools.
On April 17, Sin Chew’s chief editor and deputy chief sub-editor were detained by police for questioning, during which officers also seized computers and materials from the newspaper’s office. Both individuals have since been released on police bail. – April 23, 2025