Monday, August 14, 2006

SIN GURU TO TRAIN NST EDITORS/MAJULAH SINGAPURA BAB 9

Revi Veloo, a former reporter for the Singapore Straits Times, has been given the task of retraining, reconditioning and remoulding the bureau chiefs of the New Straits Times.

The Singaporean's job starts with a two-day course later this week. Bureau chiefs are generally experienced journalists with good political connections and leadership qualities.

The Singaporean comes highly recommended by another ex-ST operative, Brendan Pereira, who is now the Group Editor of the New Straits Times.

This is the first time a Singapore Straits Times' former reporter has been brought to directly train senior journalists from the Umno-owned NST. Brendan was brought in by former group editor-in-chief of NSTP and now its Editorial Adviser, Kalimullah Hassan, who was also a Singapore Straits Times reporter.

Both Kalimullah and Brendan are part of the so-called "inner circle" of the Abdullah Administration. Kalimullah was a staunch critic of Dr M even before the ex-PM's current spat with the PM.

Revi and Brendan have known each other for years. They are immortalised digitally on this website (CLICK HERE) on the same page headlined The Unusual Character & Extra Value of Singapore Journalism.

On that page, fugitive Singapore opposition leader inserted a line of caution: Beware if you have to talk to journalists from Singapore!!!

Beware if you have to talk to journalists from Singapore!!!

The following is a list of Singapore journalists who swarmed liked� (whatever your imagination fancies) to file numerous Affidavits in support of 13 defamation suits filed by Singapore People's Action Party (PAP) against an opposition politician in Singapore ;-

Straits Times

11. Brendan Pereira's 1st Affidavit filed on 2nd May 1997.

12. Chang Ai-Lien's 1st Affidavit filed on 29th April 1997.

13. Eliza Teoh's 1st Affidavit filed on 29th April 1997.

14. Eliza Teoh's 2nd Affidavit filed on 30th April 1997.

15. Jason Leow's 1st Affidavit filed on 29th April 1997.

16. Jason Leow's 2nd Affidavit filed on 29th April 1997.

17. Leong Ching Ching's 1st Affidavit filed on 29th April 1997.

18. Leong Ching Ching's 2nd Affidavit filed on 30th April 1997.

19. Ng Sock Hiang, Serene Marie, Low Sock Eng Jeannie and Simon Tan Thoo Seng's Joint Affidavit filed on 30th April 1997.

20. Pang Gek Choo's 1st Affidavit filed on 29th April 1997.

21. Ravi Veloo's 1st affidavit filed on 29th April 1997.

22. Surinder Singh's 1st Affidavit sworn on 30th April 1997.



Revi Veloo and Brendan Pereira had allegedly filed affidavits in support of 13 defamation suits filed by Lee Kuan Yew's ruling PAP against an Opposition politician in the republic back in 1997.

50 comments:

  1. Anonymous9:26 pm

    Aaik Rocky...
    Sampai gitu percayanya PM kat konco-konco ni?
    Tak ade ke dia rasa segan dan silu pada orang Melayu Malaysia?
    Atau ke dia tak tahu langsung dan hanya akan mengetahuinya satu setengah tahun kemudian, apabila nasi sudah menjadi bubur

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous11:11 pm

    According to my sources, ravi veloo is a master reporter. he can write and spin as well. he is highly regarded by the singaproe straits times and the singapore powers-that-be. he has good language skills. he has a nose for news. also, he has a first class honours in english, like brendan. can you beat that? well, he can can train whoever wants to be trained in the nst. at tne end of the day, these reporters are going to the star or sun. the nst cannot keep them for one simple reason - they cannot pay these reporters the market price. gone are the days when nst could pay. nst is now a brankrupt company. nst's claim to fame is that it is a 180=year OLD giant - albeit with no teeth. star has the money, they go for well-trained journalists. when we talk about well-trained jounalists, the nst comes to mind. the nst has produced some of the best journalistic brains in the country for the past 30 years, and that includes you, Rocky. not forgetting to mention tbe head honchos in the star and sun like wong su long and ho kay tat. brendan and ravi can train these rookies, or whatever. in the end, they will end up in star, sun, or some other magazine. so my message to brendan is very simple - don't waste your time.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous11:42 pm

    Dear Rocky,
    Whats happening to us? Will there be light at the end of the tunnel?

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous12:54 am

    Well done NST!! It's about time some training is done 'cos there are many reporters who need such help. You can't expect Breandan to do it all alone! When another S'pore Straits Times journalist is brought to train Malaysian journalists, one can imagine the kind of journalism that's coming. In Singapore, all journalists are told not to question their leaders, specially if the issues are controversial. And that is perhaps how Singapore has become such a prosperous country. Forget that the Singapore Straits Times Chief Editor had served the Government as a high-ranking Intelligence officer (according to many published accounts). Maybe Dato Hisham as the NSTP GEIC should spend a few weeks or months in Singapre Straits Times to observe, learn and acquire the island republic's code of journalism! Training can't be more effective if it starts from the top!! And what about the business side of the newspaper? Shouldn't Dato Syed Faisal also pay a visit to accompany Dato Hisham?

    In any case, one shouldn't pre-judge the training that'll be conducted. For such a training to be effective, the trainer should be here for at least 6 months with an option of 6 more months to ensure smooth transfer of knowledge, skills and whatever else! And while they are at it, perhaps the NSTP should not be selfish and offer the trainer to other news organisations like Bernama. If the training is recognised by the Human Resource Ministry, companies sending their staff for training can claim from the Human Resource DevelopmentFund!! And what will the National Union of Journalists say, you might ask! Well, what can the NUJ say? If training will make their members better, they should support it. Period. And Perhaps the trainer can be invited to speak at the National Press Club and share his wisdom with other scribes.

    I don't agree with nstman that the NSTP is a bankrupt company. The NSTP is an Umno creation, given birth to by Tun Razak. Umno will not allow the NSTP to go bankrupt, and getting a good trainer from Singapore is a first step towards making it stronger. A newspaper, many friends in the business say, is only good if its content is good. Umno can rest easy now that its newspaper is making a giant step to bridge the skill gap which the Msian operation believed can be rectified by getting a master from across the Causeway to train it. Well done NSTP! Syabas Dato Hisham! You will be remembered for making this major decision!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous1:44 am

    what ever happened to the nst being an UMNO newspaper?
    not enough that there is only a trickle of bumis running the organisation and newspaper, now we need singaporeans?
    yes, call me a racist if you wish but what has happened to the nst and do the so called UMNO leaders not realize this?

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous7:26 am

    Anonymous said...

    "but what has happened to the nst and do the so called UMNO leaders not realize this? "

    ==================================

    Exactly!!

    It's sad, sad, sad. What is to become of our leaders? Hopeless & useless.

    Agen2 asing sedang menular bukan dengan senyap tetapi dengan terang, maseh tidak mereka sedari.

    Cant they see?


    Hani

    ReplyDelete
  7. Anonymous7:49 am

    Saudara Rocky,

    Kalau benar laopran ini, ia berupa satu tamparan kepada para wartawan NSTP khasnya dan negara kita amnya.

    Ia boleh juga menjadi ancaman kepada moral kakitangan. Apatah lagu dalam suasana sekarang.

    Kita tidak perlu banyak berilmu dan bijaksana untuk mengetahu bahawa media massa di Republik Singapura adalah milik negara. Tiada kebebasan politik dan akhbar di negara pulau itu adalah alat propaganda. Di dalam arena media massa tiada saingan.

    Untuk mewujudkan gambaran adanya saingan, kerajaan republik itu membenarkan firma akhbar memulakan stesen TV dan Stesen TV memulakan akhbar.

    Eksperimen ini tidak pun berjaya. Rakyat Singapura sudah begitu lama dikongkong mindanya sehingga mereka tidak lagi berasa perlu kepada kepelbagaian.

    Lagipun, media massa Singapura beroperasi dalam suasana dwi-bahasa, iatu Inggeris dan Mandarin. Akhbar bahasa Melayu dan Tamil terlalu kecil dan dipinggirkan.

    Media massa Singapura adalah sebahagian daripada sistem kekaderan (cadre system)Parti Tindakan Rakyat (PAP). Baru-baru timbul kontroversi tentang bekas pegawai-pegawai ISD (Internal Security Department yakni SB Singapura) yang memegang jawatan tinggi dalam Straits Times.

    Jadi kita tidak boleh menolak kemungkinan bahawa sesiapa jua yang melalui sistem media Singapura, khasnya di Straits Times, sedidit sebanyak diindoktrinasi dengan ideologi PAP dan disuntik dengan keadah pengintipan ISD.

    Terima Kasih.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous7:57 am

    Haha...What now Zam? Cakap besar. Kali's and Brendan's days numbered. I have my own way of skinning a cat.
    Come on Pak Menteri, Pak Lah LOVES these people more than you.
    Umno is kembiri. PAP has taken over NSTP.
    Kalau akan jantan, pi la jumpa Pak Lah. Bagi tau dia budak-budak penakut NSTP akan disuntik dengan ideologi PAP dan rahsia negara didedahkan kepada ISD, Singapura.
    Menteri Penerangan atau Menteri Penemberangan?

    ReplyDelete
  9. This is a great insult to Malaysian journalists!

    Kita mempunyai ramai wartawan yang berkaliber & berwibawa.

    Kenapa harus mendapatkan wartawan asing untuk memberi latihan kepada wartawan NST yang telah pun mempunyai pengalaman?

    Sunggunh aneh!

    Will it be a refreshed course in Singapore version of journalism to turn them into spin (half-past six) doctors?.

    Apalah Pak Lah ni, bagi lesen & kuasa kpd Kali & gang membuat sesuka hati untuk menjahanamkan NST.

    Atau pun sememangnya Pak Lah "tak involved" & "doesnt know" saperti pengakuan beliau mengenai issue pembelian saham ECM Libra oleh menantunnya, the merger of ECM Libra dengan Avenue Capital & penjulaan Pantai Holdings.

    Come to think of it. What does Pak Lah know.

    Or does he know anything at all?

    ReplyDelete
  10. And to quote A Voice ...

    "... So Pak Lah, by the look of your expertise, I reckon you should stick to reading doa for Perhimpunan Agong UMNO."

    ReplyDelete
  11. Anonymous9:49 am

    What a joke! How scary..
    Singapore Straits Times probably trains its reporters well. I suppose, like the singapore government's training programme.
    We know why NST has unashamedly invited Ravi. Its Kalimulah's unashamed and unabashed grovelling subservience to ST. I have never known anyone to sooo look up to foreign correspondents as Kalimulah does. It is despicable.
    Believe me, there is nothing more this ravi guy can teach our bureau chiefs. He probably can give them a few tips here and there... nothing they dont already know.
    Now, THEY CAN teach him a thing or two.
    Trust me.... an ST reporter with five years experience is equivalent to an NST reporter with one year experience. Tell me, how big is Singapore? Have you read the ST. Well-crafted articles. They are good at maiking boring pieces interesting.
    Perhaps, ravi can teach our bureau chiefs how to string sentences and how to write intros SIngapore Straits Times style. Hey, then you have to throw all that you have learnt from journalism's greats out the window.
    Remember, brendan's penchant for cliched intros.
    Newswriting? i can name you senior editors at the NST who can teach our guys that too.
    Ravi can teach our guys how to think? I dont think so.
    i have seen ST reporters at work in Singapore and in Malaysia. Sure they ask questions. safe questions that wont get them into trouble.
    they are no better, no worse than NST reporters.
    Have you seen brendan at work when he was working as an ST/Singapore govt operative in KL? Quiet as a mouse at Press conferences that some senior journalists dont remember him/ dont know who he is.
    I have i learnt anything from brendan? nope... i have far more experience than he has, i have far more contacts than he has, i know a lot more about journalism and reporting than he does.
    ANd our reporters know more about journalism than brendan.
    On the newsdesk --- KP waran is far more experienced. been to more places. know more people. covered conflict-torn countries. heck... even ramlan is a better reporter. his writing may not be so glossy like brendan's...which to my mind is good.
    so, you are telling me that this ravi guy can teach our guys something they don't already know? aaah..... perhaps the area of spinning. If he is anything like brendan, then they will learn nothing.

    ADIOS! and say a little prayer each day.......

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anonymous9:59 am

    any form of training, if for the better, is something that should be applauded.
    i support the fact that many of the nst's reporters today lack the understanding of basic reporting - you can come to this conclusion when you see them asking if not asking any questions at press conferences.
    frankly, i say bring back the pre-editorial training scheme (PETS). it worked wonders for the company in the past and i see no reason why i should not continue to work. just have a look on the editorial floor and see how many former pets are there or have moved on to much better things outside nst.
    also, what is lacking these days in nst are editors/seniors who teach. semuanya kedekut ilmu takut their position threatened. why?
    plus, when you have new and arrogant upstarts, it really doesn't help either.
    itulah, ada orang baik baik tak interested to maintain or look after. they just chose to ignore on the basis that if 1 person leaves the nst can always replace him or her with another 10. good. you pay peanuts you get monkeys.
    syabas.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Anonymous11:46 am

    Hello Mr Rocky,
    I find that you have selective memory. Not too long ago, when your mentor figur, Ahmad Talib was Group Editor and you were riding high in the NST, Balaji was brought in to hold courses for the senior editors. I can understand your bitterness with the NST but to try and plug Ravi Veloo's training as yet another attempt to bring Singapore expertise into the NST is, to say the least, pathetic. Next time checky your facts. And if you want to know how good this Ravi fellow is just buy his book No Room at the Inn. I think even in your current state of bitterness you will be able to appreciate good journalism. What the heck, you may even pick up some ideas and use it when you blog the next time.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Anonymous1:16 pm

    Dinjin,
    You seem to know this Ravi Veloo very well (he's not related to Samy Velu, is he?).
    So tell us what else this Ravi does besides writing a little book and ganging up with other reporters like BP to write affidavits against Opposition politicians in Singapore?
    And I tell you something you don't know - many of our bereau chiefs can put Ravi and Brendan in their pockets when it comes to reporting. Don't even compare those affidavit writers to the likes of the Bru.
    p.s. Are you Ravi Veloo's book agent, by any chance?

    NT-SINGING

    ReplyDelete
  15. Anonymous1:18 pm

    Sdr Rocky dan rakan-rakan, maaflah banyak typo dalam komen saya tadi.

    Inipun salah Sdr Rocky juga. Pagi-pagi buta lagi dah hidangkan kita sarapan minda yang beracun, yang pahit -- sama pahitnya dengan laporan muka satu The Star "Bitter pill -- prices of drugs used daily rising steadily."

    Apa kata Menteri Kesihatan dan Menteri Perdagangan Dalam Negeri dan Hal Ehwal Pengguna? Semua ok?

    Gabenor Bank Negara kata inflasi yang meningkat sekarang bukan demand-drive tetapi cost-driven.

    Permintaan tak naik sebab orang tak cukup duit tapi harga naik juga sebab kos pengeluaran naik.

    Kos pengeluaran naik sebab harga minyak, tarif elektrik dan macam-macam lagi naik.

    Sdr Rocky, some good news please! No more news about our souls being sold to our southern neighbour.

    By the way, is it true that Tun Dr M has gone to China for horseback riding?

    ReplyDelete
  16. Anonymous1:57 pm

    Enough justification and wayang. Perhaps this is the best time and it augurs well for NST be named New Singapore Times.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Anonymous2:36 pm

    Rocky, you have become a specialist in \"wronging\" everything NSTP does and must be commended for making some idiots even believe this myth about the Singaporean Bogey Men !

    ReplyDelete
  18. Anonymous3:48 pm

    Dato'Hisham, Congratulation for the initiative to train our reporters. Our standard must be very-very low now. I based my arguements when reading few of your articles and your stories when you were abroad.
    Anyway, why don't you also bring someone from Singapore´s Berita Harian to train Berita Harian reporters here. I think, Singapore´s Berita Harian journalism is much better off then ours. If you allow ex-Singapore ST reporter to train NST reporters, what is the different then.
    I strongly believe you and CEO, as commented by one of the forumer, should go for training in that island as well. You can learn about new style of Singapore's news reporting and the CEO on company business especially on how to increase revenue.

    Penjaga Lif

    ReplyDelete
  19. Anonymous4:40 pm

    The whole idea Bru, is to train future PAP-type spinners in the Kali and Brendan mold.

    This is in preparation for the Singaporeanization of our beloved Malaysia. So when Khairy becomes PM of the Singapore-like Malaysia at the age of 40, he’ll have his own bunch of spinners.

    For the heck of it, I’ve taken the initiative to spin a theme song for young Khairy “I am the Prime Minister”.

    Don’t cry for him. He’s not a sen poorer by so-called selling his ECM Libra Avenue shares. Were they sold at all?

    Here you are, Don’t Cry For Me Argentina (the Khairy version with apologies to Andrew Lloyd Webber)

    It won't be easy, you'll think it strange.
    When I try to explain how I feel.
    That I still need your VOTES after all that I've done.

    You won't believe me.
    All you will see is KHAIRY you once knew.
    Although HE’S dressed up to the nines.
    At sixes and sevens with you.

    I had to let it happen, I had to change.
    Couldn't stay all my life down at heel.
    Looking out of the window, staying out of the sun.

    So I chose UMNO.
    Running around, trying everything I KNOW.
    But nothing impressed me at all
    I never expected it to

    [Chorus:]

    Don't cry for me MALAYSIA***
    The truth is I never left you.
    All through my wild days.
    My mad existence.
    I kept my promise.
    Don't keep your distance.

    And as for fortune, and as for fame.
    I DELIBERATELY invited them in.
    BECAUSE they were all I desired.
    They are NOT illusions.
    They THE SOLUTIONS they promised to be.
    The answer was here all the time.
    I love you and I LOVE YOUR MONEY.

    Don't cry for me oh MALAYSIA
    (Repeat Chorus)

    Have I said too much?
    There's nothing more I can think of to say to you.
    But all you have to do is look at me to know.
    That every word is true.

    *** Can also be replaced with Maya, which in Sanskrit means illusion.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Anonymous5:00 pm

    And this one is in celebration of today’s NST page one news, "I am the Prime Minister."

    (With apologies to Coulter Martin)

    Congratulations and celebrations,
    when I tell everyone that you've voted for me.
    Congratulations and jubilations.
    I want the world to know “I'm the Perdana Menteri”..

    Who would believe that I could Perdana Menteri
    be happy and contented.
    I used to think that happiness
    hadn't been invented.
    but that was in the bad old days
    before I became Perdana Menteri,
    when I was in the foreign ministry.

    Congratulations and celebrations,
    when I tell everyone I’m your Perdana Menteri,
    Congratulations and jubilations,
    I want the world to know I'm happy Perdana Menteri

    I was afraid that maybe,
    you thought you were above me,
    and like iblis you're naughty,
    that I was only fooling myself,
    to think that in can be Perdana Menteri,
    But then now you said,
    you couldn't live without me,
    being your Perdana Menteri
    the promoter of Islam Hadhari.

    Congratulations and celebrations,
    when I tell everyone that I’m your Perdana Menteri,
    Congratulations and jubilations,
    I want the world to know I'm a sincere Perdana Menteri…..

    Bru, we’re jungle people, we’re happy people.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Salam Bro,

    Tak kira sehebat mana pun seseorang itu dalam kebolehannya utk melatih kita menulis, menganalisis dan menyepin (spinning - memutaq tak brapa sedap - "i sound stupid when i speak in malay..."), tapi kalau org itu ada agenda, dan memang pun sarat dgn agenda, manakala latar belakangnya pula penuh dgn indoktrinasi dari puak-puak jakun kuasa spt PAP, kita akhirnya bukan menjadi org yg pandai menulis dan menganalisis, tetapi takut nanti pembaptisan spt itu akhirnya menjadikan kita iblis!

    Hari ini, kebenaran sedang memperbaiki sejarah. Org yang mengaku silap pilih (silap besar tu....!) tiba-tiba muncul untuk beraksi dalam episod kebenaran memperbaiki sejarah ini. Tak patut kalau kita tak sokong orang yang hendak memperbaiki kesilapannya.

    Hari ini, kebenaran yang memperbaiki sejarah mungkin kelihatan lemah. Tetapi, kebenaran akhirnya akan menang juga kerana dia tidak pernah gagal jadi pemenang.

    Oleh itu, kursus-kursus mengenai spin-menyepin ni tidak akan bermakna dan tak akan ke mana-mana. Sekadar penglipurlara untuk meredakan amukan jiwa yang resah dan impian yang kian terancam. Salam.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Anonymous6:16 pm

    pak lah,

    bangkitlah dari lena tidurmu yang panjaaaaaaaang.
    air liur basimu sudah menjadi tasik yang busuknya sudah melata di mana-mana .....

    ReplyDelete
  23. Anonymous7:02 pm

    bro,

    so do you have selective memory as dinjin said?

    and are you bitter about being booted out of NST?

    is that why you are blogging about kalimulah and his machais?

    and are you going to buy mr revi's book?

    ReplyDelete
  24. Anonymous7:08 pm

    funny.....maybe i am blind...maybe blur. whatever but i can hardly detect any hint of bitterness in your postings. and you were not even being malicious towards mr revi.
    aah... singaporeans..... they write books-- lah..... all sorts of books.
    wish we have the time, eh, bro.

    perhaps you should set a bit of time for writing a book. bet it would be a killer.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Anonymous8:58 pm

    yeah, man

    bro, let's give this revi a chance. we dont even know him from adam. he may be good. helpful to the NST.

    at this point, nst needs all the help it can get.

    peace, brother

    ReplyDelete
  26. Anonymous9:20 pm

    mr/mrs/miss/ms dinjin

    if nst had got someone from singapore straits times in the past, it was done without any sinister motive.

    i am sorry to say that the situation is V E R Y different now.

    I am sorry ... no.. i am very very happy to tell you that i do not for a minute believe that rocky has selective memory.

    i believe that he knows what he is saying and indicating.

    i also believe that he has nothing personal against mr veloo. in fact, i wont be surprised that he would go buy that book, if has not already.

    i do not know rocky. but i have been following his blog. i dont see any malice in it. however, i do feel his contempt for kalimullah and his kronies/kadams/kaluts ...and he has good reason for that.

    going through not only his blog, and also my own little checking....and my own knowledge of what is going on in the country, i appreciate his courage, openness, forthrightness, cynicism.

    you know, if we take a poll now....i can bet my bottom malaysian ringgit that people like ROCKY, A KADIR JASIN, RP would get more respect than **$%#@

    WAY TO GO BRO!

    PS: I am not rocky bru's PRO. and i was not paid to write all this.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Anonymous10:15 pm

    It's likely Ravi's going to stay for a while as a trainer at NST, he's been described as 'brilliant' by those who've gone for his sessions...

    And I know it really doesn't matter, but Brendan studied law, not english

    ReplyDelete
  28. Anonymous10:33 pm

    What I find pathetic is that some UMNO warriors such as Nartzee (pronounced as Nazi!) are willing to swagger and bluntly anhilate any traitor who blatantly destroys UMNO or the Malay aspirations. Isn't ensuring that the upper echelons of NST being the domain of well-educated and highly experienced Malay journalists an UMNO and Malay aspiration? Isn't the change of the Malay editorial guards to 'pariah' gurkhas discernibly a blatant act of treachery? Where are the UMNO pendekars? Where art thou Nartzee (pronounced as Nazi!)?

    ReplyDelete
  29. Anonymous10:35 pm

    What I find pathetic is that some UMNO warriors such as Nartzee (pronounced as Nazi!) are willing to swagger and bluntly anhilate any traitor who blatantly destroys UMNO or the Malay aspirations. Isn't ensuring that the upper echelons of NST being the domain of well-educated and highly experienced Malay journalists an UMNO and Malay aspiration? Isn't the change of the Malay editorial guards to 'pariah' gurkhas discernibly a blatant act of treachery? Where are the UMNO pendekars? Where art thou Nartzee (pronounced as Nazi!)?

    ReplyDelete
  30. Anonymous7:39 am

    These shamelessly loyal State-trained Southern boys are ridiculously overrated as writers. They have a style as dry as the privates of a worn and withered hicktown hooker, traffic in trite turns of phrase that even a jejune hack will be too ashamed to embrace, regurgitate the kind of platitudes that won't hold up in a high school essay, and deal in generalities with a cockiness that will alarm even the most forgiving detail-hound. Sadly, it's a reflection of the sorry state of semantics in their nation — a country of docile drones who wake up in the morning not with a yawn, but with a smothered fart. Now you know how the term 'tight ass' originated.

    ReplyDelete
  31. Anonymous11:59 am

    to anonymous who said that rocky bru has become a specialist at "wronging" everything that NST does.

    Read carefully - lah. All that rocky bru writes about the NST is about what is wrong with the newspaper, the wrong committed by those clowns at NST, stupid.
    and those clowns are not the real journalists at NST.

    he is not "wronging" everything that NST does, asshole.

    you cannot be an NST reporter, otherwise you'd be able to read, understand.

    kalau nak hentam, pandai sikit-lah.

    from
    Ah Chong.

    ReplyDelete
  32. Anonymous12:08 pm

    hi rocky,

    interesting topic, this brendan bringing his ilk to the NST to train bureau chiefs and staff correspondents (bc/sc). well, i am not bothered at all by this kind of move to remodel, recondition our senior and experienced staff.

    why do i say so? because brendan can bring as many ravi veloos and as many times the same person as he wants; but, he wont achieve his vision of subduing them to him or his style of reporting.

    i premise my opinion on these grounds:

    - the bc/scs like many other senior and junior editorial staff know brendan is not going to stay in nst long. so just let it be. indeed the three-day course, think they, is a break from their workplace.

    - ravi veloo is going to teach them something that they already know. for the bc/sc there ain't that many tricks left to teach them anymore, not the important once, though.

    - brendan's rule in nst has created total chaos both at the hq as well as the bureau offices. the bc/sc as well as the bureau reporters are truly clueless and directionless with regards to what the nst wants from them in terms of coverage. so, believe me when i say ravi veloo will be wasting his time (though he'll be earning the money). the bc/sc don't need this kind of shitty training. all they need now is usable and practical information to run their offices.

    - the bc/sc know that brendan is there to spin-doctor for kaimullah. and, the others like the manipulative siew lean, the weakling calvin, the subdued waran, the arrogant boon, the cool kathi and the ball-carrying lionel are there to do brendan's bidding. u see rocky the bc/sc know the situation is hopeless at the top. so for them the only thing that matters is to cover their asses by sending stories that they "think" brendan or his underlings at the news desk would find interesting.

    so lets not try to blow the issue of ravi veloo out of proportion. and please don't try to racialise nstp's problems. leave umno and malay out of the equation. lets look at the paper from the point of view of it being just a newspaper.

    ReplyDelete
  33. Anonymous12:13 pm

    saya bukan sahabat saudara Bru.

    Saya ingin mengatakan di sini bahawa selain daripada Datuk Kadir Jasin, saudara Rocky Bru memang berhemat tinggi dan berwibawa.

    Apa sebab saya berkata demikian.
    Blog saudara tidak membuat tuduhan melulu, yang tidak berasas, yang tidak bernas dan tidak berunsur jahat dan dengki.

    saya faham saudara dahulu bekerja dengan NST, berjawatan EDITOR dan di berhentikan perkhidmatan kerana tidak bersefahaman dengan Datuk Kalimullah.

    Saya pun diberitahu yang ada se buah blog yang mencaci cerca, menghentam saudara dan Datuk Kadir Jasin serta beberapa orang termasuk Tun Dr Mahathir, Tan Sri Abdullah Ahmad Kok Lanas dengan cerita-cerita yang sukar di percayai dan tidak bererti dan significant.

    Jelas, niat mereka ini untuk menjatuhkan nama saudara semua. Sukar nak percaya kesahihan cerita2 itu. Mungkin ada kebenaran di situ dan di sini, tetapi di tambah-tambah dengan pembohongan yang amat dahsyat.

    Jelas mereka ini marah dengan keberanian dan perjuangan, (ya,perjuangan!) saudara rocky dan datuk kadir dan beberapa orang lagi yang tidak bernama (hanya nama blog sahaja). Saya petik nama saudara dan datuk kadir sebab saudara berdua berani menampilkan nama.

    Syabbas dan saya kagum dengan keberanian saudara2.

    Itu-lah sebab saya sangat menyampah -- i am full of disdain and contempt -- dengan blog2 (saya rasa saudara semua tahu blog yang saya maksudkan) yang hanya menyibar fitnah-fitnah.

    Saya pasti saudara dan datuk kadir tidak akan membuat posting jika apa yang di tulis tidak berasas.

    SELAMAT BERJUANG!!!!
    UNTUK NEGARA MALAYSIA YANG TERCINTA! MERDEKA MERDEKA MERDEKA

    ReplyDelete
  34. Anonymous12:14 pm

    bru, a story about spying singapore journos. with recent scandalous stories about st editors being trained as spies, you have to wonder about this one. i hope no journalist in malaysia will face the same fate. i am sure you, bru, will protest in support of the journalist.:P

    China Tries Reporter Accused of Spying

    By GILLIAN WONG
    Associated Press Writer


    AP Photo/VINCENT YU
    World Video


    BEIJING (AP) -- A reporter accused of spying for Taiwan was put on trial in China's capital Tuesday, Hong Kong television and a human rights activist said in reporting the latest in a string of espionage cases against people with overseas ties.

    Ching Cheong, a correspondent for Singapore's main English language newspaper, The Straits Times, was detained in April 2005, and state media later claimed he confessed to selling military secrets to Taiwan and setting up a spy network. His supporters say he is innocent.

    ReplyDelete
  35. Anonymous2:28 pm

    Rabiatul,

    Terima kasih atas ingatan baik saudari. Dalam era ICT ini, sesiapa pun boleh memulakan blog. Kalau tidak buat sendiri, boleh upah orang lain melakukannya.

    Selain Sdr Ahiruddin Atan (Rocky) dan saya, ada beberapa orang lagi wartwan yang memulakan blog atas nama mereka sendiri.

    Yang lain adalah Datuk Ruhanie Ahmad, bekas wartawan BH dan MP Parit Sulong, Sdr Rosli Ismail (laman berita Agendadaily) dan Sdr James Wong bekas wartawan Sin Chew Daily dan bekas seorang MP.

    Tentang maki hamun, fitnah dan macam-macam lagi angkara terhadap saya, itu perkara biasa. Ketika memimpin NSTP dulu pun saya sudah dipanggil dengan pelbagai gelaran dan dilemparkan pelbagai tuduhan.

    Ini adalah antara taktik untuk melemahkan semangat kita dan untuk menjatuhkan kewibawaan kita. Tetapi tidak banyak daripada yang membuat tuduhan itu berani menampilkan identiti mereka.

    Tak payah susah-susah, pergi saja ke Yahoo atau Google dan taipkan nama saya, satu kajang maklumat baik dan buruk, benar dan palsu akan keluar.

    Tetapi yang pemerintah di merata dunia takuti bukanlah maki hamun dan tuduhan melulu. Yang mereka takuti adalah penghujahan yang waras, mantap dan beradap.

    Inilah yang saya cuba lalukan melalui blog saya dengan menggalakkan pelawat menyertai perbahasan secara sopan, mantap dan bertanggungjawab. Tetapi naluri manusia, kemarahan selalunnya meracuni kewarasan.

    Terima kasih.

    ReplyDelete
  36. Anonymous3:13 pm

    to anonymous who sent this story datelined Beijing about a Singapore Straits Times correspondent, Ching Cheong, who accused of spying for Taiwan and put on trial in China's capital Tuesday.

    I have this to say : No Singapore Straits Times correspondent who is a proven spy will ever be arrested here. What more be put on trial.

    ReplyDelete
  37. Anonymous4:19 pm

    Malaysian must learn from their China counterpart how to spot the spy.
    The case of Straits Times Hong Kong base correspondence Ching Cheong show how Singapore ran their
    clandestine operation against their neighbour and business partner.
    Even though Ching have been alleged spying for Taiwan,source from western intelligence sceptics about that.They believe that he work with Singapore itself.It's open secret among asian intelligence unit that the Singaporean always used their spy journalist under the disguise of press freedom. Are Malaysian sure that they don't put any agents in our press group?

    ReplyDelete
  38. Anonymous7:32 pm

    BRAVOOO!!!!
    another UMNO-PAP in the making????
    hmm...just the thing that Tunku denied in the 60s will make a comeback in the new millenium, thanks to our beloved PM. Hopefully all the spies will get wrong infos all the times, as we are now.

    ReplyDelete
  39. Anonymous7:41 pm

    Dear Rocky,

    One of your commentators said Revi Veloo is not the first S'porean Journalist-trainer to be roped in for this purpose. Dinjin is right because Balji was brought it by the previous regime. I remember it cos I took part in his workshop, which was more on design and layout. His views were also sought when he came down to KL to help the present regime to turn the big paper into a small paper, from broadsheet to tabloid. But he didn't train reporters, except to help Rose Ismail in the Lifestyle section. Also, the NST's newsdesk was not run by another Singaporean-trained fellow like Brendan now. In any case, training is one thing; being control is another! Brendan, by virtue that he's more powerful than Dato Hishamudin Aun, is actually setting the agenda for this Umno-newspaper. But I don't believe that Brendan is also setting Umno's agenda via his selection of what to print and what not to print where Umno stories are concerned. What this means is that Brendan will determine how frequent an Umno leader should be highlighted in the NST, and how he/she should be positioned or perceived.
    With Revi Vello by his side, Brendan has a helping hand.

    ReplyDelete
  40. Anonymous10:01 am

    WATCH OUT u guys at NST

    there will be more trainers from kiasuland "to teach u a thing or two" about (hah!) journalism to you all.

    if you guys are clever, you can really see what's going on.no. dont have to be clever, maa. just open your eyes.

    some people say brendan is an ok guy. i beg to differ.. how can he be when he is a slave to kalimulah. brendan cant be stupid. i know one thing, he sure has no respect for the seniors in NST. he thinks you guys are hasbeens, nothing left in you anymore, so set in your mentality and mindset, so jaded...in other words... so useless. BUT, let me translate this : actually he thinks you seniors at NST are too resistant to his ST ways of doing things, to his style of writing, too difficult to teach ST tricks, and way too NST. And too experienced for his liking.

    there is really nothing he can show you guys-lah. thats why.

    so he is doubling his effort by bringing ST people.

    ReplyDelete
  41. Anonymous10:10 am

    what is worng with you malaysians. don't you believe in broadening your scope, your horizon? in learning from the best? we singaporeans can really teach you a lot of things. it does not take a genius to tell you that our education system is very superior. true, there was a time malaysians were equally good when your education system was in english. true too, that it does not mean that if your english is not so good, that you are not as clever as people who have a strong command of the language. BUT, if your english is good, you can read more books because a lot of good books are written in english not in bahasa melayu. and you can do well in education colleges in the US and the US. (and in Singapore)
    back to my point -- a singapore-trained journalist can teach new straits times journalists how to write better. isnt journalism about writing well so that your stories will be better. after all isnt NST an english paper?
    don't get personal, don't just attack mr veloo and ST and Singapore.
    you people are being very paranoid. and very unfair.
    we are supposed to be friendly neighbours.

    MAJULAH SINGAPURA...bersama NEGARA KU

    ReplyDelete
  42. Anonymous10:23 am

    Hello Mr Rocky.
    I have been on the road and could not reply to some of the points raised to my comments which you so kindly posted. Of course if I had a Blackberry like the one you have, courtesy of your mentor figure Ahmad Taib or the leisure to sit at the Commenwealth Club all day and blog, I would have responded sooner. Some of us have to work!
    But nonetheless, I respond today specifically to some of these people who have singled my comment for rebuttal.
    I hope you too will be able to learn. I don't oppose your other postings on Singapore and the Majulah Singapura postings but this one I have to object and put in perspective.


    nt-singing: Yes I know this Ravi Veloo well having attended his workshop in Singapore, sometime back. Many in the NST who have attended his workshop will vouch for the excellence of the programme.
    Let us not confuse the issue: Ravi's trainning has nothing to do with Brendan or his work in damming the Opposition. Our eminent Kadir Jasin has set the benchmark for Malaysian journalist. Remember how fast Kadir turned on Anwar Ibrahim. Mind you the SB did not have to lift a finger.
    Many of the bureau chiefs in the NST are sorry excuses for journalist. All were trained and posted during the Kadir Jasin era. They still think the moment the MB opens his mouth it should be a page lead in the NST.
    Dear NT-singing I am not a book agent for Ravi Veloo but I still advice you to buy and read it. But of course if you are one of those NST bodeks who think that the compilation of Kadir Jasin't Other Thots is journalism gospel, there is nothing that can be done for you. You are better off where you are.

    intanbaiduri: Yes here is someone who must be living the Malay agenda. How is the situtaion now differnet in the NST - the GE is an Indian. Intan sees it from that perspective. Sadly for her and many of her ilk who share her views, this is not the way to view it.
    Rocky and Kadir have selective memory. Balji from the New Paper came to train NST and Malay Mail reportes in the the late 90's while KADIR was still in the chair. Infact, Kadir's protege's Rose Ismail or Kak Rose as everyone lovingly called her was the sponsor of the Singaporean's training programme.
    Yes it was okay then because the Group Editor was Malay and there was nothing sinister about it. But now..... My advise to Intanbaiduri is for her to stick with stuff she is comfortable with; Siti Nurhaliza marrying Datuk K; Have they done it or will her first night with Datuk K be his night off glory.
    Leave this blog and the issued raised to the pros.

    Kamar: Thank you for pointing out that I am right. But your suggestion that Ravi is here to help Brendan on how to promote Ministers and who to promote is a low blow to Brendan's ego. He can do that on his own. No Singaporean help needed for this.

    ReplyDelete
  43. Anonymous4:24 pm

    Ah Chong, you must not be a \"Katak under the coconut shell\" and think only Journalist are the smartest people in the whole world who have the ability to analyse what is happening around us. For all I know you are also sidelined in editorial that\'s why you are echoing the frustrated !

    ReplyDelete
  44. Anonymous4:26 pm

    Ah Chong, you must not be a \\\"Katak under the coconut shell\\\" and think only Journalist are the smartest people in the whole world who have the ability to analyse what is happening around us. For all I know you are also sidelined in editorial that\\\'s why you are echoing the frustrated !

    ReplyDelete
  45. Anonymous9:10 pm

    aah mr dinjin,
    how presumptuous you are. to say that because i call myself intanbaiduri, i am therefore a Malay and therefore living the malay agenda. and the malay agenda, as opposed to what? the indian agenda, the chinese agenda?
    how judgemental you are. i am not living any racial/racist agenda because the NST GE is an Indian. i am colour blind. brendan can be an eskimo for all i care.
    if i am critical of the present NST administration, (and i may or may not be an NST employee, or ex-employee), it is not because the GE is Indian. and yes, because i believe that kali and brendan are living the singapore agenda, so i am therefore critical. i believe that that kali (with brendan as his trusted henchman) is ruining the NST. we can debate till the cows come home about the poor past management of NST. there will be no end, mr dinjin. and i am not judgemental of you, whoever you are.
    your views are yours, and mine are mine.
    and, you silly man... how presumptuous .. i don't listen to siti nur haliza and i don't give two hoots yadayadayada... not because i am not a Malay (I am a Malay???) ....well, i don't have to explain.
    la prochaine fois faire attention que vous dites, monsieur dinjin et avoir

    ReplyDelete
  46. Anonymous10:59 am

    Mr Rocky Kindly post this reply to Intanmaizura.

    Try as you may, reading your first posting it is clear you are prejudiced.
    This is the damming line in your posting that convinced me your are prejudiced.
    "if nst had got someone from singapore straits times in the past, it was done without any sinister motive. i am sorry to say that the situation is V E R Y different now."

    How can it not be sinister then but sinister now. How is it different now from then. That is why I said you are living the Malay agenda. Alright, assuming you are not a Malay and love indians to death, still justify your remarks in your first postings. Explain your outrageous sinister and different remarks.
    Otherwise, stick to Siti Norhaliza and Datuk K.

    ReplyDelete
  47. dinjin,
    you were responding to intanbaiduri, the poster, NOT intanmaizura. intanmaizura is a journalist with the new sunday times. but you probably know that.
    i was on the road, too. and, you were factually wrong: i don't use a blackberry, i use a communicator.
    thank u.

    ReplyDelete
  48. Anonymous6:07 pm

    Rocky, u think he will accept if you invite him to NPC. I may get chance to kiss the ground he has blessed with his visit. Will he give a dissertation on chicanery a la Singapura?

    ReplyDelete
  49. Anonymous7:03 pm

    Rocky, u think he will accept if you invite him to NPC. I may get chance to kiss the ground he has blessed with his visit. Will he give a dissertation on chicanery a la Singapura?Zorro

    ReplyDelete
  50. Anonymous5:27 pm

    You guys are sad. All these conspiracy theories about ISD and PAP and the Singaporeans taking over Malaysia just because A singaporean has been hired to train malaysian journalists. how insecure can you people be??

    ReplyDelete