This headline on the front page of last Friday's Malay Mail is typical of how our mainstream newspapers make maximum use of their powerful hype to discredit any person or entity worthy of their effort.
MSM are owned or controlled by the ruling parties and their news reports are generally biased and often malicious. Their main purpose seems to be that of inflicting maximum damage to a person or entity's image, often unsubstantiated or unable to substantiate when required (in a court of law) and they are prepared to pay substantial damages to victims of their malice. Many people believe this is a concerted effort to carry out BN's propaganda.
Looking at the headline alone, most people would have formed an opinion that it was a statement of fact. Many people these days have short attention span and often do not bother to read the details (which are part of the overall spin), and only a few bother to follow up on related news: days, weeks or months later, to confirm whether the original 'news' was reliable.
Personally, I take such headlines with a pinch of salt, having known past inaccurate or even malicious reports. Often, statements by different leaders would be conflicting and sometimes, the same person would flip-flop on his or her earlier statement! The overall loss in credibility has led to the public's inability to take statements by political leaders as true or accurate, and usually subject them to further clarification from more reliable sources.
Offhand, I can remember the Chief Minister of Penang was recently awarded Rm250,000 in damages to be paid by Utusan Malaysia. More recently, MP Teresa Kok was also awarded Rm50,000, with a public apology. http://teresakok.com/2012/10/08/utusan-twisted-my-story-ybj-author-tells-court/
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