The mass media in Brunei are strictly controlled by the government under Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, who has effectively maintained martial law in the country since the Brunei Revolt of 1962. News coverage is largely limited to police reports, lifestyle features, and community events, with minimal representation of diverse viewpoints. Reporters Without Borders states that there is "virtually no criticism of the government." Additionally, the liberal democracy watchdog Freedom House categorizes Brunei's media as "not free."
The privately-owned Brunei Press Sdn Bhd, which publishes the Borneo Bulletin, is controlled by the Sultan's family. Reporters and editors practice self-censorship on political and religious issues.
A press law imposes prison sentences of up to three years for reporting "false news."
The newspaper industry in Brunei began only after the 1950s. Before that, the only publication available in Brunei was the Annual Reports, published by the British Colonial Office. The first regular government publication was the Government Gazette, which was first issued in 1951. However, the Gazette was not strictly a newspaper but an official government publication.
The first newspaper to appear in Brunei was Salam Seria, published in 1952 by the British Malayan Petroleum Company, the predecessor of today's Brunei Shell Petroleum Company. As an official company publication, it provided news and information to both its staff and the general public, covering topics such as oil exploration and other company-related updates. Although it was produced bilingually in English and Malay, the Malay version included additional content, such as world news and educational materials. In 1953, Salam Seria was renamed Salam and has continued to be published to this day as a free publication.
The second newspaper, today's Borneo Bulletin, first appeared on 7 November 1953. This English weekly publication was printed in Kuala Belait by the Brunei Press Company, which was established in October 1953. Initially sold for 20 cents, the Borneo Bulletin focused primarily on news from Borneo, with a special emphasis on Brunei. Its first print run of approximately 3,500 copies was the largest in Borneo at the time.
In 1959, the founders of the Borneo Bulletin sold the press and the newspaper to the Straits Times of Singapore. Initially, the Bulletin featured different covers for its three editions, which were tailored for Brunei, Sabah, and Sarawak. Circulation rose to approximately 10,000 copies by 1957 but declined to around 6,000 by 1970 due to Sarawak and Sabah being incorporated into Malaysia. However, by 1983, production had increased to about 30,000 copies before gradually declining to approximately 10,000 by 1997.
In 1985, Brunei's first publicly listed company, QAF Brunei, acquired part of the shares of Brunei Press from the Straits Times. By September 1990, the Borneo Bulletin transitioned into a daily newspaper. Currently, its daily circulation averages 20,000 copies per issue, while the weekend and Sunday editions average 25,000 copies.
In 1957, Pelita Brunei was published twice a month and initially produced on A4-sized paper. In 1959, the paper's size increased to 9 inches by 14 inches. It wasn't until July 1965 that Pelita Brunei became a weekly newspaper, published every Wednesday, and it has remained so ever since.
In the beginning, only about 1,000 copies of Pelita Brunei were printed. By the 1990s, weekly circulation had grown to over 45,000, making it the largest print publication in the country. The newspaper's content expanded from approximately 4 pages to about 24 pages today, with a second section added that includes government job vacancies, awarded tenders, and other interesting features and articles.
A fourth publication, Berita Brunei, was a short-lived newspaper first published in March 1957. It was printed in Malay, partly in Jawi, and was a weekly publication, released every Thursday. It sold for about 10 cents per copy, with a print run of approximately 5,000. By July 1958, the Jawi script was dropped, and in October 1959, the newspaper was renamed Berita Borneo. However, the newly renamed Berita Borneo lasted only five editions, with the final issue published in December 1958. The editor cited a drop in advertisements from Malaysia and Singapore as the main reason for its closure.
In April 1958, another publication in Jawi, called Malaysia, was launched by the Budaya Press. Sold for about 20 cents per copy, it ceased publication by September 1958.
Suara Bakti, a publication by a former political party, was launched in October 1961 as the sixth newspaper in Brunei. It was published every Friday and dubbed itself "the largest weekly newspaper in North Kalimantan," selling for 20 cents per copy. However, the newspaper was released sporadically, and by December 1961, it had only about 10 editions. A new editor took over, but the publication lasted for only about 5 more editions before closing down in January 1962.
The seventh publication, Bintang Harian and The Daily Star, was first published in March 1966 in both Malay and English. It was released every day except Sunday and sold for about 15 cents. More than 10,000 copies were printed daily, as it was distributed not only in Brunei but also in Sabah, Sarawak, West Malaysia, and Singapore. When it ceased publication in January 1971, circulation had increased to more than 15,000 copies. The publication ended when its publisher, The Star Press, became a subsidiary of The Brunei Press.
Two other government publications, Brunei Darussalam Newsletter and Brunei Darussalam Daily Digest, were launched in October 1985 and January 1990, respectively. The former continued publication but was primarily read by foreign audiences and was rarely seen by local readers. The latter ceased publication, though efforts are underway to revive it.
Media Permata was the latest of several local Malay newspapers when it began in January 1995 as a weekly publication focused on local news and features for the Malay-literate audience. It was relaunched as a daily newspaper in July 1998 and has remained so to this day, with an average circulation of 10,000 copies. Media Permata is available from Monday to Friday, with a weekend edition also published for Saturday and Sunday.
The last newspaper to appear before The Brunei Times was News Express. It was launched during the 20th Southeast Asian Games, which were hosted in Bandar Seri Begawan in late 1999. By early 2001, however, it joined the ranks of other newspapers that were unable to sustain themselves in Brunei's competitive newspaper market.[1]
Newspapers
There are currently three local newspapers circulating in Brunei:
Brunei's No. 1 news website is an online newspaper and the largest online media platform in Brunei Darussalam, as well as a pioneer in the field of online media. The website receives between 70,000 and 80,000 visits per day.
Pelita Brunei
A free bi-weekly Malay-language newspaper published by the government's Information Department, with a circulation of around 40,000.
An English-language broadsheet daily, published from 2006 to 2016,[2] it had a more international outlook compared to the Borneo Bulletin, which focused on community news. Its circulation was around 10,000 copies, with 15,500 copies in 2011 (source: Publisher Data). Foreign newspapers are also widely circulated in Brunei.
Broadcasting
Sultam Omar Ali Saifuddien III giving a titah via Radio Brunei in 1962.
Domestic radio and television in Brunei fall under the auspices of the national broadcaster, Radio Television Brunei (RTB), and KRISTALfm, the country's only commercial radio station, which ended the radio monopoly in 1999. KRISTALfm is operated by KRISTAL Media Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of the DataStream Technology DevCo Group, which is currently headquartered at Jalan Tungku Link. Established on 2 January 1999, KRISTALfm transmits on frequency 90.7 MHz in the Brunei-Muara District and parts of Tutong from Bukit Subok, and 98.7 MHz in the Belait District and other parts of Tutong from Andulau.[3]
There appear to be no restrictions on internet use in Brunei, although Freedom House reports that the local forum BruneiTalk was blocked in 2003 after contributors discussed the business dealings of senior officials. As of June 2006, it seemed the site was attempting to move to a different server.
Miri is a coastal city in north-eastern Sarawak, Malaysia, located near the border of Brunei, on the island of Borneo. The city covers an area of 997.43 square kilometres (385.11 sq mi), located 798 kilometres (496 mi) northeast of Kuching and 329 kilometres (204 mi) southwest of Kota Kinabalu. Miri is the second largest city in Sarawak, with a population of 356,900 as of 2020. The city is also the capital of Miri District, Miri Division.
The New Sabah Times is a newspaper in Sabah, Malaysia. The Sabah Times commenced publication on 21 January 1953, published by Donald Stephens and had a daily circulation of approximately 1000. It was the only English-language daily newspaper. The North Borneo News, first published in 1948 in Sandakan was a fortnightly, then weekly periodical with a circulation of approximately 750. It mainly reported Advisory Council news, excerpts from other newspapers and some local and overseas news. Donald Stephens was a reporter for the publication. It began publishing daily in April 1954 but soon amalgamated with the Sabah Times later in 1954 under joint editorship. It included a page of romanised Malay and Dusun to give it wider appeal and increased its circulation.
The New Sarawak Tribune is an English-language Malaysian newspaper published in Kuching, Sibu and Bintulu, in Sarawak that was relaunched after the suspension of the Sarawak Tribune following the publication of the Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons.
Harian Metro is a Malaysian Malay language daily newspaper published by the New Straits Times Press. It was established in March 1991 as Malaysia's first Malay-language afternoon tabloid in the Klang Valley, contrasting with the morning tabloids prevalent in other parts of the country. Harian Metro holds the distinction of being the first and oldest Malay-language tabloid and is currently the highest-circulating newspaper in Malaysia across all languages.
The Borneo Post, established in 1978, is the largest and widely circulated English-language daily newspaper in East Malaysia and also the alternately circulated newspaper in Brunei. The newspaper is the first English newspaper in East Malaysia to use photo-composition for type-setting and printing was done in offset as against the old-fashioned letterpress.
Kuching International Airport (KIA) is an international airport serving the entire southwestern region of Sarawak, Malaysia. It is located 11 km (6.8 mi) south of Kuching city centre. The airport is colocated with the RMAF Kuching, home to the No. 7 Squadron RMAF.
The Pan-Borneo Highway including the sections now known as the Pan Borneo Expressway, is a controlled-access highway on Borneo Island, connecting two Malaysian states, Sabah and Sarawak, with Brunei. The length of the entire highway is 2,083 kilometres (1,294 mi) for the Malaysian section, 168 kilometres (104 mi) for the Bruneian section.
Radio Television Brunei is the national public broadcaster of Brunei, headquartered at the Secretariat Building, Bandar Seri Begawan. Radio Brunei made its first broadcast on 2 May 1957, with a television service starting on 1 March 1975. Modelled after Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM), which is a government department, RTB came into its current state with its present name in 1975 after the merger of its radio and television services.
Astro Radio is a Malaysian radio network company which operates radio broadcasting services and more since 1996. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Astro Malaysia Holdings Berhad. Astro Radio owns and manages 12 private radio stations which are transmitted through the FM radio spectrum.
Kosmo! is a Malay-language compact format newspaper tabloid in Malaysia owned by the Utusan Group, which also owns Kosmo!'s Sunday paper Kosmo! Ahad, Utusan Malaysia, and Mingguan Malaysia. It is available in Malaysia at most newsstands.
Mount Pueh, also known as Mount Pueh-Berumput, Mount Poi and Mount Poe, is a mountain located near Lundu, Sarawak on the Malaysia-Indonesia border. Mount Pueh was known to biologists for the collections made there by Eric Mjöberg (1882–1938), a Swedish naturalist, who was Curator of the Sarawak Museum between 1922 and 1924. Mjöberg's herpetological collections from Gunung Pueh between October and December 1923, and other localities in Borneo, were reported by Smith (1925). Mjöberg, unfortunately, left little by way of written records, of his ascent of Pueh and the collections he made.
The Lambir Hills National Park is a national park in Miri Division, Sarawak, Malaysia, on the island of Borneo. It is a small park, at 6,952 hectares, and is composed largely of mixed dipterocarp forest, with some small areas of 'kerangas'. The park is 150–465 m (492–1,526 ft) above sea level.
HLSQ-FM, also known as SBS Power FM, is a K-pop music radio station of the Seoul Broadcasting System. The station is heard nationwide via syndication with local FM stations in Korea via HLDG-FM in Busan, HLDE-FM in Daegu, HLDH-FM in Gwangju, HLDF-FM in Daejeon, HLDP-FM in Ulsan, HLDQ-FM in Jeonju, HLDR-FM in Cheongju, HLCG-FM in Gangwon, HLQC-FM in Jeju and HLKJ-FM in Seogwipo.
Royal Brunei Armed Forces Sports Council; Malay: Majlis Sukan Angkatan Bersenjata Diraja Brunei, commonly abbreviated MS ABDB, is the multi-sport club in charge of all sporting activities of all service branches of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces, in the sultanate of Brunei Darussalam.
Anthony Abell College is a government secondary school in Seria, a town in Belait District, Brunei. It was one of the earliest secondary schools to be established in the country. The school provides five years of general secondary education leading up to O Level qualification. It has 630 students. The current principal is Mas Diana binti Haji Abdul Samat.
Kampong Bukit Panggal is a village in Tutong District, Brunei, about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from the district town Pekan Tutong. The population was 801 in 2016. It is one of the villages within Mukim Keriam, a mukim in the district.
Datastream Digital Sdn Bhd. (DST), formerly DataStream Technology Sdn Bhd, is a Brunei-based government-linked conglomerate headquartered in the DST Group Building in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei. It was established in 1995 and as of December 2021 has at least 420,000 subscribers.
Lalak Lake is a pond in Mukim Labi, Belait District, Brunei. It is located within the Labi Hills Forest Reserve as part of the Luagan Lalak Recreation Park, and 100 kilometres (62 mi) from Bandar Seri Begawan. The Brunei Malay term "Luagan", refers to a natural pond or non-flowing body of water.
Pengiran Abu Bakar bin Pengiran Umar was a Bruneian nobleman, civil servant, and politician who served as the fifth Speaker of the Legislative Council of Brunei. He held this position from 1 December 1974 until his retirement on 14 December 1981. Notably, he was the father-in-law of Princess Masna Bolkiah. His son, Pengiran Anak Abdul Aziz, became the prince consort of Princess Masna Bolkiah, who is the daughter of Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien III.
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