Media Threats on Brunei Culture

“The media is a powerful presence in people’s lives. Within the field of communication, media is the term used to refer to the particular medium used to deliver a message to a large, anonymous, diverse audience” (Pearce, 2009). “Media, as a powerful social system, plays an important role in creating a person’s sense of reality” (Gergen, 1999). Traditionally, media was comprised of a few different types of industries: printed media, recordings, radio, movies, and television. However, recent technological advances—including the increased use of computers—have created easy access to various mass media mediums. In this regard, “lines between interpersonal and mass communication have been blurred” (Pearce, 2009). There are a lot of messages that people get from the media which are taken in unconsciously. People may think that they can be exposed to the media without being influenced by it, but this seems to be an impossible thing to do. The word media is no longer foreign to Brunei’s culture. Through media, Brunei’s culture is able to disseminate worldwide, however with the advancement of technology Bruneian society is also able to learn about other cultures and discarded their own traditions. In addition, one of the biggest damage which the media can do or is done to local culture is, transforming our society to materialistic society. This essay focus on how media, can bring threats to Brunei’s culture such as youth being more interested in violent action which opposes the moral values of the culture, the spread of foreign music and the exposure to foreign wedding cultures.

Rapid advancement of media has led to the development of violent action especially among young people, including Bruneian society which has profoundly affected Br...

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... people see the most and come to regard as the most prevalent in society. To deal with this issue, Brunei should include our wedding cultures in education, and show it in documentaries on television.

In conclusion, media pose major threats towards our traditional culture. According to Erna Sulaiman, deputy senior law advisor of the Attorney General’s Department, “[Media] includes content which threaten the safety of the country, conflicts with race and religion, and immoral.” Brunei government should increase awareness – through educational system - about media consumption among Bruneian society for which people have come to an extent that they have completely discarded their own culture. Ultimately, this awareness will never eliminate the media effect on our society and culture, but it can help to diminish the threats that media can pose towards our local culture.