The appointment of former Federal Court judge Tan Sri Nallini Pathmanathan as chairperson of the Malaysian Media Council (MMM) has drawn widespread praise from media practitioners, who believe her judicial experience will enhance media freedom and credibility nationwide. The MMM board unanimously endorsed the appointment during a meeting on May 26.
Malaysian Press Institute president Datuk Yong Soo Heong cited Nallini's legal credentials as essential to guiding the council's decisions with fairness and transparency. Her independence from political and commercial pressures, he noted, would foster public trust in the MMM's role in addressing media-related concerns. Such leadership, Yong added, would reinforce the media's standing as a democratic institution.
National Journalism Laureate Datuk A. Kadir Jasin described the appointment as fulfilling the council's founding vision for independent and impartial leadership. He traced this aspiration to discussions in the 1980s around newspaper editors' unions, and to the council's launch in 2018 during his tenure as Special Adviser on Media and Communications. Nallini's selection, he said, satisfies the essential requirement of both being and appearing credible to stakeholders.
Malaysian Media Clubs Association president Mohamad Fauzi Ishak emphasized that the appointment arrives amid significant industry pressures, from misinformation to artificial intelligence advancement. He called for the MMM Act to be reviewed to grant the council stronger statutory authority, enabling it to resolve member complaints more effectively. Many grievances currently remain unaddressed due to legal limitations, he explained.
Fauzi stressed that the council must remain free from vested interests to maintain both industry and public confidence. Nallini's background in upholding justice positions her, he argued, to champion media freedom while enforcing practitioner accountability—a balance critical to building a professional and trustworthy media landscape.
