Producing television agriculture program : issues and problems among Malaysian television producers.

Problem statement: One of the developing sectors in Malaysia is agriculture. Agriculture doubtlessly has assisted this country in terms of enhancing the economic level, offering a huge number of employment opportunities and uplifting the socio-economy status of the community. To ensure the sustainability of this sector to the country, we must ensure that the valuable agriculture information is continuously provided to the public and the information must be disseminated through the most effective channel. Here, television can be the mean channel. Approach: This study aimed to investigate the issues raised and problems faced by the Malaysian agriculture television program producers in producing the television agriculture programs. Data was collected using an in-depth interview among three agriculture television producers in Malaysia. The questions served as a guide,but allowed respondents freedom and flexibility in their answers. The findings were in the form of descriptive analysis. Results: Based on the analysis done, it can be concluded that the cooperation between Radio Television Malaysia and Department of Agriculture Malaysia is important to ensure the success and continuity of the agriculture programs. It was found that the agriculture programs were evaluated internally by the Radio Television Malaysia auditor and externally by AGB Nielsen. The producers also received feedback from their local and foreign audience in the form of e-mail and telephone. Human resource, transportation and financial are the main problems that need to be overcome by the producers. Conclusion/Recommendations: It is suggested that other media organizations and giant agriculture companies can join RTM in producing agriculture programs. This can aid RTM in producing more innovative agriculture programs and can attract the youth to watch the program

Keyboard warrior, online predator or cyber bully? The growing menace of child exposure to internet harm based on research evidence

The internet has come along with a myriad of positive and negative challenges. One of the positive developments is the increased access for all age categories, especially people of young ages; however, it is not without a side effect. A cyberbullying threat has become interesting areas of research over the years because of the importance of the concepts toward understanding children’s online behaviours and making the internet safe again for the kids to surf. Thus, this article seeks to provide a further understanding of the phenomenon by reporting the findings of a study performed in Selangor, a state of Malaysia. A questionnaire was administered to 375 respondents selected using stratified random sampling from a population of 6,671 primary and secondary school pupils aged 9 to 16 years. The key findings revealed that most children had been involved in the act of cyberbullying. Interestingly, most of them were aware of online threats but did not know that it was bad behaviour. However, most of them were rarely involved in a sex-related cyberbullying incident. A collective approach to guarantee the internet safety of children and balance their online prospects and risks is recommended to ensure children’s online safety

Satisfaction received towards agricultural information from television programs among farmers

Television is one of the top mass media to broadcast the information. It is heartening to know that mass media is playing its role in developing and strengthening the agriculture sector in Malaysia. Results from many international studies found that farmer received a high level of satisfaction from agriculture programs aired on television. However, can the similar results found among farmers in Malaysia? Therefore, this study intends to discover the Malaysian farmers satisfaction towards agricultural information aired on television. This is a quantitative study. The data collection was conducted through survey method and the respondents selected were from the states of western Malaysia Kedah and Selangor. Interestingly, both states; Kedah and Selangor recorded a similar level of satisfaction towards agriculture programs. Further analyses run have concluded that farmers in both states have a higher level of satisfaction towards information related to crops/livestock/farming and good agriculture practices. The findings of the study can be good sources and references for the agriculture programs producers to measure on the level of satisfaction of the agriculture programs aired by television among the farmers. Moreover, the findings demonstrated can help our agricultural programs producer to improve their contents in order to fulfill needs of their audience

Agriculture communication in Malaysia: the current situation

Problem statement: Without doubt, it is important to expose and educate farmers with the current and updated agriculture information. To implement this, the related agriculture agencies in Malaysia should consider the best channels for them in spreading the needed valuable agriculture information to the farmers. The question that can be raised now, can the mass media be the right channel for agriculture information dissemination and is the mass media has been utilized in disseminating the agriculture information to the farmers. Approach: This is a conceptual study discussing the usage of mass media in disseminating agriculture information. The data of this study are gained through literature analysis and document analysis. The data is presented descriptively. Results: Based on the analyses done, it was found that majority of Malaysian nowadays can afford to own their own mass media such as television, radio and internet. The number of available television channels, radio channels and newspapers either free or paid are encouraging. Currently, there are three television agriculture programs aired on RTM, while currently there are five agriculture radio programs aired on local radio stations, one program aired on Klasik National FM and the other four programs aired on four different states FM. For newspapers, there are two daily newspapers that provide agriculture information to their readers namely Utusan Malaysia and Berita Harian. Based on the data gained, usage of internet especially on website surfing must be encouraged among the farmers. Mobile web system initiated by five agriculture agencies in Malaysia is seen as a wise step for information dissemination and information sharing. Conclusion: Even though mass media in Malaysia has played its role in disseminating agriculture information, the number of programs and spaces produced and provided can be doubled, hence it is recommended that local giant agriculture based companies can play their role in providing more fund or sponsorship in producing more agriculture programs for the farmers

The credibility of television in disseminating agricultural information to farmers in Malaysia

Agriculture and television are two different things that can be combined in many ways. Television has been utilized to further intensify agricultural development in Malaysia. This study attempts to discover the credibility of television when disseminating agricultural information to Malaysian farmers. A total of 400 farmers from four states in Malaysia were chosen as the respondents in this study. It was found that farmers view television as a credible source for disseminating clear and understandable agricultural information. In addition, it was considered credible due to its ability to provide up-to-date, unbiased and factual agricultural information. However, television is seen as less credible in terms of providing information at the right time, and is unable to provide all the necessary information

Parental attachment and cyberbullying experiences among Malaysian children

The purpose of this article is to illustrate the links between the three factors of parental attachment (i.e., communication, trust, and alienation) and cyberbullying experiences among school-going children. A total of 375 students aged 9 to 16 years old were selected using stratified sampling method from 8 schools in Selangor. The authors adapted a 10-item instrument from the previous studies of Youth Internet Safety Survey (YISS) and EUkidsonline scales to assess the cyberbullying prevalence based on two sub-dimensions (online harassment and sex-based bullying). The confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to analyse the construct validity of the scales. Structural equation modelling (SEM) then was used to test the study hypotheses. The final model has an estimated that 10% (R2=.95) of the variance in cyberbullying is explained by parental attachment, indicating only the alienation factor predicted the children’s cyberbullying experiences. The findings, however, supported a differentiated approach to positive parenting

Seeking of agriculture information through mobile phone among paddy farmers in Selangor

Introduction:Mobile phone is one of the communication tools that have always mattered in many fields included agriculture. The development of the agriculture sector in the rural area is significant to diminish poverty among farmers. Agricultural activities are known to provide opportunities for employment and generating income in the rural area. Poverty can be reduced through adequate investment and improvement in the agriculture sector. Enhancing the use of mobile phone will empower farmers with relevant agriculture information. Thus, agriculture production and profits as well as farmers’ food security and livelihood will increase. Methodology:This study uses a quantitative approach, where an adopted and adapted questionnaire was employed to obtain the data needed. Through purposive sampling, 400 respondents were surveyed. The respondents selected were those who are involved in paddy farming in Selangor. Results: The finding of the study reveals that paddy farmers in Selangor are comfortable using mobile phones in seeking agricultural information. The result for communication appsindicates that WhatsApp is the best choice to get information using a mobile phone as 279 respondents responded they were comfortable using WhatsApp to get and share information through a mobile phone. Whereas, the highest agriculture information the farmers sought are information on pest control, farm safety information, and information on pesticide/weed. Conclusion/Recommendation:Due to the well-received mobile phones usage among farmers, it is recommended that organizations such as the Department of Agriculture and Barat Laut Selangor Integrated Agriculture Development Area (IADA) to improve strategies indistributing information on paddy farming using mobile phones

Role of behavioural intention and selective profile on the relationship between behavioural factors and mobile phone usage among paddy farmers in Selangor, Malaysia

Agriculture is the backbone of Malaysia’s economy. One of the powerful tools in Information and Communications Technology (ICT) is in this millennium the mobile phone Mobile phone usage has a significant impact on the spread of agricultural information. Undoubtedly, mobile phone plays an active role in the development of agriculture in rural areas. Information is a key component in order to improve production including agricultural production. In order to achieve the success of ICT implementation in development efforts, understanding the impact of social structures on how the technology adopted provides benefits from its use is more important. For this study, a modified Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) model was combined with Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB). A total of 400 paddy farmers involved in this study were selected through multi- stage cluster simple random sampling. A survey method was conducted using adopted and adapted instruments. The result was analysed using SPSS and Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) -AMOS. Two types of data analyses were conducted: first, descriptive analysis to identify the pattern and levels of all the related variables; and second, inferential analysis was performed using SEM - AMOS to test fifteen hypotheses drawn from the research model. The analyses revealed numerous noteworthy findings. First, it was found that 68% of the respondents experienced using mobile phone for 11 to 20 years. The main purpose of mobile phone usage is for their routine life, but still not completely for their agricultural work. Second, this study exposed that four behavioural factors: performance expectancy, effort expectancy, attitude, and perceived behavioural control have significant relationships with mobile phone usage among paddy farmers. Third, the SEM analysis indicated the attitude is the strongest behavioural factor associated with mobile phone usage. Fourth, bootstrapping analysis showed behavioural intention as the significant mediator factor between performance expectancy, effort expectancy, and mobile phone usage. Fifth, age and experience moderated the relationship between effort expectancy and mobile phone usage, while income moderated the relationship between attitude and mobile phone usage. Finally, this study confirms that all the behavioural factors jointly explained 19% of the variance in mobile phone usage. Based on these findings, this study highlights some implications and recommendations for future research in terms of policy and practice towards mobile phone usage for agricultural development

Penilaian paparan dan kandungan laman web pertanian di Malaysia

Laman web adalah salah satu daripada saluran untuk menyebarkan maklumat pertanian melalui internet. Kajian ini melihat kandungan laman web pertanian yang dimiliki oleh pihak kerajaan. Tujuan utama kajian ini dijalankan adalah untuk melihat ciri paparan yang dipaparkan di muka hadapan laman web pertanian di Malaysia. Secara spesifiknya pula, objektif kajian ini ialah untuk 1) mengenalpasti ciri paparan yang ada pada laman web pertanian, 2) mengetahui kandungan yang dimuatkan dalam laman web pertanian, 3) mengenalpasti ciri interaktif dan 4) mengenal pasti tahap keaktifan laman web pertanian. Kajian ini melibatkan 55 laman web pertanian yang diselenggara oleh agensi-agensi kerajaan. Justeru itu, laman web yang di selenggara oleh agensi swasta adalah tidak diambil kira. Laman web ini terdiri daripada empat kumpulan utama iaitu Kementerian Pertanian/ badan berkanun, Jabatan Pertanian, Jabatan Perikanan dan Jabatan Perkhidmatan Veterinar. Kajian ini dijalankan secara kuantitatif dengan mengaplikasi teknik analisa kandungan yang melibatkan pengkaji dan seorang jurukod. Bagi kajian terhadap 55 buah laman web pertanian ini, penyelidik telah menggunakan peratusan untuk menganalisis data. Data kajian telah dianalisa bagi mendapatkan keputusan deskriptif yang berlandaskan objektif yang telah dibina pada peringkat awal kajian. Hasil kajian mendapati hampir kesemua laman web pertanian yang dianalisa menepati ciri paparan muka hadapan yang patut ada pada setiap laman web. Antara maklumat yang dipaparkan pada laman web ialah maklumat berkenaan tanaman, perikanan dan ternakan yang mempunyai potensi yang tinggi untuk diusahakan dinegara ini. Maklumat lain yang turut diberi perhatian adalah seperti maklumat tentang perosak, penggunaan baja dan racun, kursus dan latihan yang disediakan oleh pihak Jabatan dan kewangan (permohonan pinjaman dan bayaran balik). tanaman, senarai harga komoditi tersebut dan ruangan untuk petani memasarkan hasil pertanian mereka. Melalui ciri interaktif, ia memberikan ruang kepada pelawat untuk mendapatkan maklumat dengan lebih interaktif. Melalui penilaian tahap keaktifan, ia mengambil kira maklumat terkini seperti tarikh semasa, tarikh yang dikemaskini dan masa paparan pada laman web. Ini bagi memastikan pengunjung akan sentiasa mendapat maklumat yang terkini. Kesimpulannya, penilaian ini bertujuan untuk menambaikkan maklumat yang dimuatkan dalam laman web pertanian. Ini kerana ianya dapat menaikkan imej sesebuah organisasi sekiranya maklumat yang disiarkan adalah terkini dan penuh berinformasi. Justeru, laman web mencerminkan imej sesebuah organisasi selain menyalurkan maklumat kepada pelawat

Comparison of crop, fisheries and livestock information displayed on agriculture websites

The swift evolution of information technology has doubtlessly profiteda number of industries within this country, of which agriculture is one. The existence of new and developing technologies has greatly assisted agriculture, and the term ‘modern agriculture’ entails the extensive technology used to enhance the quantity and quality of agriculture productivity. One of the most important technologies employed is the Internet, and the main attempt of this paper is to evaluate the information contained on agriculture websites. The data for this study was gained using content analysis on 27 selected agriculture websites maintained by a number of government agencies. The websites were divided into three groups,namely Department of Agriculture, Department of Fisheries and Department of Veterinary Services. The findings conclude that each website has its own unique identity,while displaying information with regards to the expertise of the organization behind the site. Further analyses confirm that information with regards to highly potential crops/fisheries/livestock, available courses and financial information are highly sought after by users. To further improve the websites, issues with regards to a lack of technical agricultural technical information should be addressed