In the digital age that the world is encased in there is a constant flow of information. Information that many people, governments, and companies rely on for their own personal knowledge and success. The major assumption that the public makes is that there is no bias or hindrance of this information. While in countless modern countries and in many companies there is a restriction of some sort on information. This restriction of information was recently studied in the Malaysian public. This study focused on news primarily, in Malaysia the government is controlled by a government regime. This regime has countless opponents and critics in the media. To help mitigate this distaste the government has complete control or a major influence over many of the Malaysian news outlets, such as news stations and papers. The study looked at the type of bias that both Malaysian speaking news outlets and non-Malaysian speaking sources used in their individual coverage of events. The study showed that Malaysian speaking outlets showed a strong bias that was pro-government regime, while the non-Malaysian outlets showed more of a neutral or anti-regime bias. Through the control of the media the government is influencing the culture of a society, shaping the future of the nation, and creating a negative divide among the people.

Many people in Malaysia and other countries do not know of the bias or censorship that occurs in many media outlets. People in today’s modern society often believe the first bit of information that they hear or read, often many people do not investigate the source or do not care enough to discover the truth. This is due to culture; culture is a major part of any government or society. How people traditionally find information or how they spread it effects how the government regulates or controls it. Historically censorship has been used in countless countries, and organizations. Typically, censorship is found in totalitarian regimes or governments that seek to control the people in every aspect. A prime example of media censorship by government is in Malaysia. Malaysia is a recently formed in 1957, when it came under control of Barisan Nasional (BN). The BN is a form of a totalitarian regime that has socialist views and uses many non-democratic methods to influence its people (Abbott 455). In a recent study that analyzed both the effects and the causes of media bias in the regime-ruled Malaysia. There have been multiple accusations and confirmations that the government has made successful attempts to censor or skew media coverage of certain events in Malaysia as well as coverage of other events across the world. The authors also found that many of the media outlets of Malaysia have a pro-government theme that both indicates censorship and bias by the government and that the government has a strong influence on these media outlets, either through monetary gain or through government control. The article also addresses the language difference in some media outlets. They state that media outlets that are in Chinese are typically viewed as less biased or moderately biased, as opposed to the Malaysian-spoken media outlets. This is believed to be mainly due to non-Malaysian media sources being less influenced by the government regime and feel less monetary strain from Malaysian government sources or businesses. The study conducted also tallied the bias for BN and bias for the opposing party. They found that expectedly that Malaysian spoken media outlets have a pro BN slant and the non-Malaysian outlets have a pro-opposition or anti-BN slant. This was also found to effect the people that viewed Malaysian media or lived in Malaysia. Many were found to be pro-BN as opposed to anti-BN. This shows that through censorship the BN has been able to influence the opinions and views of the citizens through censorship of mainstream media.

 Malaysia is a country that has struggled under many governments, as a colony and as a territory. This instability has led to a citizenship that seeks stability and reliability in a government, which they may have, however this insecurity is exploited by the BN regime and used to manipulate the Malaysian people. However, the BN uses censorship in a way that follows the Malaysian culture, a culture which is vastly different from that of most modern Western societies (Abbott 462). Malaysia is defined by a distinct culture that contains many traditional and modern aspects. The Malaysian people still except instant and accurate information, much like most other people would, however they do not solely rely on it. Malaysian people typically revert back to traditional views about many modern issues that cause many societies to become divided.

In the popular book and movie, “V for Vendetta” these themes are brought to the public’s attention in a thrilling action, drama, and romance story. While in “V for Vendetta” the main focus is on fictional corruption in Great Britain, the central theme is that of mass media censorship and government control much like that in Malaysian society. “V for Vendetta” is based on the historical event where Guy Fawkes tried to destroy the parliament building in London during the early seventeenth century. However, Fawkes was foiled in his attempt and was hanged for treason. Since then Fawkes has become a popular anti-government or anti-control figure. Fawkes was made widely known by the “V for Vendetta” story line. Fawkes and the mask of his face that was made popular in “V for Vendetta” has also become the symbol of anti-government groups such as Anonymous. 

In “V for Vendetta” the main character V attempts to complete what Guy Fawkes started. In the fictional Great Britain that V lives in the government is controlled by a totalitarian regime much like that in Malaysia. This government controls all media sources and controls all aspects of the publics lives. 

This article reflects the themes that are found in “V for Vendetta”. In “V for Vendetta” the government is corrupt and has a strong censorship department and controls all of the media outlets and many other aspects of society. This creates a society where the people are blindly brainwashed by the government through the censorship and bias in the media. While the society in “V for Vendetta” is vastly different from that of Malaysia or any other society, they retain the same government concepts and ideals. The article and study conducted focuses less on that of government control and more on media censorship and bias and its effects on society. “V for Vendetta” has the same central theme it controls the public through many radical techniques, one of which being media censorship. In “V for Vendetta” the government is ruled by a dictatorship or a regime much like the government of Malaysia. “V for Vendetta” also shows that through control of the media the public can also be liberated or freed from government censorship. For example, in “V for Vendetta” a heroic radical character named V sets out to liberate and educate the public through taking down the government and his first step is to send out a message to the public educating them and attempting to rally them to his cause.

Government censorship has been a topic of debate for many years and continues to happen in our modern society. Today information comes from unlimited sources and is impossible to control. However, through the censorship of the few major media outlets government such as the BN in Malaysia and the fictional government in “V for Vendetta”, can influence the average citizens enough to spread what they wish to be heard. However, this concept is not limited to only fictional movies and a few select countries. Censorship is believed to be used by many governments often without the knowledge of the people, much like the people in “V for Vendetta". In comparison many journalists and media outlets in “V for Vendetta” have a forced censorship and need pre-approval to broadcast (Moore), while in contrast many journalists and media outlets in Malaysia “self- censor”. This is due to the potential threat of steep punishments or fines from the government. Resulting in greater control by the government through fear and force rather than direct control (Abbott 467). 

Culture is a vital part to any society, culture is what gives a certain group of people their identity. Culture is evident in many areas of literature and aspects of society. Culture can be found in “V for Vendetta” through the use of thematic elements and actions of the characters the author depicts a new culture. This new culture is meant to open the publics eyes to a new way of life. Culture is meant to impact an individual’s life in many various ways. The culture in “V for Vendetta” is a backwards, and is meant to be seen with many imperfections. Much like modern society today there are many flaws, however there are also many vastly different cultures, and more emerge each day. While the culture and themes in “V for Vendetta” are often compared to the actions and ideals of an anarchist, there is still a message meant to impact the modern culture. A message that is so strong that organizations such as Anonymous have been created in the wake of “V for Vendetta”. Anonymous is what many consider an anarchist or anti-government group. They advocate for the publics control over the government rather than following in a sheepish manner much like those in “V for Vendetta”. Culture and an idea that were portrayed in a book and a movie were so strong that they sparked the formation of a movement. Culture is a driving force that directly effects modern societies and the views of people in them. However, these ideals do have real world comparisons. It can be easy to approve of V's actions; V is a fiction. The story, however entertaining or disappointing, is not real, and knowing that can make the action in the novel easier to accept. But his actions, his terrorism, mirrors the terrorism in the real world. If such terrorism is deplored in our world, why are their fictional counterparts acceptable? One major point to consider is if V’s actions justify the message that he is advocating. What V is trying to do is provoke change in a toxic society. V wants the common person to see the ills of the government as well as the fault in culture that the society has. While the methods that V uses are seen as terrorist attacks or anarchy, they have a higher meaning or purpose to them. V uses these methods in a way that exposes and cripples the government rather than purely acting in violence. 

While Malaysia does not have any mask wearing vigilantes trying to expose the censorship that is occurring the government of both societies contain similar themes. These themes detract from the integrity of the country. Through the government’s attempts to oppress its people, the country is losing culture. There are traditions and information that are not being spread throughout the country helping to enrich the new and past generations. Culture is a factor in countless events in history and in turn shape the future of a nation or society. This culture cannot be snuffed out it needs to be able to flow through a society and be spread, if culture is forced to be limited or censored then the culture will eventually die. Causing the identity of the nation or society to dissolve. However, if censorship is looked at from the view of the censurer it can be seen as isolating a culture. By not letting any new or outside information into the society the ideas of a culture can be retained to their original roots and not develop or evolve like many other cultures do. With the restriction of information people begin to believe what they hear or see first rather than what is necessarily true. As was found in research people were swayed to believe the information as it was portrayed in the media source rather than looking at the issue from an objective point of view with their own opinion.  The way that many issues are portrayed by media can be vague or undescriptive causing confusion when many people attempt to analyze or understand the information they are left with premature conclusions. These early assumptions however are not purely due to inadequate information, the way that information is presented visually or textually can cause varying degrees of understanding. Media is often influenced by a wide array of outside companies or governments. Each country often has a different system of media and news outlets that distribute information in various manners. There is no more common or universal way to distribute information among a society. However, there are often popular ways in our modern society that many people use, such as social media and the internet. Media has evolved, like many other aspects of life, in tremendous ways in just the past century. Whereas media and news once spread gradually over time now it is instantaneous, news and information is sent around the world in a matter of seconds. This creates the new problem of reliability. While reliability of news has always been a factor in many societies now with so many sources to receive information from only a handful are often accurate. An example of this is Wikipedia, Wikipedia is a source that has copious amounts of information that is often user contributed from many different sources. This causes an inherent risk when reading or relying on this information because there is often no fact checking on the information. Therefore, any government, company, or individual can post information that may benefit their own personal opinion or stance rather than the true facts of the issue or event. This is often why many schools or other organizations do not rely on Wikipedia because of its unreliability and the possibility of plagiarized or biased information being posted to the pages on the site. However, some countries do not have access to websites or sources such as this, they often have to rely on few sources for information. Often these sources contain a biased element or some of the facts of the event have been censored.

Media is something that society relay’s on. Media is how history is reported and recorded. Without a reliable media source events in history are skewed and shown inaccurately. The common citizens of any society depend on and use information that is reported by these sources. Through the reporting of events, issues and politics, media easily sways public opinion in the favor that they wish. When a government has control over the media they often have control over the people. For a totalitarian regime such as the BN in Malaysia the media is a way for the government to sway the public opinion into their favor. Media is one of the so called pillars that support a society. In modern society there is a constant flow of information that needs to reach the masses in an effective way. When this flow of information is skewed or restricted countless problems arise within the society. Culture is affected and restricted, slowing the development of the people and the country as a whole. As the restriction of culture in a society continues, the culture struggles to transfer its ideals and values on to future generations and other cultures. This is how cultures survive, through information passed from others of different cultures. This ties to media through their own flow of information, media is part of a culture, it stimulates and moves a culture along. However, if the media source is corrupt or spreads information that has been altered then in turn the culture is altered all together. This is a societal problem, there are countless countries that have state, or government-run media. Restricting the free flow of worldwide information and events. However, media is not always completely under the influence of a totalitarian regime, media is bias in countries such as the United States (US) and the United Kingdom (UK). “V for Vendetta” tackles the media bias seen in the UK, while “V for Vendetta” is a highly radical and fictionalized view of the issue there is still a message that is meant for the people. Through the control of the media the government is influencing the culture of a society, shaping the future of the nation, and creating a negative divide among the people.
