Inside Story BFM Media

The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission has reminded parents to make sure their children below the age of 13 do not own any social media. Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil explained that the commission found it was not appropriate for children under this age to have accounts. Now this brings up the question of how parents should actually think about managing their children's exposure to the internet.

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An American professor made headlines recently when he was invited to speak at University Malaya, in his talk titled “Will Malaysia Become an Active Middle Power” but was heavily criticised after he purportedly claimed that Malaysia had pushed for a “second Holocaust against the Jewish people”. This brought to light conversations around academic freedom. So we hear from academics as well as students about this, and then ask our listeners whether they think universities should be a space for difficult conversations.

Voices we heard from:

1. Dr Munirah Alatas, Independent Scholar & Deputy Chair of the Malaysian Academic Movement (GERAK)
2. Dr Zaid Omar, Associate Professor from Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) and Former Director of Students at the Ministry of Higher Education
3. Abqari Annuar, President of Suarasiswa UM
4. Raja Arif Raja Afifuddin, Speaker of Kesatuan Mahasiswa UKM
5. Brendon Gan, Assistant Coordinator of Demokrat UKM

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Tonight, we're talking about the lessons that we gain from reading, especially as children. This is following the statement by Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil, who said children need to be exposed to the culture of reading, especially books showcasing the diversity of races and religions in this country. So we talk about how books build our psyche and empathy, with Jason Pandya-Wood. Then, we hear from our listeners about their experience reading in their early years, and their favourite books.

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With the announcement of EPF's restructuring scheme comes the introduction of Account 3, or what EPF dubs the 'Flexible' account. We speak to a financial advisor about what we potentially gain and lose from this scheme, then hear from our listeners on whether they're looking forward to it.

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Recently, there have been calls from the Consumers Association of Penang to do away with 24-hour eateries in the name of public health. They cited obesity, diabetes, oral health as the effct of 24-hour availability of sugary snacks and drinks. Are 24-hour eateries, or is the issue more complex, involving broader lifestyle factors? Tonight, two debaters go toe-to-toe, or rather, head-to-head to discuss this very proposition.
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An article from National Geographic has pointed out how "urgency culture" — where people feel the need to respond to everything and everyone — might lead to burnout. So we discuss with our listeners whether they belong in this category, be it in their work or personal lives.

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