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Berita RTM (lit. ‘RTM News‘, stylised as BERITA rtm), also known as Saluran Berita RTM (lit. ‘RTM News Channel‘), or BES (Berita Ehwal Semasa, lit. ‘Current Affairs News‘) is a free-to-air Malaysian television news channel owned and operated by Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM).[1] With ‘Yang Sahih di Berita RTM’ (Trustworthy at RTM News) as its corporate slogan, the network is headquartered at the Wisma Berita RTM in Angkasapuri and was launched on 25 June 2020 alongside its television channel at 7.45 pm (MST) and broadcast via MYTV channel 123.[2][3] It broadcasts specialised news covering of current affairs and talk shows in high definition (HD). Berita RTM channel broadcast 24 hours a day covering a wide range of languages, mainly in Malay, English, Mandarin and Tamil in addition to East Malaysian languages: Iban, Kadazan, Dusun and Bajau.[1]

The dynamic transformation of the new channel also offers a variety of features compared to other TV channels as it broadcasts its multimedia news from 12 noon to 2 pm followed by 7 pm to 9 pm.[1] The channel is live-streamed on RTM’s streaming service, RTM Klik, alongside on YouTube and Facebook.

History

Prior to Berita RTM’s launch,[4][5] Malaysia has only two news channels, namely Astro Awani, owned and operated by satellite television operator, Astro and Bernama TV, owned and operated by news agency, Bernama.

The channel began its trial broadcast on 30 December 2018 and began official broadcast on 25 June 2020 and officiated by the then-Minister of Communications and Multimedia, Saifuddin Abdullah[6] as part of government’s initiative to counter the fake news.[7][8]

Beginning 1 April 2021, in conjunction with RTM’s 75th anniversary, East Malaysian indigenous language news (Iban, Kadazan, Dusun and Bajau) are also available on the channel besides on sister channel TV Okey. Beginning 14 February 2023, RTM airs both the morning and evening parliamentary sessions live on the channel.[9][10]

On 1 April 2023, RTM’s 77th anniversary, prime time news slot was forwarded to 16 minutes early to include the evening edition of the express news programme Kanta 744 (pronounced Kanta tujuh-empat-empat, meaning Lens 744), while the English language news programme Malaysia Tonight was rebranded from News@10 and forwarded from 10pm to 8:30pm daily after the prime time news airing.

On 1 October 2023, Berita RTM underwent a major revamp on its news timeslot and programme restructuring. This includes dividing morning news into five separate programmes for National, Sabah, Sarawak, sports (Stadium RTM) and express (Kanta 744) editions.[11][12] At the same time, a special segment called Biar Betul (roughly meaning “Really” or “For Real”) began to aired on the channel and its sister channel, TV1 as well as RTM’s social media platforms.[13][14][15]

On 20 July 2024, the Installation of Yang di-Pertuan Agong XVII became the first event to be aired on the channel live in English following footage demands from foreign media, as previous live events were simultaneously broadcast with TV1 in Malay.[16] Since then, similar arrangements have also been made for several other events of national significance such as the annual Independence Day Parade.[17]

In conjunction with Malaysia’s 2025 ASEAN Chairmanship, RTM launched the RTM ASEAN segment on the channel on 1 August 2024, initially lasted for one and a half hour from 8:30pm to 10:00pm, comprising three programmes: ‘Malaysia Tonight’ (news programme), ‘On The Table’ (talk show) and ‘World Around Us’ (documentary).[18] This had been extended until midnight on 18 November the same year, lasting for three and a half hour and introducing new programmes like Behind the Mic and Global voices.

Effective 1 April 2026 – the 80th anniversary of RTM, the RTM ASEAN segment was rebranded as RTM World with broadcast extended until 7:00am the following day, as well as focus on a variety of topics such as global, ASEAN, Muslim World and Dunia Melayu (Malay World). But despite this extension, the segment’s broadcast at the moment consists of mostly reruns of RTM former programming from other sister channels.[19] At the same time, more modern-looking new intros were also introduced to all RTM TV news programmes.

Programming

Former RTM ASEAN Logo (2024-2026)

Berita RTM focusing on news and news-related programs broadcast 24 hours daily in 4 languages: Malay, English, Mandarin and Tamil. It is one of the two Malaysian television news channel broadcast in multilingual. The other being Bernama TV.

The channel offers 25 daily news slots, 12 talk shows a week, five business news days and two weekly magazine programs that contribute to the empowerment of the public with a wealth of information. The channel also simulcasts news programmes originally targeted at TV1 and TV2 viewers. The network also allows viewers to watch multi-language radio news broadcasts as well as live broadcasts from RTM radio stations across the country which also discuss specific issues at the state level.[20] One of the network’s TV programmes is Pastikan Sahih (Ensure Trustworthy), a TV program aimed to combatting viral fake news. It aired at 6.30 pm Weekdays.[21][22]

Controversy

Further information: Radio Televisyen Malaysia controversies

On 11 May 2021, the Mandarin news segment shown on Berita RTM broadcast a report of Israel’s airstrike against Palestine, which the news presenter mistakenly labelling Hamas as a ‘militants’. Following the incident, two RTM Mandarin news editors have been called to give an explanation and have been issued a show-cause letters.[23][24] RTM later issued an apology in its Twitter account over the incident.[25]

During the live broadcast of the opening ceremony of the 47th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit in 2025, RTM has misidentified the leaders of Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia. A broadcast commentator had misidentified Singapore’s Prime Minister Lawrence Wong as his predecessor, Mr Lee Hsien Loong. The commentator had also misidentified Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul as Srettha Thavisin and getting the name of Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto as Joko Widodo.[26][27][28]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Zaidi Mohamad (25 June 2020). “Saluran Berita RTM dilancar” [Berita RTM launched] (in Malay). Berita Harian. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
  2. ^ “Majlis Pelancaran Saluran Berita RTM” [Berita RTM launching ceremony] (in Malay). Radio Televisyen Malaysia. 25 June 2020. Archived from the original on 7 April 2022. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
  3. ^ Syafil Syazwan Jefri (25 June 2020). “Saluran berita RTM lebih kompetitif” [Berita RTM channel more competitive] (in Malay). Harian Metro. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
  4. ^ “Wisma Berita RTM platform untuk bersaing dengan media baru – Rais” [Wisma Berita RTM, a platform to compete with the new media – Rais] (in Malay). mStar Online. 6 June 2012. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
  5. ^ “RTM cadang wujudkan saluran berita TV sepenuhnya: Salleh” (in Malay). Utusan Borneo. 31 December 2015. Retrieved 27 March 2022.
  6. ^ “Saifuddin launches new TV channel ‘Saluran Berita RTM’“. The Edge Markets. 26 June 2020. Archived from the original on 26 June 2020. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
  7. ^ Jerry Choong (25 June 2020). “Saifuddin launches RTM’s own 24-hour news channel, aimed at combatting ‘fake news’“. The Malay Mail. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
  8. ^ “Saifuddin launches new TV channel Saluran Berita RTM”. New Malaysia Times. 26 June 2020. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
  9. ^ “Mesyuarat Pertama Penggal Kedua Parlimen Ke-15” (Press Release). Radio Televisyen Malaysia. 14 February 2023. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
  10. ^ Evon Goh (16 February 2023). “M’sians are Loving RTM’s Super Gen Z Announcement of Parliamentary Sessions Live Streaming”. World of Buzz. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
  11. ^ “BERITA RTM: RINGKAS DAN PADAT BERMULA OKTOBER” (Press Release). Radio Televisyen Malaysia. 4 October 2023. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
  12. ^ Budiey (4 October 2023). “Rombakan Berita RTM Lebih Ringkas & Padat Bermula Oktober Ini”. Sensasi Selebriti. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
  13. ^ “Segmen ‘Biar Betul!’ tangkis berita palsu ke udara di RTM mulai Oktober”. Sinar Harian. 27 September 2023. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
  14. ^ “‘Biar Betul!’ special segment to counter fake news on RTM starting October”. The Star Online. 27 September 2023. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
  15. ^ “RTM launches ‘Biar Betul!’ segment to combat fake news and slander”. Free Malaysia Today. 27 September 2023. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
  16. ^ “RTM to broadcast King’s installation in Malay and English”. New Straits Times. Bernama. 20 July 2024. Retrieved 3 April 2026.
  17. ^ “Part 1 Live National Day Parade 2024”. youtube.com.
  18. ^ “RTM perkenal tiga program baharu sempena Pengerusi ASEAN”.
  19. ^ “RTM-Malaysia strengthens bilingual news content for global audience”. abu.org.my. 6 January 2026.
  20. ^ “Saluran berita RTM dilancar, tangani berita palsu” [Berita RTM channel launched, combatting fake news] (in Malay). ProjekMM. 26 June 2020. Archived from the original on 28 June 2020. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
  21. ^ Tahir Alhamzah (26 June 2020). “#Showbiz: RTM’s brand new news channel to quash fake news”. New Straits Times. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
  22. ^ “Saluran Berita RTM dilancar, medium tambahan perangi berita palsu” [Berita RTM channel launched, an additional medium to combatting fake news] (in Malay). Astro Awani. 26 June 2020. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
  23. ^ “Two RTM editors issued show-cause letters for labelling Hamas ‘militant’“. Free Malaysia Today. 13 May 2021. Retrieved 6 January 2022.
  24. ^ “RTM ordered to probe Mandarin news editors after bulletin refers to Hamas as ‘militants’“. The Star Online. 13 May 2021. Retrieved 6 January 2022.
  25. ^ “Selepas dikritik, RTM mohon maaf gelar Hamas militan”. Ismaweb. 12 May 2021. Retrieved 6 January 2022.
  26. ^ “Malaysia broadcaster RTM apologises for getting names of three leaders wrong at ASEAN Summit”. CNA. Retrieved 2025-10-27.
  27. ^ “RTM apologises for fumbling two national leaders’ names in Asean Summit telecast”. The Star. 2025-10-26. Retrieved 2025-10-27.
  28. ^ Bernama (2025-10-26). “RTM apologises for commentator’s blunders over Singapore, Thailand PMs’ names | New Straits Times”. NST Online. Retrieved 2025-10-27.