Journalism in Post-Coup Myanmar

“It’s chaos right now! Like the whole field of journalism, it's already destroyed. What I'm really sad at the moment is, most of the mainstream media, they don't follow standard journalism rules anymore.”

My talk with Mratt Kyaw Thu spanned his journalistic career, and touched upon a wide range of topics, including the experience of being an ethnic minority in Yangon, how the transition period opened never-before-seen opportunities for journalists, the first seeds of the Rohingya crisis, the role of the Arakan Army, and finally, his thoughts and observations on the resistance movement.

Concerning the latter point, Mratt has been dismayed to find how the progress that journalism made for years was abruptly halted when the military took over. On one hand he details the incredible risks and imminent danger that reporters suddenly faced in simply trying to do their job, as the regime didn't want word of their atrocities getting out. Yet on the other hand, Mratt points out how a kind pressure developed from readers to be fed good news of an impending victory, giving way to a sense of false optimism, which in turn relaxed journalistic standards as a wide range of unverifiable stories came to be published and shared widely.

Mratt had a first-row seat to these changing times, and shares an insider's view of a complex, real-time situation. His interview is highly informative to those wishing to gain a deeper understanding as to how we have reached this point, and what we can expect going forward.