BANJARMASIN – Digital Platform Company Google is committed to continuing business cooperation with a number of media companies in Indonesia along with the launch of the Google News Showcase (GNS) program in early 2025.
“This is good news for the press community that Google will continue cooperation with media companies in Indonesia through the Google News Showcase program. In the first quarter (Q1) of 2025, the GNS program that has been temporarily suspended will be launched,” said Chairman of the Digital Platform Corporate Responsibility Committee to Support Quality Journalism Dr. Suprapto Sasto Atmojo at the socialization event of Presidential Regulation Number 32 of 2024 in Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan, Saturday (21/12/2024).
Google’s commitment to continue cooperation with press companies in Indonesia was conveyed by the Director of Government Relations and Public Policy of Google Indonesia Putri Alam and Head of Partnerships for Google Indonesia News Publishers Yos Kusuma in a meeting with the Committee in Jakarta, Thursday (11/28/2024).
“After this guideline is ratified, the disbursement can proceed. The new product (Google News Showcase) will be rolled out in Q1 2025,” said Yos Kusuma at that time. The guideline referred to by Google is the Implementation Guidelines for Presidential Regulation Number 32 of 2024 prepared by the Committee. In the meeting with the Committee, Google also committed to carrying out the mandate of Presidential Regulation Number 32 of 2024. This means that the platform obligations as stipulated in Article 5 of the Presidential Regulation will also be carried out.
According to Suprapto, the Committee will also encourage Google and digital platform companies operating in Indonesia to carry out their obligations as stipulated in Article 5 of Presidential Regulation Number 32 of 2024, especially regarding business cooperation. Cooperation is not only limited to certain media companies based in Jakarta, but also with local media throughout Indonesia.
Socialization of Presidential Decree Number 32 of 2024
The Committee held a socialization of Presidential Decree Number 32 of 2024 for the Kalimantan region in Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan. The press community from five provinces in Kalimantan, namely South Kalimantan, East Kalimantan, Central Kalimantan, West Kalimantan, and North Kalimantan, attended the event both in person and online. A total of 41 mass media leaders attended in person and 22 participants in the zoom room as well as a number of university leaders, leaders of government institutions, and leaders of legislative institutions in South Kalimantan were also present.
On that occasion, the participants of the socialization asked questions regarding the duties and functions of the Committee as the executor of the mandate of Presidential Decree Number 32 of 2024. One of them was Totok from PWI South Kalimantan who questioned the digital platform algorithm which was considered contrary to the spirit of quality journalism, where journalistic content was defeated by content that did not meet quality journalism standards.
Another senior journalist Umi Sri Wahyuni admitted that she was pleased with this socialization because it turned out that the news content created and distributed through digital platforms had commercial value that was very beneficial for press companies.
On this occasion, Deputy Chair of the Committee Indriaswati Dyah Saptaningrum; Coordinator of the Cooperation Sector Herik Kurniawan; Coordinator of the Quality Journalism Program and Training Sector Sasmito and Fransiskus Surdiasis; Coordinator of Supervision, Mediation and Facilitation of Dispute Resolution Kristiono Setyadi and Ambang Priyonggo; and Coordinator of the Organization and Inter-Institutional Relations Sector, Alexander C. Suban were also present at the activity.
The socialization of Presidential Regulation Number 32 of 2024 in Kalimantan is the second socialization held by the Committee. Previously, a similar event was held in Bali for the Province of Bali, West Nusa Tenggara Province, and East Nusa Tenggara Province.
The Presidential Regulation emphasizes six obligations for digital platform companies in supporting a quality journalism ecosystem as regulated in Article 5, namely:
- not facilitating the distribution and/or not commercializing News content that is not in accordance with the Law on the press after receiving a report through the reporting facilities provided by the Digital Platform Company;
- providing the best efforts to help prioritize the facilitation and commercialization of News produced by the Press Company;
- providing fair treatment to all Press Companies in offering Digital Platform Services;
- implementing training and programs aimed at supporting quality and responsible journalism;
- providing the best efforts in designing News distribution Algorithms that support the realization of quality journalism in accordance with democratic values, diversity, and laws and regulations; and
- cooperate with Press Companies.
The Committee is tasked with ensuring the fulfillment of the obligations of the digital platform companies. To that end, the Committee has a supervisory function for the implementation of the Presidential Regulation, facilitation of cooperation programs and other responsibilities, as well as a recommendation function.
Committee Programs
Deputy Chair of the Committee Indriaswati Dyah Saptaningrum explained a number of programs that have been carried out by the Committee. Internally, the committee has prepared technical organizational and governance matters, such as the division of committee work, preparation of a code of ethics, creation of statutes, and guidelines for the implementation of Presidential Regulation Number 32 of 2024. This guide includes reporting mechanisms, supervision, facilitation, mediation, and recommendations.
Previously on Monday (11/11/2024), the Committee submitted the Guidelines for the Implementation of the Supervisory Function of the Fulfillment of Obligations of Digital Platform Companies for Quality Journalism to the Deputy Minister of Communication and Digital Nezar Patria which was handed over directly by the Chairperson of KTP2JB at the Office of the Ministry of Communication and Digital (Komdigi) on Jalan Medan Merdeka Barat, Central Jakarta.
The submission of this document was carried out during a meeting of the KTP2JB Committee with Deputy Minister of Komdigi to discuss the progress of the committee’s work process in ensuring cooperation between press companies and digital platform companies.
With this document, Deputy Minister of Komdigi Nezar Patria hopes that digital platform companies will immediately continue the pending business negotiations and immediately realize the cooperation.
“We will try to negotiate so that after this guideline, a win-win solution can be obtained between media companies and digital platforms,” said Nezar Patria to the committee members who attended this meeting.
On this occasion, Deputy Minister of Komdigi Nezar Patria advised the committee members that the technical matters in this guideline should not exceed the authority mandated in Presidential Regulation Number 32 of 2024 to ensure that the responsibilities of digital platform companies for quality journalism are fulfilled.
The Committee also submitted the results of the mapping of problems of press companies and digital platform companies which were the results of the safari shopping meeting conducted by the Committee to press companies and digital platform companies.
Since its inception on September 1, 2024, members of the Committee have discussed the development of the press in Indonesia with constituents of the Press Council, such as AMSI, IJTI, JMSI, PWI, PFI, PRSSNI, AJI and the Editor-in-Chief Forum. Various press companies were also visited by members of the Committee such as KG Media, Tempo, Tribun Network, Promedia, CNN and regional press associations such as PWI in Lampung.
Meanwhile, digital platform companies have also had audiences with the Committee, namely Meta which houses Facebook, Instagram, Thread and Whatssap, the TikTok Indonesia platform and Twitter which explained various cooperation programs with the mass media, and Google.
Anang Fadhilah
