Buletin Utama Goes Royal: King And Queen Become Newscasters In Special Edition

A special segment called ‘Buletin Diraja’ saw the King and Queen presenting the news.

Pic Credit: TV3 Buletin Diraja

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TV3’s Buletin Utama has been serving primetime news since 5 June 1990 but yesterday (17 January 2023) was its most special edition.

For the first time in the history of Malaysian television, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah and Raja Permaisuri Agong Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah appeared on the news broadcast as newscasters.

In a 10-minute session called “Buletin Diraja” aired during the 8pm Buletin Utama slot, the King and Queen kicked off the session with a news piece highlighting the beauty of unity and harmony in Malaysia’s multiracial society.

The King highlighted food as the common factor to explain the unity of our country.

In a voxpop interview, members of the public shared their views on unity.

Meanwhile, National Professors Council Chairman Professor Datuk Dr Shamsul Amri Baharuddin, in an interview for the segment said we can see harmony among all the races during elections as there is no violence.

“Our strength lies in our ability to give and take. Even during election time, we don’t see violence in Malaysia,” he said in the interview.

The next news item which would be close to the hearts of Their Majesties, was on the contribution of ikan patin to their home state, Pahang’s tourism and economy.

For this piece, a local fish wholesaler Mohd Shah Andyreen Ahmad Radzuan was interviewed in Temerloh.

According to him, the cleanliness of the water in Sungai Tembeling adds to the uniqueness of the ikan patin there.

“We have different types of ikan patin here, and the prices range between RM130 and RM500 per kilogramme. The river water is clean, which is why ikan patin in Sungai Tembeling is so unique,” Andyreen said.

To add to the uniqueness of their stint as newscasters, the King and Queen also presented the news on their own arrival at Media Prima that day, from a third person’s point of view.

“Their Majesties were given a corporate brief by the Media Prima management, followed by a visit to Radio City. They even went live on air with the deejays at Hot FM,” Al-Sultan Abdullah said in the broadcast which was originally in Bahasa Melayu.

The highlight of this segment was when Tunku Azizah jokingly said “macam muka kenal je” (looks familiar) which was followed by laughter from both Their Majesties.

The segment ended with both thanking Media Prima for allowing them to become newscasters for the day.

Many who saw the news were very happy to see the King and Queen communicating and building close ties with the people.

Daulat Tuanku🙏. Semoga menjadi contoh untuk golongan ahli politik merasai turun padang melihat keadaan yang nyata♥️
— نورول (@syafinazsyahyla) January 17, 2024