CRISIS COMMUNICATION IN MALAYSIAN MEDIA: A COMPARISON OF ASTRO AWANI AND MALAYSIA KINI’S COVERAGE OF THE PUTRA HEIGHTS GAS PIPELINE FIRE

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to examine the reporting of the April 2025 gas pipeline fire incident in Putra Heights by two Malaysian news outlets, Astro Awani and Malaysiakini. The study aimed to examine headline framing, source types, and thematic patterns in the coverage of both media outlets. A total of 273 news articles published within the first seven days following the incident (174 from Astro Awani and 99 from Malaysiakini) were analysed using a mixed-methods content analysis approach, integrating quantitative analysis of content frequencies and distributions with qualitative thematic examination. Results show that both publications mainly used factual headlines and relied on official sources. However, Malaysiakini offered a wider range of themes, such as conflict and consequences, whereas Astro Awani focused on human interest and responsibility. In conclusion, the two media's different editorial concepts affected how they presented the crisis narratives, even though they both followed the rules of factual and source credibility. This study improves our knowledge of the media's function in crisis communication and emphasizes how crucial fair reporting and public media literacy are in influencing how society reacts to crises.