TV viewership jumps 50% in Indonesia amid stay-home measure

Amid the stay home notice implementation in Indonesia, TV viewership has increased more than 50%. According to the Central Indonesian Broadcasting Commission (KPI), the surge in numbers could be due to the daily news broadcast around COVID-19 as well as the entertainment programmes airing for Indonesians to take their mind off the pandemic.

KPI chairman Agung Suprio said TV has now become the "vanguard" in the efforts to disseminate information to the public during this COVID-19 situation. "This is because television does not broadcast hoaxes and always checks and rechecks, especially under the KPI’s supervision," he added. 

Meanwhile, KPI commissioner Yuliandre Darwis said the upswing in TV viewership highlights the public’s trust in mainstream media. Suprio said the large number of hoaxes on social media had made the public turn to TV as a trusted source of information. He explained that the public tune in to broadcast TV which serves to inform, educate and entertain, and is trusted among the public as compared to the new information media such as social media.

The increase in viewership comes as KPI asked broadcasters to maintain the quality of information on the spread of COVID-19 in Indonesia. Suprio said given that the virus is a threat to the health of the people of the world, as determined by the World Health Organisation, television and radio should convey information that has been confirmed to be true. "We hope that broadcasters ensure that information disseminated to the public comes from sources that can be accounted for, and that they do not participate in spreading confusing, unconfirmed news, let alone hoaxes. The public should not panic," he added. 

Suprio stressed that despite the abundance of information channels such as conventional media, social media and other digital platforms, TV and radio are still the most trusted information channels by the public. "The discipline of verification and reconfirmation of all information must continue to be done to prevent people from swallowing lies and misleading. Do not let the public be overwhelmed by panic because of misguided information distributed by the media," he explained. 

The number of COVID-19 cases are also increasing daily in Indonesia. The Indonesian government said recently that it will hand out IDR10.3 trillion (SG$1 billion) to aid businesses and consumers to counter the economic impact due to the COVID-19 outbreak. According to several media outlets, during a cabinet meeting, ministers announced that a number of measures that will be undertaken by the government.

Indonesia's finance minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said to the media present at the cabinet meeting that 4.56 trillion rupiah of the overall sum will be handed to approximately 15.2 million of the lower income households which is the bottom 20-30% of the population. Through this distribution, each household will receive 50,000 rupiah more each month in non-cash food aid, bringing the total to 200,000 rupiah. This will be a six-month initiative, beginning in March 2020. According to Indrawati, the disbursement aims to bolster consumer spending and create multiplier effects on the economy.