Sin Chew Daily, formerly known as Sin Chew Jit Poh, is a leading Chinese-language newspaper in Malaysia. According to report from the Audit Bureau of Circulation for the period ending 31 December 2011, Sin Chew Daily has an average daily circulation of almost 500,000 copies and also the largest-selling Chinese-language newspaper outside Greater China. It is only on Sundays that the circulation of the Malay language papers exceeds that of Sin Chew Daily. Sin Chew Daily is a member of the Asia News Network. Sin Chew Daily is circulated throughout Malaysia and neighboring countries, in Southern Thailand, Brunei and Indonesia. It is also published and printed in Indonesia and Cambodia, under different mastheads. Presently, Sin Chew Daily has 53 news bureaus and six printing plants in Peninsular and East Malaysia. Sin Chew Daily is owned by Sin Chew Media Corporation Berhad, a subsidiary of Media Chinese International Limited.
History
Sin Chew Daily was founded on 15 January 1929, by Aw Boon Par and Aw Boon Haw, founder of the Tiger Balm in Singapore as part of the Star Almagated Newspaper formed by these two philanthropists. The newspaper was suspended between 1942 and 1945 during the Japanese occupation of Malaya. A Kuala Lumpur office was established in 1950, but even after the secession of Singapore from Malaysia in 1965, Sin Chew Daily still operated with its headquarters in Singapore under the management of descendant of the Aw brothers. In order to expedite the printing process, in 1966, Sin Chew Daily built a new plant located at its present head office premises in Petaling Jaya. With the setting up of this new plant, other departments such as the news desk, editorial, production and circulation were started. The Petaling Jaya operation became independent from the head office in Singapore. Following the directives from the government on restraining foreigners from controlling the press, the Aw family transferred their ownership of Sin Chew Daily to Lim Kheng Kim in 1982. In 1987, Sin Chew Daily sank into deep financial trouble, and a receiver was appointed over the company. On 27 October 1987, the publication licence of Sin Chew Daily was suspended under Operasi Lalang, one of the most drastic clampdowns on civil dissent launched by the government. Tiong Hiew King, an entrepreneur from Sarawak, acquired Sin Chew Daily in 1988. After five months 11 days, Sin Chew Daily resumed publication on 8 April 1988. In the early 1990s, Sin Chew Daily emerged as the best-selling Chinese newspaper, beating Nanyang Siang Pau, the leading Chinese newspaper then. Steven Gan's independent news site Malaysiakini began with a 20November 1997 story criticizing the practices of Sin Chew Jit Poh. The newspaper had doctored a photograph of Malaysia's ruling party to remove Anwar Ibrahim, who had recently been imprisoned for corruption. According to BBC News, the Malaysiakini report led to "worldwide infamy" for Sin Chew Jit Poh, and the newspaper later issued a public apology.
As part of an effort to encourage the Chinese community to develop a love for its culture and language, Sin Chew Daily has instigated a host of cultural events, one of its highlights being the Hua Zong Literature Award, established in 1991. The inaugural literary award was named as the Sin Chew Daily Literature Awards. Renowned Singapore artist Tan Swie Hian created the bronze sculpture "Hua Zong" as a prize for the award winner. Thus the literary award was renamed "Hua Zong" or Floral Trail Literation Awards. Hua means flower, but it also has similar pronunciation to Huá meaning Chinese, this new adopted name bears the significance of connecting worldwide Chinese through literature. The award has helped foster Chinese Literature in Malaysia; a number of Malaysian Chinese writers such as Tei Chiew-Siah and Li Zishu who have made a mark in the literary world has received the Award. The award recognizes excellence in various categories, including fiction, prose and poetry. It also awards an :zh:花蹤世界華文文學獎|international prize biennially to writers worldwide who write inthe Chinese language; recipients include Wang Anyi, Yan Lianke, Yu Kwang-chung and Pai Hsien-yung.
