The Star (Malaysia)
| Type | Daily newspaper |
|---|---|
| Format | Tabloid |
| Owner(s) | Star Publications (Malaysia) Berhad |
| Editor | Datuk Wong Chun Wai (Group Editor in Chief) |
| Founded | September 9, 1971 |
| Political alignment | Pro-government |
| Language | English |
| Headquarters | Menara Star, 15 Jalan 16/11, 46350 Petaling Jaya, Selangor  Malaysia. |
| Circulation | 309,029 (Daily) 318,957 (Sunday) *Source: Audit Bureau of Circulations, Malaysia - 1st July 2005 - 31st Dec 2005 |
| Website | The Star Online |
The Star is the leading English-language tabloid format newspaper in Malaysia. It is the largest in terms of circulation in Malaysia, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulations. It has a daily circulation of between 290,000 to 300,000. The Star is also a member of the Asia News Network.
The Star is majority-owned by the Malaysian Chinese Association, the second-largest party in the ruling Barisan Nasional alliance. Its other major competitor is the New Straits Times, also a tabloid, and another English-language tabloid, The Sun.
History
The daily newspaper was first published on 9 September 1971 as a regional newspaper based in Georgetown, Penang. The Star went into national circulation on 3 January 1976 when it set up its new office in Kuala Lumpur. In 1978, the newspaper headquarters was relocated to Kuala Lumpur. The Star continue to expand its wings over the years. In 1981, it moved its headquarters from Kuala Lumpur to Petaling Jaya which is also its current premise to accommodate a growing number of staff and technology devices.
Editions
The Star (daily) and Sunday Star are published in four editions — two editions which cover the northern peninsular states of Penang, Kedah, Perlis, Kelantan and northern Perak, while the other two editions cover the rest of the country.
There are two main printing plants that publish the four editions of The Star on a daily basis. The northern editions are printed at the newly opened Star Northern Hub in Bayan Lepas, Penang, while the other two editions are printed at the Star Media Hub in Bukit Jelutong, Shah Alam, Selangor.
Features
The Star weekday paper is packaged as a 4-in-1 paper, comprising the Main Paper, StarBiz, StarTwo and Star.Metro. As usual this newspaper also contains classifieds .
The Main Paper covers the latest in both local and international news while StarBiz offers a comprehensive coverage of business developments, market trends, financial reports and updates in the stock market. StarTwo features articles on lifestyle, entertainment, health, parenting, social etiquette, science, environment, fashion, food, comics and many more. The contents Star. Metro varies by edition, covering news and events in a particular region covered by each edition.
Weekly sections include:
- Star Maritime (every Monday) covers the shipping and sea-trade industry
- Star-In.Tech (every Tuesday and Thursday) focuses on computers and information technology,*Youth 2 (every Thursday) features lifestyle and trends for the young
- StarWeekend replaces StarTwo on Saturdays, offering articles on hobbies, holidays, leisure and weekend getaways
- The Star BizWeek is a weekly financial magazine published every Saturday that highlights issues, companies, personalities, developments, and stocks that are likely to make news in the week ahead
- NIE is a weekly pull out that appears on Wednesdays. NIE stands for Newspaper In Education.
- F1F4 is a fortnightly pull-out published on alternate Mondays. It contains information about Mathematics and Science syllabus for Form One and Form Four.
- Star Metro a pull-out featuring news and events from all of Malaysia and occasionally, abroad. Star Metro also features the classifieds.
Other publications by Star Publications
- Kuntum magazine
- Shang Hai
- Galaxie
- Flavours (Recipe Book)
Columnists
Among the prominent columnists in The Star are Marina Mahathir, daughter of former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad who has a biweekly column, 'Musings' and Wong Chun Wai, Deputy Editor, who has a Sunday column entitled "On The Beat."
Complaints
The rising popularity of The Star also resulted in many complaints by readers and advertisers that the newspaper has grown arrogant and less friendly. Pages are becoming more cluttered with ads, and to balance that out - more articles of little newsworthiness are being placed into the newspaper. In some markets, the newspaper is losing ground to arch-rival New Straits Times.