A few weeks ago, we came across a Tweet where the author essentially said "I'm not sure if the world is worse than ever now, but it sure feels that way since we're constantly bombarded with all that's bad in the world every minute of the day."

We had to paraphrase since we didn't have the foresight to save the Tweet but the sentiment stuck with us.

Information overload is definitely something a lot of us experience. How do you even begin to sift through all that you're bombarded with on social media, news channels and real life?

It's not an easy job but the folks at Astro Awani will be taking up the challenge with their new segment 'Awani Tonight'.

Cutting through the noise

'Awani Tonight' is an English news bulletin which will highlight the most important news of the day and try make sense of them.

Astro Awani anchor, editor, producer and journalist Cynthia Ng, who will be leading the show, said that the news bulletin will not just be about reporting but adding context to the news.

"By 9.45pm, you probably got your news from Twitter, Facebook and what not, right?

"So, how can we help audience make sense of news of the day and cut through the noise; ask pertinent questions, dissect statements and arguments from all sides so they are more informed at the end of the day and can make better decisions on the next day," she told Rojak Daily.

Ng explained that the 15-minute show will offer facts, insights and bite-sized analysis behind major headlines of the day.

"It's a part of our commitment to enhance our English content. We have a very reputable news commentary programme which is 'Consider This'. 'Awani Tonight' will be a lead up to that," Ng said.

Ng, who started her journey in broadcasting with Astro Awani around 2007, was instrumental is conceptualising and launching the channel’s first English-language digital platform featuring insights into leadership, strategy and management from successful and inspiring personalities.

'Awani Tonight' will air every Monday to Friday at 9.45pm on Astro Awani.

Getting the news out during a pandemic

Astro Awani, like most news outlets, continues to be committed to deliver news to the Malaysian public despite the pandemic.

According to Ng, the practice when it comes to news gathering has been quite similar to before COVID-19 pandemic with some adjustment made.

"We have our reporters on ground, we get information from statements, press releases, we call up people to speak with them," Ng explained.

However, there are now two teams, one which is called the "red" team (i.e. reporters who are on the ground and are out and about despite the risk of getting infected), and another that is based in the office.

In case something were to happen to the team that's out and about, there's another team to fall back on.

Ng said that having the two teams has worked very well for Awani in terms of news gathering.

"In terms of news production, it has changed a bit. A lot of us have started to work from home.

"There were some technical issues initially trying to get the camera right, the audio right, try to get the lighting.

"But if you were to watch our news now, you'd notice that a lot of us are actually working from home but you can't really tell that we are broadcasting from home," Ng said.

She added that everyone involved try their best to make it seamless for the audience and now they can broadcast from their homes but ideally everyone can get back to the office and go back to how things were pre-COVID.

Kudos to Ng and everyone else working tirelessly while exposing themselves to the possibility of contracting the feared COVID-19 virus to keep the rest of the country informed!

Thank you, guys and stay safe!