Trust over virality: The Jakarta Post editor-in-chief on journalism in the creator era

As AI-generated content, influencers and brand-owned media flood audiences with information at unprecedented speed, mainstream news organisations should stop trying to win the race to publish first and instead double down on the one asset social platforms cannot easily replicate: trust. 

That was the central message from Taufiq Rahman (pictured), editor-in-chief of The Jakarta Post, who argued that credibility has become journalism’s defining competitive advantage rather than speed, during a keynote conversation at PR Asia Indonesia 2026. 

Rahman rejected the increasingly common narrative that legacy media is in terminal decline, arguing that established newsrooms have a distinct role alongside social platforms rather than in direct competition with them. 

Instead, he believes audiences are already making a distinction between platforms that deliver immediate updates and publications that provide verification, analysis and context. 

“If you want to get breaking news or updates on traffic, for instance, you can rely on social media. We don’t have any pretence to catch up with that,” Rahman said. 

“But if you want insightful analysis, something that you can ruminate on, something that you will chew on for the rest of the day, you still need to rely on mainstream media.” 

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Context becomes the product 

Rahman’s comments reflect a broader shift across global newsrooms as breaking news has increasingly migrated to social media, creators and real-time digital platforms. 

Rather than competing on speed, he said The Jakarta Post has repositioned itself around explanation and deeper reporting. 

“I don’t think that we in the mainstream media are in the business of delivering breaking news anymore,” he said. “Our job is providing context, providing narratives and telling a bigger story.” 

That philosophy is also shaping how the publication expands into newer formats. 

Although The Jakarta Post has embraced podcasts, TikTok, Instagram and LinkedIn, Rahman stressed these platforms are simply new distribution channels rather than a change in editorial philosophy. 

Discussing the publication’s upcoming podcast series, he said the newsroom deliberately avoided adopting celebrity-style interview formats that dominate many podcasts. 

Instead, the first episode explores the evolution of Indonesia’s foreign policy over more than eight decades - an example, he said, of maintaining the publication’s long-standing emphasis on context regardless of platform. 

“The mechanisms, the mechanics of it, can be the latest technology. But in terms of spirit, in terms of what we’re trying to deliver, we haven’t changed our focus on always providing context and the bigger picture,” Rahman said. 

Trust outweighs virality 

Rahman argued that social media’s speed has not diminished the need for verification. 

Using Jakarta’s recent traffic disruption as an example, he said people may first encounter reports online but continue turning to established media for confirmation. 

“We have been practising the tried-and-true method of confirmation,” he said. 

The only currency that we have right now is credibility, and we need to strive to protect that. We need to continue doing this as a public service.

He also pointed to the growing popularity of podcast products produced by established Indonesian news organisations as evidence that audiences continue to value trusted journalism, even as consumption habits evolve.

For marketers and communicators, the comments reinforce an emerging reality: distribution has become increasingly democratised, but institutional credibility remains significantly harder to build. 

Indonesia’s story requires balance 

Rahman also reflected on The Jakarta Post’s unique position as an English-language publication serving both domestic and international audiences. 

Unlike foreign media reporting on Indonesia from an external perspective, he said the newspaper must tell Indonesian stories through an Indonesian lens without becoming either promotional or excessively negative. 

“If that’s your attitude, all you’re going to publish is just propaganda,” he said, referring to unquestioning nationalism. 

At the same time, he acknowledged that reporting extensively on corruption, bureaucratic inefficiency and abuse of power risks projecting an overwhelmingly negative image abroad. 

His solution is editorial balance. 

“I always tell the editors to come up with good stories about Indonesia to counterbalance all the negativity that we’re hearing about the country on a daily basis,” Rahman said. 

He said the approach reflected the publication’s public service role, highlighting the importance of telling stories that give people hope. 

A lesson for communicators 

Speaking to an audience of communications professionals, Rahman argued that public relations often attracts attention only when it fails. 

“If PR people do their job well, it’s something that probably goes under the radar,” he said. “But once you have PR people doing a bad job, you’re going to have a complete disaster.” 

Without referring to specific administrations, Rahman suggested many communication challenges surrounding public policy stem not from the policies themselves but from weak narrative design and ineffective public explanation. 

“It’s just a problem of explaining it to the world,” he said. 

His comments underscore an increasingly important role for communications teams as Indonesia competes for international investment, particularly as narratives can shape perceptions alongside economic fundamentals. 

Drawing a firm line between editorial and commercial 

Rahman also defended the importance of maintaining a strict separation between journalism and commercial content as native advertising and sponsored content become more common. 

Inside The Jakarta Post, he said, a clear “firewall” remains between editorial and commercial operations. 

“We have been very honest about it. If this is a commercial product, we say it’s a commercial product,” he said. 

He warned that blurring those boundaries ultimately damages newsroom credibility. 

Once you play around with the separation between the commercial side and the editorial side, I don’t think we have any credibility left.

Accuracy before speed 

Asked how journalists should balance speed against editorial standards, Rahman was unequivocal. 

“If we have to choose between speed and maintaining editorial standards and policy, I will choose the latter,” he said. 

“It doesn’t matter if you don’t break stories, as long as you get them right.” 

He acknowledged that all news organisations make mistakes, citing both international examples and significant crises The Jakarta Post has faced during its own history. 

But repeated inaccuracies, he warned, erode the one advantage traditional media still possesses. 

Relationships still matter 

For all the discussion about algorithms, AI and the changing media landscape, Rahman said one aspect of communications has remained constant: relationships.  

He encouraged PR professionals to build direct connections with journalists, arguing that technology cannot replace genuine people-to-people engagement. 

“This is about people-to-people connection,” he said.  

“It’s always good to have direct relationships and direct connections with editors, reporters and people in the media. Not because we want to be taken seriously, but simply because we need that human, people-to-people connection that makes the job easier for all of us.” 

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