Antara
Antara is the official news agency of Indonesia, serving as a primary supplier of news content for the majority of the country’s media outlets as well as a number of international clients. Established in 1937 during the Dutch colonial era, the agency has long been a fixture of the Indonesian media landscape, evolving through successive political regimes and institutional reforms.
Media assets
News agency: Antara News
State Media Matrix Typology
Captured Public/State-Managed/Owned (CaPu)
Ownership and governance
In 2007, Antara underwent a major structural transformation pursuant to Government Regulation No. 40/2007, which reconstituted the agency as a state-owned enterprise (SOE). Oversight of the agency now falls under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of State-Owned Enterprises (BUMN).
The governance framework includes a Board of Directors and a Supervisory Board, each composed of four members. The Supervisory Board must include at least two individuals appointed by the Ministry, who act as proxies for government oversight. The Supervisory Board holds the authority to appoint the Board of Directors, thereby reinforcing state influence over the agency’s executive leadership.
In March 2025, Komisi I of the People’s Representative Council (DPR) received a proposal from the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs to merge TVRI, RRI, and ANTARA into a unified public broadcasting company, creating a multi‑platform institution to boost innovation, national cohesion, and creative output.
Akhmad Munir was appointed President Director of Antara, Indonesia’s national news agency, in July 2023 following a long career within the organization. A journalist by training, Munir rose through the ranks over three decades, serving as news director before taking the top post. His appointment, made by the Ministry of State-Owned Enterprises, marked a continuation of government-aligned leadership at the agency.
Source of funding and budget
Antara today receives only a modest share of public funding. The bulk of its operational income derives from commercial ventures, primarily the sale of news content to domestic and foreign media organizations. According to the agency’s last publicly available annual report (2019), its budget stood at IDR 373 billion (approximately US$ 25.3 million). While more recent financial disclosures remain unavailable, experts note that commercial imperatives have grown increasingly central to Antara’s financing model.
Editorial independence
For much of its history, Antara operated as a government mouthpiece, promoting official narratives and policy priorities with little room for dissenting voices. In recent decades, however, the agency made tentative steps toward greater editorial autonomy, prompted in part by commercial pressures and competition in a more pluralistic media market.
Yet these gains appear to have stalled or even reversed in recent years. A content analysis carried out in March 2024 by the Media and Journalism Research Center showed a marked increase in government-aligned coverage, with the vast majority of output focused on state activities and messaging. Journalists in Jakarta interviewed in June 2024 confirmed that critical reporting on the authorities has become virtually non-existent within the agency. Moreover, Antara has come under scrutiny for disseminating Chinese state-sponsored content, reflecting growing concerns about Beijing’s media influence in Southeast Asia.
In light of these findings, in 2024, Antara was reclassified from the Independent State-Managed Media (ISM) category to the Captured Public/State-Owned/Managed Media (CaPu) category, denoting a significant deterioration in editorial independence.
It is important to note as well that the agency has adopted several internal protocols aimed at improving corporate integrity, including a Good Corporate Governance (GCG) framework, a Code of Conduct, and a whistleblowing system intended to protect staff from retaliation. However, these measures are largely focused on financial accountability and administrative transparency, rather than safeguarding editorial autonomy.
As of mid-2025, there is no statutory framework or legally binding provision that explicitly protects the editorial independence of Antara’s journalists or insulates its newsroom from political interference.
July 2025