A BOOK REVIEW

Title : Riots on the News in West Borneo
Writer : Zaenuddin H. Prasojo
Number of pages : vii + 146
Publisher : STAIN Pontianak Press
Reviewer : Dian Kartika Sari

Zaenuddin has written a book about conflict studies, “Riots on the News in West Borneo”. I think this is a great book because written in English and has information about conflict more. This book consists of five chapters. First chapter is introduction, which tells us about West Borneo in 1990s on the eyes of media and conflict studies. Then, it also divided into three matters: a glance of mass media and group relationships in West Borneo, ethnic relationships in West Borneo: what many have said, and the media and conflict studies.
Therefore, in the introduction, the writer tells us about conflicts that happen in West Borneo such as ethnic conflicts between the Madurese, Malay, Dayak, Chinesse, and etc. these happened in some places like Pontianak, Sanggau Ledo, Sambas, Bengkayang, and many else. In the beginning the conflicts were caused by economic and cultural problems, especially for those directly involved in the community.
Moreover, this book explains about how the media take a look the conflict especially in West Borneo. Because this book addresses the questions of how the riots happened and how people perceived them by analyzing how their issues were presented by the media. Using media as a resource for the analysis is one way in the news about the conflict, this work will contribute to the academic resources of media research especially in West Borneo. The focus of this work will be to reveal how the conflict between the Dayak and the Madura in West Borneo during 1997 was constructed by the media especially by the Akcaya Pontianak Post and Kompas. Because its carried news of the riots comprehensively and continuously.
Besides, in chapter one, a writer talks about Ethnic Relationship in West Borneo based on the media. The mass media are influencing human life in many aspects, wherever they are. By conducting this research, people will get information about the conflict not only from field of studies but also from media studies. To do this research, he use discourse analysis to analyze texts in the media especially in newspapers.
In chapter two, a writer brings a reader to know more about West Borneo especially its people and culture. Moreover, we may know much information about West Borneo in general. Geographical view, for instance, he explains about West Borneo that famous for a province that has “thousands of rivers” because its have thousands of both big and small rivers. Then, Sungai Kapuas is known as the longest river in Indonesia. Besides, he also tells about the equator line which through Pontianak City. It means that West Borneo is a tropical area which is damp and has high temperature. Therefore, a writer also write about the agriculture in West Borneo, economic structure, living societies there, social life and what kind activities do they usually do, and the last about variety of ethnic and religious relations in West Borneo.
Zaenuddin writes about Dayak and Madurese Once in West Borneo in the third chapter. He begins with the history of a broken relationship between Dayak and Madurese. There are classifies ethnic conflicts in West Borneo into three categories. They are close and open conflicts, individual conflict and group conflict, then, vertical and horizontal conflict. In this chapter we will find the reason why many conflicts broke out in West Borneo. Besides, he explains about the number of conflict in West Borneo.
A writer tells us about the mass media in chapter four, he talks about when the mass media talks: Pontianak Post and Kompas on the riots emerging in West Borneo in 1997. He elaborates news and information that published in Pontianak Post and Kompas. At the first time, he has told us why he choose these two newspapers, it’s about comprehensively and continuously the news about conflicts. Besides, he talks about the risk if news about conflict has show up in a society. He also tells about public knowledge and perceptions of the riots as reflected in the news.
Finally, in the last chapter, a writer is concluding the writing and making a reflection in order to it become very important to rebuilding and creating peace in West Borneo. This book becomes very important not only for people involved in the riots to learn what is reported in the mass media, but also for many people in West Borneo to take a lesson from those conflicts.