The Phnom Penh Post, which has been publishing from the Cambodian capital for more than three decades, said Friday it will stop publishing its English and Khmer editions by the end of the month amid falling revenues and readership, and an inability by the shareholders to "bear such losses."
Its closure is another blow to press freedom in Cambodia, which has been under pressure since a government crackdown on political dissent was initiated by former Prime Minister Hun Sen about eight years ago.
"Our shareholders have been trying to inject more funds and generate income by all means to restore the financial condition of the company and continue publishing this independent, professional newspaper, which has been operating for more than 30 years," its management said in a statement, published in its Friday morning edition.
"Therefore, our shareholders have decided with deep regret, to cease publication of the newspaper, both the English and Khmer editions, by March 29, 2024," the statement continued.
The Phnom Penh Post was established by Americans Michael Hayes and Kathleen O’Keefe in 1992 with their life savings of $50,000, when United Nations peacekeepers arrived in Cambodia and this country was still at war.
It quickly established a reputation for hard-hitting independent journalism while maintaining a sympathetic ear for Cambodians and their tragic history. It was also a proving ground for young journalists carving out a career.
As the newspaper marked its 10th anniversary, Hayes said, "I’ve spent the last 10 years not getting paid to worry about money every day, how this paper survived is an absolute mystery to me."
Hayes sold the newspaper to Australian mining magnate Bill Clough in 2008. That independence was maintained as the newspaper was transformed from fortnightly editions to daily.
However, as the 2018 general elections were approaching, the newspaper was hit with an exorbitant tax bill it could ill-afford and was sold to government-friendly interests, the Malaysian businessman Sivakumar S. Ganapathy (known as Siva), who was the managing director of AsiaPR, a Malaysian public relations company.
Another independent newspaper, The Cambodia Daily, had also closed eight months earlier after it too was handed an unexpected tax bill, with free press and civil rights activists saying both publications were forced to close because they were critical of the government.
"The rapid advancement of technologies and the widespread circulation of news through social media have also caused severe financial difficulties for the company," Phnom Penh Post management said in Friday’s statement.
"Since the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent economic downturn, the company’s revenues have significantly decreased," it said.
English-language newspapers have also suffered from declining expatriate numbers, which began to fall with the government crackdown on political dissent and accelerated during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.
"It’s a sad day and a great shame to see the print edition close. I think it’s been on the cards for a while as it hasn’t made any money for a long time. Even when I was in charge it was losing money, perhaps $20,000 a month or even more," said former editor Alan Parkhouse from his home in Kamphaeng Phet, Thailand.
Parkhouse was editor from 2011 to 2015 when the Post won 26 international awards.
"I’m very proud of that. At the same time it’s a shame to see how the media in Cambodia has folded and become noncritical of the government," he told VOA.
"The standard of the media in Cambodia has dropped through the floor in the last few years and while it’s a shame to see the Phnom Penh Post close it was no longer doing hard news and breaking stories that it made its reputation on," he said.
His sentiments were echoed by Bradley Murg a Cambodian-based affiliate fellow with Pacific Forum, a Honoluu-based research organization.
"While past its glory years, The Phnom Penh Post will be particularly missed as it was the last serious English language outlet for in-depth economic and financial reporting in the kingdom," he said.
The Southeast Asian Globe, a Phnom Penh-based magazine, also announced it was suspending its print edition in October after also running into financial difficulties, but its online edition remains.
Parkhouse noted that no mention of The Phnom Penh Post’s online edition was made by management in announcing the newspaper’s closure.
"But I’m hearing that the online edition might remain," he said.
A spokesperson for The Phnom Penh Post was unavailable for additional comment.
