Achieving brand equity are top priorities for many organizations because brand is one of the most prized assets of any organization. As such, the academia continues to exert considerable efforts on understanding the factors that influence the development of brand equity. For instance, previous studies have demonstrated that social media communication has significant impact on Consumer-Based Brand Equity (CBBE), however, researchers have not really focused on the relationships of several types of marketing communications anchored by different social media platforms for brand equity. As such, the objective of this study is to examine the relationships between the social media marketing communications, specifically, user-generated type (Social Media Word-of-Mouth) and firm created types (Social Media Advertising, Social Media Promotion and Social Media Interactive Marketing); and the CBBE of automotive brands in Malaysia. Subsequently, 800 samples were selected through cluster samplings from five cities in five geographical regions across Malaysia. Survey questionnaires were administered to users of four types of automotive brands, namely; PROTON, PERODUA, TOYOTA and HONDA. The data collected was analyzed using descriptive statistics, correlation and multiple regressions in SPSS 22. The findings revealed that, the selected automotive brands have notable presence on Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Twitter. Furthermore, it was found that, social media advertising, social media promotions and social media word-of-mouth have positive relationships with the CBBE of automotive brands. However, social media interactive marketing has an insignificant role in the CBBE. The theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed in this paper.

Abstract. User-Generated Contents is a type of brand-related communications on social media platforms. User-Generated Contents (UGC) offers consumers the opportunity of sharing their experiences, contribute their opinion and communicate with other. This implies that brand managers no longer have solitary control in managing the brand images of their brands. Therefore, this study set out to examine the effect of user-generated contents on hedonic brand image and functional brand. Also, the study determines how hedonic and functional brand image influence brand purchase intention. 114 followers of fan pages of Malaysian automotive brands were surveyed. The hypotheses formulated were tested using PLS-SEM. The findings revealed that, UGC have significant and positive impact on both functional and hedonic brand image. Furthermore, functional and hedonic brand image have significant impact on purchase intention. This study provides insight on the importance of UGC, functional and hedonic brand image to brand managers.

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This article discusses a study on empowerment of a group at risk via social media in Malaysia which focuses on five important dimensions namely economy, social and cultural, legal, political, and psychology. The group at risk focused in the study refers to women. The study employed a survey that uses a set of online questionnaire distributed to women who are actively using social media, particularly social networking sites. This study involves a sample of 1,307 respondents in an exploratory study, in which a 5-factor 24-item instrument to measure empowerment comprising of the five hypothesised dimensions were being developed. Results confirm factor structures of the empowerment model and suggest a more parsimonious instrument for each; a 5-factor 15-item scale for social media empowerment, as compared to the result of pilot study conducted. Goodness-of-fit indices for the model are presented. The result shows that the five dimensions are significant to the empowerment model of women in Malaysia. The findings can contribute greatly to a better understanding of the empowerment mechanism behind social media issues pertaining to women.

Purpose -This study investigated media and communication practitioners' perspectives on the journalism education curriculum in Malaysia. Curriculum plays an important role in providing quality education for students. Journalism is a dynamic field that integrates industrial experience and fundamental knowledge in the field from higher educational institutions. Scholars in the field are divided on the issue of whether it is important for academia to consider input from industrial players in shaping the curriculum on journalism education in higher institutions of learning.Methodology -Drawing from the researchers' experiences and guidelines from the Malaysian Qualifications Agency, the Taba Model was adapted as the theoretical framework for the study. The study used a semi-structured interview method. Fifteen experts were interviewed. They have served more than 10 years in the media industry and have held various executive positions. The interview protocol was developed based on the literature review and guidelines from the curriculum review of Communication and Media Studies. The interviews were conducted at the offices or homes of interviewees. Each interview ranged from 1 to 2 hours. The data was analysed using thematic analysis.Findings -The findings revealed four main themes, namely 1) Strong general knowledge requirement, 2) the right skills matter, 3)Significance -These findings lend further support to the clarion call for industry and academia to collaborate extensively in nurturing high quality graduates in journalism.