Television station TV3 has cemented its dominance in traditional Malay poetry performance by winning the HAWANA-DBP 2026 Pantun Festival for the second consecutive year, underscoring the medium's continued cultural relevance in Malaysia's media landscape. The competition, held as part of the National Journalists' Day celebrations under the overarching theme of 'Media Integrity Strengthens Credibility', saw the Butterworth-based ceremony attract prominent government figures and media leaders. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim presented the winning prizes at the PICCA Convention Centre @ Butterworth Arena, signalling the government's endorsement of the competition and its significance to the nation's professional journalism community.

TV3's victorious team consisted of Mohammad Nor Affiq Norshamsudin, Mohd Safwan Sawi, Azrin Md Isa, and Mohamed Hirsham Azmi, demonstrating the broadcaster's sustained investment in developing talent capable of excelling in this specialised performance art form. The quartet's success mirrors a broader trend across Malaysian media organisations seeking to demonstrate cultural competency and commitment to traditional art forms alongside contemporary broadcasting. By fielding dedicated pantun teams, media companies effectively signal their role as custodians of Malay cultural expression, an increasingly valuable positioning in discussions about media's responsibilities beyond news and entertainment.

The Malaysian National News Agency (Bernama) secured the runner-up position, a respectable outcome that reflects the state agency's serious engagement with the competition despite finishing behind TV3. Eight teams participated overall, with Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM) placing third and Berita Harian fourth, illustrating how the pantun festival has evolved into a meaningful inter-organisational event within Malaysia's media sector. The geographic spread of participating organisations—spanning public broadcasters, private stations, and print media—demonstrates the competition's reach across different segments of the country's media ecosystem.

Financially, TV3's victory translated into RM3,000 in cash prizes along with a trophy and participation certificates, while Bernama's second-place finish earned the agency RM2,000 with similar accompanying recognition. Beyond the monetary rewards, the competition provided substantial prestige, particularly given the high-profile presentation ceremony attended by Communications Minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil and Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow. Such official attendance elevates the competition beyond an internal media industry event into a cultural occasion endorsed by state apparatus, reinforcing the perceived importance of maintaining traditional art forms within contemporary professional spaces.

Among individual accolades, Bernama's Muhammad Syukri Khairulannuar earned recognition as the Best Pantun Performer, a distinction that acknowledges excellence in delivery and performance quality regardless of overall team outcome. Meanwhile, the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM) garnered the Best Attire Award, highlighting how the competition incorporates aesthetic and cultural presentation elements beyond pure poetic composition. These supplementary awards encourage holistic appreciation of pantun as a cultural practice encompassing costume, presentation style, and performance technique alongside literary merit.

The competition itself took place at Panggung Sari, Kompleks Kraf Kuala Lumpur on May 9, attracting 32 participants across the eight competing teams. The selection of a craft complex venue symbolically connects the competition to Malaysia's broader cultural preservation initiatives, positioning pantun performance within a wider ecosystem of traditional art practices. This spatial choice, separate from typical media industry venues, signals that organisations view pantun excellence as part of their corporate cultural responsibility rather than merely professional entertainment.

TV3 team leader Mohammad Nor Affiq attributed his squad's success to mentorship received from Ahmad Fedtri Yahya, a TV3 host whose encouragement proved instrumental in motivating the team throughout their preparation and competition period. His acknowledgement of this mentoring relationship illustrates how competitive excellence in cultural pursuits often depends on institutional knowledge transfer and senior figures deliberately investing time in developing emerging talent. The team leader's candid admission that he initially felt apprehensive about leading the group humanises the competitive experience and suggests that victory resulted from perseverance rather than assumed dominance.

In his commentary following the result, Nor Affiq expressed gratitude to teammates, family members, and supporters whose encouragement sustained them through their training regimen. This emphasis on collective achievement rather than individual performance reflects cultural values embedded within pantun tradition itself, which frequently celebrates communal harmony and mutual support. The public acknowledgement of family involvement also underscores how cultural competitions in Malaysia often intertwine professional achievement with personal relationships and domestic networks.

Bernama's team leader Muhammad Syukri responded to the runner-up finish by framing it as motivation for future competition cycles, pledging that his organisation would conduct systematic reviews of performance weaknesses and strengthen preparation methodologies. His commitment to learning from defeat and applying those lessons demonstrates the competitive seriousness with which established media organisations approach these cultural contests. Rather than dismissing the pantun festival as peripheral to core broadcasting functions, Bernama positions excellence in traditional poetry performance as an institutional objective worthy of strategic planning and resource allocation.

The HAWANA 2026 festival, organised by the Ministry of Communications with Bernama serving as implementing agency, has positioned itself as Malaysia's premier gathering of media practitioners celebrating professional journalism and cultural competency. The competition's integration within broader HAWANA celebrations ensures that pantun performance receives recognition not as nostalgic cultural tourism but as contemporary practice relevant to modern media professionals. This framing proves particularly significant for emerging journalists and media practitioners who might otherwise view traditional forms as historically important but professionally irrelevant.

The pantun festival's prominence within HAWANA 2026 programming reflects recognition that journalism excellence encompasses cultural literacy and artistic appreciation alongside investigative capability and reporting accuracy. By including pantun competition among primary HAWANA activities rather than as marginal cultural addendum, organisers affirm that media professionals benefit from understanding and practising traditional Malaysian art forms. This positioning aligns with international trends where leading media organisations increasingly emphasise cultural competency as essential to understanding and serving diverse audiences authentically.

For Malaysian readers engaged with media industry developments, the TV3 victory and broader HAWANA pantun competition signal that traditional cultural practices maintain relevance within modernising institutions. Rather than relegating pantun to historical archives or cultural museums, Malaysia's media sector actively integrates it into professional development and inter-organisational competition. This commitment provides encouragement for other cultural forms seeking recognition within institutional contexts and demonstrates how traditional practices can evolve meaningfully alongside contemporary professional environments.