Jakob Oetama

Jakob Oetama
Oetama, c. 1970
Member of the People's Consultative Assembly
In office
1 October 1997 – 7 November 1998
PresidentSuharto
B. J. Habibie
Member of the People's Representative Council
In office
1 February 1967 – 1 October 1977
PresidentSuharto
Personal details
Born(1931-09-27)27 September 1931
Magelang, Dutch East Indies
Died9 September 2020(2020-09-09) (aged 88)
Jakarta, Indonesia
Resting placeKalibata Heroes' Cemetery, Jakarta
Alma materGajah Mada University
OccupationPresident director and founder of kompas daily

Jakob Oetama (27 September 1931 – 9 September 2020) was an Indonesian teacher, journalist, and businessman who was one of the co-founders and owners of Kompas Gramedia Group, the largest media group in Indonesia, together with P. K. Ojong. He has served as President Director of Kompas Gramedia, Advisor to the Central Board of the Indonesian Journalists Association, and Advisor to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Journalists Confederation. He was the recipient of the Honoris causa Doctorate in Communications from Gadjah Mada University and the Mahaputra Utama Star award from President Suharto in 1973.[1][2]

The son of a retired teacher in Sleman, Yogyakarta. His journalistic career began when he became the editor of Penabur Weekly in 1956 and continued with the founding of Intisari magazine in 1963 with P. K. Ojong, who may have been inspired by America's Reader's Digest. Two years later, 28 June 1965, together with P. K. Ojong, Oetama founded the Kompas daily newspaper which he managed until his death.

In the 1980s, the Kompas Gramedia Group began to develop rapidly, especially in the field of communication. In addition, together with Jusuf Wanandi, Muhammad Chudori, Eric Samola, Fikri Jufri, Goenawan Mohamad, and Harmoko, Oetama also co-founded The Jakarta Post, Indonesia's national English daily newspaper.[3]

Oetama died on 9 September 2020, coinciding with Kompas Television's 9th anniversary, at Mitra Keluarga Hospital Kelapa Gading, Jakarta and was interred at the Kompas Gramedia Building. He was given a state funeral on 10 September 2020 at the Kalibata Heroes' Cemetery.[4]

  1. ^ Oetama, Jakob (2001). Berpikir ulang tentang keindonesiaan (in Indonesian). Penerbit Buku Kompas. ISBN 978-979-709-006-7.
  2. ^ Biografi Jako Oetama: Tawarkan Jurnalisme Damai Archived 25 March 2024 at the Wayback Machine, Tokohindonesia.com - Accessed 4 January 2014
  3. ^ "The Jakarta Post, It is trusted, it is credible". The Jakarta Post. Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  4. ^ Times, I. D. N.; Harianja, Axel Joshua. "Jakob Oetama akan Dimakamkan di Taman Makam Pahlawan". IDN Times (in Indonesian). Retrieved 6 October 2021.