Soy Sopheap
Soy Sopheap, 44, is the owner and director of DAP Media Center which runs Deum Ampil Daily Newspaper, Deum Ampil Radio Station, Deum Ampil News Website, and the Looking Today online magazine. In addition to these media outlets, Soy Sopheap is also a shareholder of Fresh News, an online news website and app, whose contents are similar to DAP News’ [DAP Media Center, 2015].
Born in 1972 (officially 1974) in Phnom Penh, Sopheap started his career as a journalist in 1993, after the general election organized by UNTAC, aiming at interacting with political leaders.
In 1994, Sopheap, co-founded Moneakseka Khmer, an opposition newspaper which is now owned by a CNRP lawmaker Dam Sith, and worked there for ten years. Between 1994 and 2005, also worked for two others opposition newspapers as well: Samleng Youveachun Khmer, and Oudom Keate Khmer. From 1994 to 1997, he also worked for Cambodia Today, a newspaper ran by Malaysian businessman T. Mohan, who currently owns The Khmer Times. He was also an assistant to Ieng Moly, Cambodia’s former Minister of Information.
In 1997, he started to work as a news correspondent for Japan’s news agency Kyodo, and founded the Deum Ampil newspaper in 2006, together with a group of journalists. Three years later, he started Deaum Ampil Radio station and Deum Ampil online news website and formed Deum Ampil Media Center.
In October 2003, he started working at CTN as news anchor and commentator, where he gained popularity for his reports on sensitive issues such as land disputes. This is where he got his close links to the office of the Prime Minister. He started to play a political role in 2006, as [he helped negotiate for the release of five imprisoned civil society leaders and the return of Sam Rainsy from exile. Since then, he has been accused of political bias, received death threats and sued for his comments on TV.
In October 2008, he abruptly resign from CTN after he was banned from reporting inside the studio, but continued to work there until late 2010.
In 2011, he started to work at Bayon TV as a news analyst. He is also a vice president of Panha Chiet University responsible for scholarship and internal relation and deputy secretary general of Golden Rice Association.
Soy Sopheap lives in Phnom Penh. He has married 4 times and has a son.
Further Information
Sources
Email correspondence with Deum Ampil Media Center (available upon request).