Saya menonton berita di saluran itu setiap malam.

Breakdown of Saya menonton berita di saluran itu setiap malam.

itu
that
saya
I
menonton
to watch
berita
the news
di
on
setiap malam
every night
saluran
the channel
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Questions & Answers about Saya menonton berita di saluran itu setiap malam.

What is the difference between saya and aku in this sentence?

Both saya and aku mean I, but they differ in formality and context:

  • saya: neutral–polite, safe in almost all situations (with strangers, in formal writing, at work, on TV, etc.).
  • aku: informal, used with close friends, family, or in very casual contexts (songs, some social media, etc.).

Your sentence:

  • Saya menonton berita di saluran itu setiap malam.
    sounds polite/neutral and is appropriate in most contexts.

A casual version with aku:

  • Aku nonton berita di saluran itu setiap malam.
Why is menonton used instead of melihat or nonton?

All three relate to watching/seeing, but with different nuances and formality:

  • menonton: to watch (actively), esp. TV, movies, shows. More complete and slightly more formal.
  • nonton: colloquial/shortened form of menonton; very common in speech and informal writing.
  • melihat: to see / to look at, more general; not specifically about watching a program.

In this sentence, menonton is natural because you are watching a program (the news) on TV:

  • Saya menonton berita… = I watch the news… (sounds standard/neutral).

Colloquial spoken alternative:

  • Aku nonton berita di saluran itu setiap malam.
Why is there no article like the before berita? How do you say the news?

Indonesian does not use articles like a / an / the, so berita alone can mean news or the news, depending on context.

  • Saya menonton berita… can naturally be understood as I watch the news….

If you really want to be explicit:

  • Saya menonton berita di TV. – I watch the news on TV.
  • Saya menonton siaran berita itu. – I watch that news broadcast. (more specific)
  • Saya menonton acara berita itu. – I watch that news program.

But in most everyday contexts, berita by itself is enough to mean the news.

What exactly does saluran mean here? Is it the same as channel?

Yes, in this context saluran means (TV) channel.

  • saluran TV = TV channel
  • saluran itu = that channel

So di saluran itu means on that channel, just like in English.

Colloquially, people may also say:

  • channel itu (using the English loanword channel)
  • di channel itu – also very common in everyday speech.
What is the function of itu in saluran itu? Does it always mean that?

itu is a demonstrative meaning that (or the with a specific, known reference).

  • saluran = channel
  • saluran itu = that channel / the (specific) channel

Here, itu shows the speaker is talking about a particular channel that both speaker and listener know (e.g., Channel 5, a favorite news channel, etc.).

Yes, itu generally means that, but in many contexts it works like the when referring to a specific known thing.

Can the word order be changed, like Saya setiap malam menonton berita di saluran itu?

Yes. Indonesian word order is quite flexible with time expressions and adverbials. All of these are grammatical:

  • Saya menonton berita di saluran itu setiap malam.
  • Saya setiap malam menonton berita di saluran itu.
  • Setiap malam saya menonton berita di saluran itu.

Differences are mainly about emphasis:

  • Putting setiap malam at the beginning (Setiap malam saya…) emphasizes every night.
  • The original order is very natural and neutral.
Does setiap malam mean a habitual action, like every night (regular habit)?

Yes. setiap malam = every night, and it clearly expresses a habitual action.

So the sentence means the person regularly / habitually watches the news every night, not just tonight.

You can also say:

  • tiap malam – same meaning, a bit shorter and very common.
Could you say di setiap malam instead of setiap malam?

No, not in this meaning.

  • setiap malam (no di) = every night (habitual/frequency).
  • di is a location preposition, not used before setiap for time frequency like this.

You might see di malam hari = at night, but for every night, use setiap malam (or tiap malam) without di:

  • Saya menonton berita setiap malam.
  • Saya menonton berita di setiap malam. ❌ (unnatural for this meaning)
Can Saya be omitted here, like Menonton berita di saluran itu setiap malam?

In casual speech, yes, you might hear the subject dropped if it’s clear from context, but:

  • As a full, standalone sentence, it’s more natural to keep Saya.
  • Menonton berita di saluran itu setiap malam. on its own sounds like a fragment or a note (e.g., in a diary or list).

So:

  • For proper sentences (especially in writing): Saya menonton berita…
  • In very casual conversation, after the subject is already clear, you might hear something like:
    (Saya) tiap malam nonton berita di saluran itu.
Is Saya menonton berita di saluran itu setiap malam formal, casual, or neutral?

It is neutral–polite:

  • saya – polite/neutral pronoun
  • menonton – standard verb form
  • no slang

You can use it:

  • in conversation with strangers
  • in class or at work
  • in written Indonesian (e.g., exercises, simple texts)

A more casual version for friends:

  • Aku nonton berita di channel itu tiap malam.
Why is di used before saluran itu? Could you use another preposition?

di is the standard preposition for location:

  • di saluran itu = on that channel
  • Literally: at / in that channel, but in English we say on.

Other prepositions:

  • pada – more formal, often used in writing or before abstract nouns.
    Here, pada saluran itu would sound too stiff for everyday conversation.
  • keto (direction), not correct here.

So di saluran itu is the natural and correct choice.

Does berita here mean one specific news program, or news in general?

berita by itself is somewhat general; it can mean:

  • the news program (as a regular TV news show)
  • news as content

In this sentence, with menonton and di saluran itu, the most natural interpretation is:

  • I watch the (TV) news on that channel every night.
    i.e., a regular news program.

If you want to specify that it’s a particular program/bulletin, you can say:

  • acara berita itu – that news program
  • program berita itu – that news program
  • siaran berita itu – that news broadcast

Example:

  • Saya menonton acara berita itu di saluran itu setiap malam. – I watch that news program on that channel every night.
Is it possible to move di saluran itu to the beginning, like Di saluran itu saya menonton berita setiap malam?

Yes, that is grammatical and natural:

  • Di saluran itu saya menonton berita setiap malam.

This word order:

  • emphasizes that channel first, then tells what you do there.
  • is similar to English: On that channel, I watch the news every night.

All these are fine, with slightly different emphasis:

  • Saya menonton berita di saluran itu setiap malam. (neutral)
  • Di saluran itu saya menonton berita setiap malam. (emphasis on the channel)
  • Setiap malam saya menonton berita di saluran itu. (emphasis on every night)