AUSTIN SZABO WRITES: When you want to know the economics of a country, you usually look at its gross domestic product — the amount of wealth it produced over the course of a year. But GDP tells only part of the story; it leaves out how the wealth is distributed.…
Category: Singapore
LOS ANGELES: Hong Kong – “New York in a Chinese Fortune Cookie”
The following interview with Asia Media founder and editor in chief Tom Plate was conducted by G. Bruce Smith of the firm of SMITH WRITING & PR in Culver City, California (http://www.smith-writing-pr.com). The occasion is the U.S. release of Professor Plate’s new book IN THE MIDDLE OF THE FUTURE (Marshall…
SINGAPORE: ‘The Era of E-Asia Has Dawned’
From Our Friends at the influential Asia Media Information and Communication Centre in Singapore comes the announcement of the 2014 Asia media conference, to be held next year in Thailand (domestic events permitting…). The announcement: “Globally, the last decade has seen exponential growth in the use of mobile technologies and…
SINGAPORE: Six Years a Stalker
STEPHANIE GARCIA WRITES – It has been said “imitation is the highest form of flattery.” Perhaps stalking is second highest? And the new frontier seems to be taking place on the cyber highways. Sure, stalkers may be a problem that has existed since the dawn of civilization, but Web avenues…
SINGAPORE: Un-Neighborly Brawl Goes Facebook Viral
STEPHANIE GARCIA WRITES – There are all types of neighbors, ones that lend a cup of sugar, ones whose names we never learn, and ones who play their music loudly. Of course, the worst of all are the ones who play their music loudly and then physically abuse their elderly…
SINGAPORE: Malaysia Only Wants to be Friends in Secret
STEPHANIE GARCIA WRITES – As Singapore’s president, Dr. Tony Tan Keng Yam, made his first diplomatic visit to neighboring Malaysia, Singapore news outlets stressed the importance of a strengthened relationship, while Malaysia sang a better-off-without-you tune in its own media. The Straits Times and Singapore-based Channel News Asia stressed the value…
SINGAPORE: Thoughts about Lee Kuan Yew at 90
TOM PLATE WRITES – Lee Kuan Yew, whom I first interviewed in 1996, was always a terrific interview and if you ask Western journalists how many public figures they can say this of, you may be surprised at how few they name. But I cannot think of one journalist who…
SINGAPORE: Evangelizing Comes at a High Cost
STEPHANIE GARCIA WRITES – What could be more scandalous than a pop star, a church, and alleged embezzlement between the two? A “second coming” of “The Messiah” threatening to reveal all the dirty details of the so-called “hidden agenda.” On Monday, September 2, pop star Ho Yeow Sunʼs official website…
SINGAPORE: One Man’s View Receives Mixed Reviews
STEPHANIE GARCIA WRITES – The world weighs in as the Father of Modern Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew, shares his most pugnacious opinions in his latest book. One Man’s View of the World, a fitting title for a book whose author single handedly took a nation from rags to riches, was…
SINGAPORE: National Family ‘Pledge’ Notably Omits Single Parents and LGBT
STEPHANIE GARCIA WRITES – Singapore values family … but only if your family includes two parents, one mother and one father. On July 30, Minister for Social and Family Development Chan Chun Sing introduced the nation’s first family pledge at a luncheon for those who participated in last month’s National…
SINGAPORE: Author Sows Seeds for a Better Future
SHAMINI FLINT WRITES TO US FROM HER HOME IN SINGAPORE – Like many of you, I caught the environmental bug some time back. I belatedly realised that our lifestyles are unsustainable and our children are going to inherit the mess. In a panic, I began to write books (printed on recycled/sustainable…
SINGAPORE: SAF Joins Forces to Create ‘Cyber Army’
STEPHANIE GARCIA WRITES – Gone are the days when warfare was contained on a physical battlefield. Netizens beware — cyberspace is the new frontier. On July 1, Defense Minister Ng Eng Hen announced the creation of the Cyber Defense Operations Force Hub, a collaboration between web security specialists of the…
ART SPOTLIGHT: Kris Soguilon Emphasizes Our Similarities with Pomp, Circumstance and a Dash of Sex
The artist’s take on his work: “A sense of fusion may emerge from a multiracial society even as each individual culture manifests its own uniqueness. Cultures may clash, but the differences also draw together in a particular way to present perspectives peculiar to the mix, as can be enjoyed in London, New York and Singapore. The spectator who steps back to look at the differences may encounter the experience of an elaborate celebration.” […]
SINGAPORE: New MDA Regulations Have Web Users Up in Arms
STEPHANIE GARCIA WRITES -The Singapore government just made it a lot harder for small news outfits to do their jobs. But netizens refuse to go down without a fight. On May 28 the Media Development Agency (MDA) enacted new Internet regulations on news sites. Under the rules, sites that regularly…
SINGAPORE: Supervisor’s Temper Tantrum Goes Viral
STEPHANIE GARCIA WRITES – Temper tantrums are only socially acceptable during childhood. After that, they tend to draw police involvement and viral disapproval. A YouTube video posted May 17 of a supervisor physically abusing an intern sparked a media frenzy over the weekend, ultimately compelling the 29-year-old victim to come…
SINGAPORE: Can’t Take a Joke?
STEPHANIE GARCIA WRITES- Cartoons are typically humorous, but Leslie Chew is hardly laughing since being charged with sedition for his “racially insensitive” comic strip. The 37 year old may face up to $5,000 in fines and three years jail time if he is found guilty of violating Section 298 of…