The rise of social media has transformed the way people communicate and has proven instrumental in propagating the United States of America’s (USA) soft power across the globe.

But first, let us define our….

Scope

Singapore, with its export-driven economy and cosmopolitan populace receptive to American influence, has long integrated the latest technologies from the USA. This blog seeks to examine this impact of social media, in particular social networking sites (SNS) and weblogs, in Singapore’s context.

Social Media are primarily Internet-based tools for sharing and discussing information with other people. The term most often refers to activities that integrate technology, social interaction, and the construction of words, pictures, videos and audio. This interaction, and the manner in which information is presented, depends on the varied perspectives and “building” of shared meaning among communities, as people share their stories and experiences. – Wikipedia (What better source than one formulated by the web-based community itself?)

Social Network Sites

Boyd and Ellison (2007) define social network sites as “web-based services that allow individuals to

(1) construct a public or semi-public profile within a bounded system,

(2) articulate a list of other users with whom they share a connection, and

(3) view and traverse their list of connections and those made by others within the system.”

Blogs

Weblogs (or blogs) are a type of online diary that the blog’s owner updates with commentaries, description of events, graphics or videos.

Today, many examples of SNSs exist, including Facebook, Myspace and micro-blogging site Twitter. Likewise, WordPress and Blogger are popular blog-hosting platforms.

References:

boyd, d. m., & Ellison, N. B. (2007). Social network sites: Definition, history, and scholarship. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 13(1), article 11. http:// jcmc.indiana.edu/vol13/issue1/boyd.ellison.html

A long, long time ago, in a cyber galaxy far away, there were:

The Well (1985) and Geocities (1994)

And the Force was with them, enabling them to connect people from across the world through chat rooms and allowing you to create your very own webpage for that school project your elementary school teacher assigned you to do.

Slowly and gradually, the  Social Networking Sites began to rise. It started with Friendster, followed by Myspace and then Bebo. By 2005 however, Myspace had eclipsed the other two SNSs, rising to become the Evil Empire of Myspace.

In a distance,on the same continent of USA, not too far away from the Empire’s headquarters of Beverly Hills, in one of the best Jedi Academies in the USA, a young Mark Elliot Zuckerberg was working on an invention which would soon challenge the pre-dominance of the Evil Empire. Known as Facebook, this social networking site was initially shared amongst the members of the Harvard Jedi Academy. However, it’s call for freedom proved to be extremely popular and in 2006, starting with the top Ivy League Jedi Academies, the Force soon spread to the rest of the world.It has since become the largest and fastest growing site in the world, not limited by particular geographical followings (Social graph-iti, 2008). Even the Evil Empire of Myspace was no match for Facebook…

In a near distance, another development was shaping up…

A Bird called Twit was struck with the Force! Ever since then, it hasn’t stopped Twittering, infecting many of those who have heard it ‘Tweet’ with a disease called ‘Twitter’.

Alright, that was just my crazy imagination, nothing of that sort occurred…for the real, boring history stuff, read the following:

Remember The WELL (1985) and Geocities (1994)??? These were the ancient online communities from which earliest networking sites originated from. They connected people via chat rooms and personal homepages.

These eventually gave rise to the SNSs (which rose in popularity between 2002 and 2004) and blogs (which rose in popularity in 1999). First, there was Friendster, then, Myspace, and finally Bebo. By 2005, Myspace, emergent as the biggest of them all, was reportedly getting more views than Google. 2004 saw the emergence of Facebook, a competitor, also growing rapidly in size (Steve, 2005).

Facebook founder Mark Elliot Zuckerberg

In 2006, Facebook opened up to the non US college community, and together with allowing externally-developed add-on applications, and some applications enabled the graphing of a user’s own social network – thus linking social networks and social networking, became the largest and fastest growing site in the world, not limited by particular geographical followings (Social graph-iti, 2008). Twitter, founded in 2006, has has recently (2009) eclipsed many other social network services and although lacking in some of what were considered the essential aspects of a SNS, has allowed add-on services to connect and supply these services via its public API. (Arrington, 2008)

References:

“Social graph-iti”: Facebook’s social network graphing: article from The Economist’s website. Retrieved on January 19, 2008.

Steve Rosenbush (2005). News Corp.’s Place in MySpace, BusinessWeek, July 19, 2005. (MySpace Page Views figures)

SNSs and blogs have accelerated the transfer of American culture and values into the pre-dominantly Asian culture of Singapore and here’s why: SNSs and blogs are essentially tools of individualistic expressions. These social networking tools appeal to the Asian sense of collectivism in community: Myspace’s slogan, for instance, is “a place for friends”; Facebook purports to help you “connect and share with the people in your life”; and Twitter is “a service for friends, family, and co-workers to communicate and stay connected.” Users might indeed be plugged into the wider blogsphere via links to friends’ blogs or linked to numerous other netizens via Facebook groups but by promoting individual-to-individual connections, these social networking tools are essentially platforms for self-expression and ultimately promote the American value of individualism. The glorification of celebrity bloggers, the likes of Perez Hilton and closer to home, Xiaxue, who are able to command a strong online following through their opinionated postings and liberal viewpoints have galvanised users to air their thoughts and even sensationalise postings – something unheard of and frowned upon just a decade ago in Singapore. Over Facebook, a similar occurrence can be likewise observed, with users exhorted to customize their profiles and stake out clear positions on issues like politics in their status.

References:

Peter Aquilia, May 2005, Endangered Genre: English-Language Television Drama in Singapore, Media International Australia incorporating Culture and Policy, No.115.

Wong, K.K. 2001, Media And Culture in Singapore: A Theory of Controlled Commodification, Hapton Press, Creskill, NJ.

General Elections

Social media was a celebrated tool during the U.S. 2008 Presidential Elections and was instrumental in generating publicity, raising funds and mobilizing supporters for the presidential candidates. And no candidate successfully exploited the social media more so than the winner himself – current President Barack Obama. Through his official website, social networking sites, emails and blogs, Barack Obama’s campaign successfully accomplished the four core tasks: to inform, involve, connect and mobilize (Kanakara, 2008). A slew of witty political advertisements were employed to promote the candidate’s policies and criticise that of his opponent’s.

Singapore’s own 2006 General Election, however, was a stark contrast to the vibrant social media scene in USA. Political podcasting and streaming video feeds were banned and political blogs were required to be registered with the Media Development Authority (Sumner, 2006). These regulations were hardly conducive to the utilization of social media tools by opposition parties during the 2006 General Elections. Nevertheless, this was not to say that Singaporeans were cowed into shunning social media tools. On the contrary, blogs that posted political commentary, especially those that staked out a position opposing the People’s Action Party, gained in popularity during this period. Blogs such as TheOnlineCitizen, Intelligent Singaporean (Do refer to earlier blog post on ‘Journalism’ for the links) and even satirical blogs such as Mr. Brown, represented an alternative points of view ignored by the mainstream media.

Who says we aren’t interested in the elections? The one in USA!

The casual spectator might conclude that these could hardly be compared to the magnitude and intensity of the political blogging scene in USA. Such an assessment is undoubtedly true; we might not have a Bill O’Reilly or Rush Limbaugh in Singapore but these are signs of free speech, which Americans value enough to make it a part of their First Amendment.

Fox Tv’s Rush Limbaugh

Cherian George (2007) has suggested that SNSs could be used in the during the General Elections to get around the Parliamentary Elections (Election Advertising) Regulations (PER) current restrictions on using email to spread campaign messages. These platforms introduce you to friends of friends in a way that doesn’t seem to be captured by the PER, which was formulated back in 2001. Furthermore, what is technically being passed around is not a campaign message but the electronic version of a business card, which again falls outside the scope of the PER. However this particular type of business card can be linked to substantive content, including campaign ads. (Cherian, 2007). I am of the opinion that such an occurrence might just be possible. This is especially so since the ban on political videos was eased last year (CNA, 2008), freeing up podcasts and videocasts of political nature. It is interesting to note that Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong decided to lift the ban during the same period in which the U.S. 2008 Presidential campaign was running. Another interesting point would be that Prime Minister Lee has his own Facebook profile, although it remains to be seen as to whether he would utilize his online persona to good effect during the next General Elections.

PM Lee Hsien Loong at the 2008 National Day Rally

As since from the above-mentioned examples, social media tools have empowered ordinary Singaporeans, enabling them to articulate alternative viewpoints, that might otherwise not have been covered by a pro-government media, to the masses (Terence, 2004). In doing so, it has freedom of speech, a prominent feature central to American ideology.

References:

Cherian George, 12 Sep 2007, Election Regulations vs Social Networking, retrieved from http://singaporemedia.blogspot.com/.

Kanakara Navasartian, May 2008, Digging For Votes: An Analysis of 2008 Presidential Candidates’ use of New Media, University of Southern California.

Sumner Lemon, 4 April 2006, “Podcasts to be banned during Singapore election. Government minister also cautions bloggers about discussing politics”, IDGNS, retrieved from http://www.infoworld.com/t/applications/podcasts-be-banned-during-singapore-election-622.

Channel NewsAsia, 18 Aug 2008, Singapore to ease ban on political videos, public demonstrations.

The local mass media has long been criticized for being pro-government (Terence, 2004) and indeed, state leaders have repeatedly echoed Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew’s credo that the media’s role is to act as the government’s mouthpiece (Leo and Lee, 2004; Birch, 1993). What this often means for Singapore is that dissenting voices, even those of prominent figures, are systematically ignored.

A case-in-point is that of how Catherine Lim, Singapore’s best-selling fiction actor and a French Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters, received an ‘out-of-bounds marker’ by then Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong in 1994. This took place after Catherine Lim wrote two political commentaries titled “The PAP and the people – A Great Affective Divide” which suggested a division in Singaporeans attitudes towards the People’s Action Party government and ‘One Government, Two Styles” which speculated about the possibility for a clash of ideologies within the ruling party itself. Following the rebuke by then Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong, the local media refused to carry further articles written by Catherine Lim. This proved to be an effective gag a decade ago. Fast forward to 2006, a politically revitalised Catherine Lim once again wanted to make her views heard. Unable to get her articles published in the national newspapers, she decided to start up a blog of her own.

Bloggers over the years have likewise raised issues that have forced the government to clarify certain policies, thereby leadingto greater transparency. One such blogger was junior college student Gayle Goh. Unsatisfied with the response given by Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, over a talk he gave at her school on Singapore’s foreign policy, she decided to blog her thoughts. Her comments caught on with the local student population and were eventually picked up by the local media. The government, acknowledging the intellectual credibility of her argument, decided to publicly address the points she had raised – a first in Singapore.

With the advent of blogs, it would seem that even Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong was held up to scrutiny, albeit in a light-hearted manner. A slip-up made by the Prime Minister, when he mispronounced the word ‘Mai Hiam’ (Which means without chilli in Hokkein) as ‘Mai Hum’ (Which means without cockles in Hokkein) when citing an analogy of ordering Mee Siam (a local cuisine of rice noodles) from a hawker, was turned into a high-popular satirical podcast made by Mr. Brown.

Check out the video (made from the original Mr. Brown podcast over the Mr. Brown blog):

This was simply because cockles aren’t even an ingredient in the Mee Siam dish. What the Prime Minister probably wanted to say was Laksa (a delicious local dish of thick rice noodles served in a spicy, coconut-based soup), which contained cockles.

Cockles

are supposed to be in this…

Not this Mr Prime Minister!

As we have seen…In each of these cases, bloggers utilized the mass appeal and reach of blogs to bypass limitations imposed by the traditional to express themselves. This resulted in two developments: Increased transparency and accountability. Public officials know that their speeches are being carefully scrutinised by the public and could easily be refuted if their claims were inaccurate.

References:

Birch, D. (1993) Singapore Media: communication strategies and practices, Melbourne: Longman Cheshire.

Leo, P. and Lee,T. (2004) ‘The economies and politics of “creativity” in Singapore’, International Journal of Cultural Policy, 10(3): 281-99.

Terence Lee, 9 Dec 2004, Industrializing Creativity And Innovation, Cultural Studies Association of Australasia’s (CSAA) annual conference.

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BOOMZ!!!

Oh yeah, it’s former Miss Singapore World 2009, Miss Ris Low. She became the most well-known pageant winner after an unflattering video of an interview conducted with her was uploaded onto STOMP, The Straits Times integrated blog cum online forum portal. As a result of the unfavourable publicity, Ris Low had to endure a considerable amount of mockery for her poor command of the English language. Being inexpensive, social media has allowed videos once considered un-newsworthy by the traditional media to be uploaded onto a platform for public viewing.

The video:

And just when you thought it was all over…She has started her own website http:// rislow.sg which features quite a few photographs of her in seductive poses.  One smart girl who makes good use of social media, probably gearing to become the next Xiaxue. Besides, at the rate she’s coining out new words (which according to a recent interview, she immensely enjoys doing), she could probably publish Singapore’s very own Dictionary: Ris Low version!

Remember him?

This guy used to be my No.1 idol (until Ris Low took over). A Season 3 American Idol reject, he transformed into an overnight sensation with a cult following. And all these started over the social media.Videos of his audition spread like wildfire across video sharing sites and blogs, eventually landing him a contract to hammer out his own album of ‘She Bangs’ songs.

Like Ris Low, he has his very own website and online store selling William Hung Mercandise and oh wait, autographed photos of himself for just US$9.90!

Want A Piece Of Me?

While this has increased the variety of entertainment sources for the public and propelled some individuals into national celebrities overnight, we need to ask ourselves whether we are potentially promoting a tabloid culture locally. A tabloid culture panders to the voyeur in all of us. Gossiping and being ‘kaypoh’ (the local vernacular for busybody), are hardly unique to any particular civilisation or era. However, such a culture also raises the pertinent question of whether one’s privacy is being intruded upon. Over STOMP’s interactive website, users, also known as STOMPers, are encouraged to post video recordings of public or private life under ‘Singapore Seen’ and ‘DIY Video’. SNSs have similarly contributed to this tabloid culture. SNSs users reveal snippets of their thoughts that are broadcast to all their contacts and through photographs and videos uploaded onto their profile page by themselves or others. All these information are made public, with every intention to showcase aspects of their personal life.

The tabloid culture has long been enshrined in the USA media industry, with the penny papers, the first newpapers made available to the masses, being tabloid in nature (Source – Chapter 11: A press for the masses). This has manifested itself in recent years in the form of bloggers Perez Hilton and website TMZ which revolve around the celebrity industry. Singapore’s ‘DIY Video’ could also have found an inspiration in Lonelygirl15, in which a series of homemade videos of fictional character Bree, played by American-New Zealand actress Jessica Rose, were uploaded onto video sharing website Youtube. While the local tabloid scene has hardly been a vibrant one, the social media, functioning as a vector for tabloid culture from the USA, could potentially alter the Singaporean tabloid landscape.

1) SNSs addiction.

2) Cyber-bullying

Are you addicted?

Need some medication?

Internet addiction is on the rise in Singapore and psychologists have identified that the combination of social networking groups and interesting online games are precisely what is getting young people addicted. They cited how many young people stay on social networks like Facebook all day because they want to stay connect with their network of friends through updates on the site. (The Straits Times, 2008).

There is even an application on Facebook to calculate how addicted you are! And the results are…

As a heavy user of Facebook myself, I couldn’t have agreed more. The attraction of this social networking site lies in its ability to connect friends through various applications and multi-player games that often demand interaction with others. Someone might decide to comment on a photo, like a friend’s comment or compete to get the highest score in a particular game. Each of these actions demands a response, either from the recipient or from other friends on their contact lists, making these SNSs highly addictive. This might interfere with the student’s academic pursuits and other aspects of his or her social life. In fact, addicts, who have been known to turn on those who try to obstruct them from playing their game, often display violence (The Straits Times, 2008). Personally, I believe that in educating young people on the dangers of SNS addiction, it is essential to use a combination of rationale, to appeal to the individual’s common sense, as well as force, when appealing to the individual’s common sense fails to evoke the desired behaviour. Based on personal experience, individuals under the influence of internet addiction usually engage in self-justification of their accused behaviours or self-denial that they are addicts. Hence, force is often necessary to regulate the individual’s internet usage. This can be done not by instituting a complete withdrawal from internet usage but rather, by stipulating a time limit as to long the individual can use the computer. This might of course, be a bit more challenging now that SNSs are accessible over the mobile phone. All this means that government agencies and parents have to start early when the child is young and coordinate their efforts in the character building process such that children are aware of the dangers of the internet addiction. Parents should likewise monitor internet usage of their children.

References:

The Straits Times, 4 Dec 2008, Internet Addiction Cases Up.

Another trend educators have identified in Singapore is that of an increase in cyber-bullying. According to the latest report (The Straits Times, 2008 http://digital.asiaone.com/Digital/Features/Story/A1Story20080312-54069.html), Singapore has the second highest number of reports of cyber-bullying per capita after the USA, or about an estimated 25 percent of the student population. Cyber-bullying can be employed to maximum effect through the usage of SNSs and blogs, where students ‘flame’ (to criticise or insult) the desired victims, make threats, stalk the victim through the sending of incessant messaging, creating fake identities and using them to manipulate others or upload videos of a victim be group-slapped.

Take 18-year old Michelle Quek, who was flamed for posting personal and revealing pictures of herself on her blog. Unable to take the torrent of insults, she decided to make a police report.

Michelle was visibly affected by cyber-bullying:

“These people have gone too far with their abuse of my photos and defacing of my blog.” -Michelle

“Will I get into trouble outside because lots of people now know how I look?” she asked The New Paper in an interview.

http://digital.asiaone.com/Digital/News/Story/A1Story20080313-54254.html

Cyber-bullying was under the spotlight in the USA in 2007 when Megan Meier committed suicide after being dumped by her fake online ‘boyfriend’. Ms Lori Drew, a mother from a Missouri suburb had posed as a boy online and befriended Megan Meier, who had a fall out with her daughter. She then took Megan on an emotional roller-coaster ride before dumping Megan. Unable to bear the humiliation, Megan took her life.

Her story spark questions about a nation-wide debate on cyber-bullying and the law. According to the New York Times, the main perpetrator, Ms Lori Drews, was initially not charged for committing the act of cyber-bullying. (Source:http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/04/us/04suicide.html)

Law to regulate social media use

However, the ensuing public outcry resulted in the revision of the law:

National Briefing / Midwest; Missouri: Cyber-bullying Law is Signed

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Published: July 1, 2008

Gov. Matt Blunt signed a bill outlawing cyberbullying in a ceremony just miles from where a 13-year-old girl committed suicide nearly two years ago after being harassed on the Internet. The bill updates state laws against harassment by removing the requirement that the communication be written or over a telephone. Supporters say the bill now covers harassment from computers, text messages and other electronic devices

(Source: http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C01E3D6123DF932A35754C0A96E9C8B63)

Watch the clip:

It would appear that the ill effects of social media are not culture based, since social media has brought to fruition similar situations in both USA and Singapore. That being the case, it is essential that individuals are quipped with the necessary knowledge to take the appropriate action should they encounter cyber-bullying in addition to the guidance of a mature adult.

Individuals and corporations are able to generate incomes in two ways: via advertising revenue or sales of a product or service as a result of marketing. The first method is a more direct source of income and is most commonly employed by renowned bloggers. A case in point would be Singaporean blogger Wendy Cheng, who goes by the online moniker of ‘Xiaxue’.

Recognised in the local blogosphere as the doyenne of blogs, she gained national attention after she criticized a handicapped man who scolded an able-bodied man for trying to use the handicapped toilet (The Straits Times, 2005). Putting her celebrity status to good effect, she has since charged companies for advertising space on her blog through the use of online banners or one-off advertorials, in which she would do a write-up on the product, often posting pictures of herself posing with the product. From technological gadgets to plastic surgery, she has covered them all.

The second method involves earning money via the sales of products or services. In this method, social media is used are a marketing platform to spread the message and contact information about a product. This works best when viral marketing is employed such that awareness is generated by word-of-mouth. A case-in-point would be Street Labels, a Facebook group created by a friend of mine, Andy Zheng. Visitors to his Facebook group can browse the hip-hop inspired clothing with a mere click of the button and Andy’s contact information is readily available on the main page of the Facebook group.

In my conversation with Andy, I asked him how Facebook has contributed to his business. His reply: “As a student, I want to earn some pocket money but can’t afford (the time) to actively market the shirts I’m selling. Besides, traditional forms of advertising are expensive. Setting up a Facebook group is free, low maintenance, and is there on the web 24/7.”

Check out his Facebook group at:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=125880223616

Indeed, with its relatively low start-up cost, Facebook provides a platform for local entrepreneurs to market their products.

The underlying ideological American value here is capitalism and its sidekick, consumerism. A case-in-point is Jason Sadler, a former marketing professional from Florida set up his own company in New York last year. Going by the website of ww.iwearyourshirt.com, his idea is to wear a T-shirt supplied by any company and then use social media tools to promote the firm. In addition to this, he sells monthly sponsorships for US$1,500. All these brought his income to US$83,000 this year, more than double the average US wage (Reuters, 2009). Once again, social network platforms have served to spread the American ideology of free and open markets by empowering the players, ordinary Singaporeans, with inexpensive access to a mass market.

References:

Reuters, 7 Nov 2009, “Billboard Advertising Suits Him To A T”.

The Straits Times, Sunday Times, 6 Nov 2005, “Toilet Blog Whips Up More Stink”.