VII – Colour me Red, White. Ah heck, Blue too.
Just take a look at the TV schedule for this weekend.
Media imperialism refers to the one-way, non-reciprocal flow of information and cultural influence in the international media environment, which embodies cultural domination of the ‘Third World’ by the West [Wang, 1997, p.15]. It was argued that the expansion of US media economy and culture to other countries resulted in the imposition of US values onto other cultures and the displacement of local tradition. Such a trend is especially rapid with the proliferation of modern communications technologies [Wang, 1997, p.16].
World’s Most Extreme Homes. Simply Delicioso. The Doctors. The Rachael Ray Show. Air Buddies. So You Think You Can Dance. Ocean’s Thirteen.
What do they all have in common? They’re all “imported” shows! Just looking across the board, how many locally produced shows are on? Other than the usual prime time news and a single Sports@SG, our media have been monopolised by external influences and its dominance, especially from the US.
However, the government is concerned about how these American products may affect our own Singaporean culture. Singapore is a multicultural society, which has resulted in a mass media that have to represent a variety of ethnic cultures and languages, already balancing on such a thin line between the myriad of cultures, another external influence may result in conflicts in the society.
Why this cause for concern?
Marshall McLuhan developed the theory that the medium is the message. He focused on how we perceive media messages by looking not only at the content of the message itself, but at how the message was delivered, or its form. For media, people often only notice the content of the media (a speech on radio, a comedy on television, etc.), but not the media that transmit the messages. McLuhan believed that the medium itself influences how we perceive that medium’s messages. And our government belief that whatever is shown on television will be taken up entirely by the audience through the hypodermic needle (Powerful Effects Theory: Believe that the audience is passive, and that the media is injecting information and rules about desired behaviour into a mass audience who would react in the appropriate manner), hence this fear of it being culturally dangerous. Thus, the government have set up barriers to filter and censor what comes on our televisions.
In a capitalistic country such as Singapore, what is the real purpose of the media in the society? Is its role to inform and for enjoyment, or is there a hidden underlying agenda such as to make a profit? Why the shrinking number of media providers through mergers and cross ownership? Is the liberalisation of Singapore’s media the result of relaxing morality or again, for economic reasons?
And with that, I bid you all farewell, I hope you have enjoyed this blog the last couple of weeks. Tis the end. thetonguegetssharper.
Sources:
Channel 5: MediaCorp TV ~ http://5.mediacorptv.sg/default.aspx
Research Paper: Film & Television In Singapore – Economic Development & Media Policies ~ http://www.geocities.com/adeylim/research.html
Wang, J (1997) ‘Global Media and Cultural Change’. Media Asia. Vol 24 No 1
in my opinion, our government views media influence through the magic bullet theory so as to prepare for the worst. they realise the uproar and chaos should media be left unchecked and solely up to private firms. especially for a country like Singapore where many cultures mix around, sensitivity have to be strictly observed. any slight tilt in the media could cause misunderstandings to happen, thus the strict control over our media.
clown
October 25, 2009 at 11:05 pm
Well I would think the people are “matured” enough to sort out what’s right and wrong and be culturally sensitive.
I’m sorry but I think the government is treating the people as “babies”.
Aloysius
November 8, 2009 at 10:14 pm
the media holds a huge role in shaping the society of a country. imagine if there was only 1 solitary channel which only showed programmes that portray violence. my assumption here would be that the country would turn out to be one that is in unrest or faces internal rife.
thats where the importance of censorship comes into play. the singapore government has done a very good job in censoring content which they deem as inappropriate. albeit, sometimes too good a job. yes, i agree with ‘clown’ that the govt shud b sensitive to the diverse cultures in our country. but when grown up adults are concerned, i believe that the amount of censorship should be reduced. i assume grown ups to possess the ability to discern between what is right and what is wrong. what is true and what is fictitious. also, over-censorship sometimes takes away the main essence that a show was supposed to depict.
dwayne
October 25, 2009 at 11:19 pm
Exactly my point Dwayne!
We’re grown ups!
Stop treating us as children!
Aloysius
November 8, 2009 at 10:16 pm
The real purpose of our media, is to act as a government mouthpiece. With that some people easily label our local daily as “The Sycophantic Times”. Yet, this is to ensure stability within the society. Nothing too sedious gets printed, lest an uproar occurs.
However, the bad thing is, earnest feedback is bounced into the drain. A lack of consumer choices dictate what they want us to see/watch/hear. Coming back, with this occurence, imperialism is unlikely to form here. No doubt a large number of timeslots goes to foreign shows, but is there really a dominant American culture here? Certainly not. Furthermore, a wide variety of shows from other parts of the world do get aired on other channels (eg, Korean, Japanese).
Meaning to say, western cultures are easy to follow but difficult to adopt, which spells why imprerialism have not taken root. It is just a common tool for socialisation, but will not become a stage for us.
Secondly, by the time the state media censors anything left for us, it is already a “half-culture” for us to follow. Which makes imperialism harder to grow. …
Hence, imperialism is nothing but a hoax.
Shawn
October 25, 2009 at 11:32 pm
I guess sometimes we, human being, just wanna look like those “WOW” people that in media mostly is being pictured that western countries, cultures seem so interesting to be followed.
We now that in Singapore if you dnt have cable vision (Hope I dnt specify in any brand wif ths words) you just gonna have channels from MediaCorp.
Everything is about what they’ve planned to fit into their agenda. Sometimes too, it’s quite obvious that they also need helps (hihi, here I mean tht they sometimes repeat the same show fr quite number)..
But basically, I guess no matter how people try to influence you, yourself need the integrity to choose whether you should adapt those thing into your world or not wisely.
s.gunawan
October 26, 2009 at 10:00 pm
Yes, i agree that mass media has a huge influence on audiences. Its content and style do affect how people perceive things and stuff. That is why, there is something called censorship, to a large amounts being controlled in this country. Large amounts or too little of censorship has different effects on the population.
Cultural differences more often than not, makes certain programmes unsuitable for airing in Singapore.
Henry
October 26, 2009 at 10:02 pm
I agree that US tv shows and dramas are dominating the tv scene in Singapore. I would say that having more of US tv programmes over the local tv programmes can have benefits as well as its disadvantages. Whether the benefits outweigh the disadvantages or vice versa, it all boils down to our personal perception towards it. Parents are encouraged to educate their child as they watch these US tv shows to maintain the required behaviours of teenagers. On the other hand, Mediacorp could produce more interesting tv shows instead of relying more of the US tv content since majority of it could be found online.
Randy
October 26, 2009 at 10:03 pm
Personally, i would prefer watching foreign shows (not only US) because the local media pale in comparison to foreign media in terms of creativity of the story and quality of the visuals/audio.
Free-to-air television definitely has a need to earn money for its own sustenance. Other than that, strict guidelines by the censorship board have made it clear that certain issues (i.e. homosexuality) are unsuitable for the public to know about regardless of the amount of profit that it may generate.
Samuel
October 26, 2009 at 10:04 pm
I’m not pushing for issues to be screened for profit.
I believe people have the right to censor and filter the information fed to them rather than having the government doing it for them.
Aloysius
November 8, 2009 at 10:20 pm
sometimes when i take time to ponder, i begin to wonder why local media pales in comparison. In singaporean film-markers, we have rather established names in Eric Khoo and so on and forth, but yet, this has never translated to any perceptible improvement in tv quality. and sometimes i do wonder, if ever this be more appropriate, it could be the fact that all the “silencing” and restricting of content could have dumbed us down, and if really it has played a part, i do wonder how long it will before we could really strike this balance between pushing boundaries and protecting minds?
on a side-note, i find it funny how local dramas dont go like “from the producers of PCK Pte Ltd” or something. ha.
matthew
October 27, 2009 at 12:44 am
I agree with ya, the restrictions placed on the producers have definitely restricted their creativity and limited their choice of content they “can” produce.
Aloysius
November 8, 2009 at 10:24 pm
I guess Singapore media is rather restrictive in terms of language and content. I happened to watch a Taiwan variety show just yesterday, and they were complaining about how their hour long show, when broadcast in Singapore, was cut by half. Apparently it was because part of the content was considered ‘A rated’ by Singapore media.
I also don’t like the fact that TV hosts are forced to speak only one language, for instance if it’s a Chinese variety show, they are only allowed to speak Chinese. I feel that it does not reflect our society as it is. Taiwanese hosts are free to use Hokkien (their official dialect), Chinese or English, whichever they are comfortable with. So since English is our official language, why can’t we do the same too? Mix in a little Malay too, that would be awesome (:
weixin
October 27, 2009 at 8:29 pm
We can’t just “rojak” all the languages because not everyone are bi-or even-trilingual!
Aloysius
November 1, 2009 at 6:10 pm
hey!
I think that Singapore is a rather ‘practical’ country when it comes to media sharing. ‘practical’ in the sense that they use the media sources according to their personal interests, contributing in terms of “Stomp!” or online forums in a way too. I’m sure that most Singaporeans, being educated, are able to filter media content unlike the theory you mentioned.
On the point of media content, the one station which dominates is also again for ‘practicality’ sake. I shall not elaborate on that. But honestly, it all depends on the viewer’s attitude of this present day. There is no guarantee that the entire population watches the local series, but rather, the overseas ones aired on the local channel.
No way can we totally regulate or dictate.
Audrey J Low
October 28, 2009 at 12:14 am
You mentioned about the government believing that audeinces are victims of the powerful effects theory. I agree this would be true to a certain extent but mainly to the children. As adults, most of us would be able to evaluate the content of the mesia unless of course, Agenda Setting Function persists, where a particular kind of information is constanly repeated in a variety of ways. If that is to happen, alas. The powerful effects theory will fall upon the adults too.
kelly0831
October 28, 2009 at 3:29 pm
i think economics play a huge part too. western television shows often commands higher ratings – than local programmes – and hence command more expensive advertising slots. since the local tv networks get a share of the profits, it would make more sense for them to allow more of such shows (eg. American Idol) to air and collect more income.
supporting local programmes with low profit margins isnt exactly something tv networks are known for.
jun
October 28, 2009 at 10:56 pm
Hey! A great end to this 7 entry blog, to mr thetonguegetssharper…
Singapore uses the media to inform, to dictate, to entertain, etc… The fact that we as the audience are very passive and even reliant on the media, countries like Singapore are the ones that seem to digest all information without first questioning its validity, etc. And it’s not a negative or positive trait or whatever, it just exists because the media has always been a symbol of a trusting source, etc. Unlike countries like America who have no trust and seek freedom of information as a right, even from the press. A cultural thing perhaps?
Nina
October 29, 2009 at 9:01 pm
Good point you brought up Nina. Our culture and minsets may be THE very reason why we’re treated like a child by our government. Having to filter and watch out for us.
Aloysius
November 1, 2009 at 6:13 pm
Personally, as compared to the trash that the local media produces, I would rather watch foreign shows. Peharps this is also one of the reasons why American media products are dominating the local media. After all, the local media chooses shows knowing full well the audiences would want to watch them. So in a way, we invite American media products to dominate the local media.
Ying Jie
October 30, 2009 at 12:26 pm
A little too harsh to call our local productions ‘trash’ don’t you think? Our ‘trash’ may not be as globally accepted YET, have faith!
Aloysius
November 1, 2009 at 6:15 pm
By means of merger, viewership would not be divided, and there’s lesser or no conflict between the ideas presented. Perhaps that’s the rationale for merger.
charlene
October 30, 2009 at 11:17 pm
As a film student, I feel that the more Singapore tries to import Western media, the more we lose our identities as Singaporeans. We are first and foremost an Asian country, hence Asian values and traditions. However, as we open our gates to more Western media, our idea of identity changes. We want to look “Western” because we see it on TV and commercials. I find it ironic that the government wants to create a Singaporean culture, but is bringing in other cultures. That only warps our ideas of who we are.
wporchard
October 31, 2009 at 11:27 pm
singapore is indeed a multicultural society because of the different cultures there are in one country. however, i find it interesting that because we are a multicultural society, we don’t have a distinct character. we are a mix, but due to the mix, we don’t have our own originality.
coming back to american media, i guess it makes our culture more mixed because we are adding the american culture. while we are not necessarily having a larger population of americans, we are “becoming” more american when we are subject and influence by american media.
our asian culture is under threat due to the increase of american or western culture. it’s not a bad thing, just that we loss a part of our uniqueness. but then again, which country isn’t receiving american influence?
jonathan
October 31, 2009 at 11:39 pm
to me, its not so much whether singapore media has good show or not, but comparatively, american shows are typically much better than what singaporean companies produce. for one, its got to do with the budget that singaporean companies have to produce shows. however, if its that case, why is singapore government spending so much to import american shows? shouldnt part of the money be dedicated to the betterment of singaporean media?
dan
October 31, 2009 at 11:46 pm
Good point Dan, the government should really relook their choice of allocation of resources to the improvement for our media industry instead.
Aloysius
November 1, 2009 at 6:19 pm
Greetings Aloy,
Before I begin the reply a whole, I’d like to apologize for not being swift in responding to your posts.
Here goes…
With all due gratitude for the wonders of technology, specifically in the context of media (Internet, TV, Radio, etc.) and how it has brought much convenience to us humans, I can’t help but deem much of what is portrayed to the masses with much prejudice. Reason being, many so often information, whether in the context of news or for plain entertainment are just simply blown out of proportion. An apt enough example would be the recent “Ris-Low” saga, which proceeded to have subsequent articles questioning bimbo-istic Singaporean girls intellect (The News Paper, 011109, Sunday).
On another note, and in vein of the contrast between American and local media, I can undoubtedly say that there can be much room for development. The striking difference between the standards of American Idol and Singapore Idol would be a pertinent enough analogy. I share the same sentiments as Dan’s post of the betterment of Singapore Media.
Warmest Regards,
CJ Mark
021109, 0050hrs.
CJ Mark
November 2, 2009 at 12:48 am
I am for the liberalisation of the media in Singapore. I feel that having several different media corporations would cater to a large proportion of the population of Singaporeans. For me, the media’s primary purposes are to keep us informed and entertained, so having variety and competition would really benefit society as a whole. I believe it is futile to try to censor and filter the main media outlets of television and publications as when the government does that, liberal minded people would turn to the internet for their news. You cannot blame the US for having so much dominant influence in the world, it is because of their media industry is liberalised and thus offers a wide variety to cater to people with different interest. The only downside of US media industry is that conglomerates may have different motives and political affiliations, so they may be subjective at times. On a personal note, for entertainment, I hardly watch any local productions as I really feel that they lack entertainment value. We live in a globalised world, Singapore’s success is due to its openness, we should welcome influences on our culture from the foreign media the same way the government welcomes foreigners into our society.
Jonathan Chan (JCNK)
November 7, 2009 at 2:55 pm
haha man… I’ve read SO much blog recently probing on ‘conspiracy theories’ from media and what-not. To me, I really see that there isn’t much into it!
Occassionally, you might chance upon some political agenda on Singapore media, like encouraging baby boom and such, but that’s about it. Nothing like the hoo-ha mambo-jumbo that conspiracy-lovers dwell on. Brainwashing? Nope not for me.
chervinlam
November 7, 2009 at 3:43 pm