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Statement By Dr Balaji Sadasivan On The New Media In Parliament During COS Debate (MICA) On 3 March 2007 
Posted on Friday, March 09, 2007 - 10:00 AM

In a Statement by the Senior Minister Of State For Information, Communications And The Arts, Dr Balaji Sadasivan on The New Media in Parliament during COS Debate (MICA) on 3 March 2007, he addressed the three-pronged approach MICA will be taking in managing the new media: first, a light-touch regulatory framework, two, industry self-regulation and thirdly, public education.

The speech:

STATEMENT BY THE SENIOR MINISTER OF STATE FOR INFORMATION, COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS, DR BALAJI SADASIVAN ON THE NEW MEDIA IN PARLIAMENT DURING COS DEBATE (MICA)ON 3 MARCH 2007

Mr Speaker Sir, You are TIME magazine’s person of the year for 2006. So are Ms Penny Low, Mr Siew Kum Hong and anyone who sits in front of a computer and interacts with it. TIME magazine’s selection of You as person of the year was meant to highlight the millions of individuals who, through their interaction in cyberspace, have created new channels and types of communication. The two Honorable Members of Parliament have pointed out problems related to new media and I shall answer their cuts together. These are wild and exciting times in cyberspace. Blogs, YouTube, MySpace, Secondlife and Wikipedia are impacting the lives of millions. Many among the younger generation socialise in cyberspace. Some have termed this revolution in cyberspace as Web2.0, likening it to an updated version of software. While this revolution has brought the wisdom of millions together to create Wikipedia, there is stuff in cyberspace that can make you fear for the future of the next generation. There is a large supply of obscenity and stupidity, dishonesty and danger. So how does my Ministry deal with this brave new world?

2. We have a three-pronged approach in managing the new media: first, a light-touch regulatory framework, two, industry self-regulation and thirdly, public education.

Light-touch regulatory framework

3. Let me start with our light-touch regulatory framework. Internet content providers are regulated under the Media Development Authority’s Class Licence Scheme. There is an Internet Code of Practice, which stipulates the type of content prohibited in cyberspace. The Class Licence requires Internet content providers and service providers to take down or deny access to such harmful content. This light-touch regulatory approach has served us well in regulating online content, helping to facilitate the growth of the industry while allowing us to act if we find harmful content that threatens our social values, and racial and religious harmony.

4. Mr Siew asked whether we should review our light-touch Class Licence framework. Last year, the National Internet Advisory Committee (NIAC), a people-private sector body set up to advise the MDA, reviewed the Class Licence Scheme. It found the light-touch scheme still relevant and appropriate in dealing with emerging media trends.

5. Mr Siew was also concerned about the use of the Sedition Act. The Sedition Act reinforces MDA’s light-touch regulation on new media. The proposed expansion of the Penal Code to cover electronic transmissions now will provide an alternative to the Sedition Act for charging offenders purveying inflammatory content that stirs up public mischief.

Industry self-regulation

6. Besides legislative action, another important limb in managing the new media is industry self-regulation. The MDA and NIAC work closely with the industry to promote industry self-regulation. For example, last year, the mobile service operators -MobileOne, SingTel and StarHub - developed and adopted a voluntary industry content code for mobile services which aims to protect users, especially the young, from undesirable and objectionable mobile content.

Public education

7. The third prong, public education, is vital. I totally agree with Ms Low who worries about young Singaporeans falling prey to the dangers of the Internet.

8. Our youths readily embrace the Internet, freely uploading personal pictures and videos on their blogs, MySpace and YouTube. Some are intimate self exposures. But, few seem to realise that everything sent over or posted on the Internet is likely to be stored somewhere and could be easily retrieved, even long into the future, and could be misused by someone else to their detriment.

9. Given the perceived anonymity of the Internet, there are also netters who feel empowered to “blog any thing, any how”. Racist sites can be found on the Internet. Netters may not realise that they may be breaching the law when they post racist content. Many too are probably unaware that they could be sued for cyberspace defamation.

10. MDA recognises the dangers of the Internet. Over the last few years, it has worked closely with the NIAC and various partners to inculcate responsible Internet habits through Cyber Wellness programmes, which educate users and parents on the proper use and dangers of the Internet. Starting this year, the Ministry of Education has incorporated Cyber Wellness values and programmes into the school curriculum for younger primary and secondary students. In fact, Cyber Wellness is for everyone. Grassroot organizations, schools and businesses should start their own Cyber Wellness programmes to educate members, students and employees on proper Internet habits.

Conclusion

11. With this three-pronged approach to managing the new media, there is no currently no need for a separate Internet Code of Ethics. Furthermore, responsible websites do lay down terms and conditions which users have to abide by. Recently, a racially offensive video posted on YouTube was removed after it was flagged out by netters themselves. Such self-regulation is a positive and encouraging sign.

12. The Government recognises that Singaporeans are tech-savvy and take very well to the Internet. It also recognises that it is important to study the long-term social, ethical, legal and regulatory implications of the new media. Thus, a high-level advisory committee will be set up for this purpose. More details will be available at a later date

13. Mr Baey Yam Keng asked about the Crazy Horse. It was a milestone to him. But we have had the Tropicana and the Neptune before this. Sir, we do want to be a global city. But the hallmark of a global city is its diversity and not its homogeneity. If we were a homogenous society, regulating what is acceptable and what is not acceptable to society would be simpler. But a diverse society will have a wide spectrum of interests and views on what should be the norm. So MDA has to strike a delicate balance between the concerns, wants and needs of different groups.

14. Let me now deal with the specific issue of The Crazy Horse. The Crazy Horse is a topless dance revue meant for a mature audience. Many parents will be pleased if their young daughters came home and said they wanted to take dance lessons because they saw an advertisement for a performance by the Singapore Dance Theatre. I do not believe these same parents will feel the same way if their daughters came home and said the same thing after seeing an advertisement for Crazy Horse. So there is a need for some regulatory control for advertisements of adult entertainment. I met the owner of Crazy Horse in Paris who told me that they have advertising rules in the EU too. So we are not unusual in having advertising rules. Advertisements in Singapore must not be offensive to the public and should adhere to the guidelines of the Advertising Standards Authority of Singapore, or ASAS. Eng Wah, the operator of Crazy Horse, was well aware of the advertising guidelines even before it decided to launch the show, and had at its disposal, various channels to promote the show before the launch. Subsequent to the launch, MDA also reviewed and accommodated most of Eng Wah’s requests. And as Mr Baey has pointed out, there were so many write-ups and articles in the newspapers before the show. It is therefore not fair to say that the Crazy Horse failed because of advertising guidelines.

15. While we open up more, we must also be sensitive to our societal norms and values. The norms and values differ from country to country.

16. Let me cite a recent article in ST Life!, which pointed out that a person in Shenzhen had watched the movie "Curse of the Golden Flower" and wanted restrictions for the movie. Why? Apparently, “the abundant cleavage was too much for the 32-year-old electronics worker”. Interestingly, the article pointed out that "by contrast, in the United States - a place many Chinese consider as wildly permissive – the movie is rated R. This means children younger than 17 must be accompanied by a parent or an adult guardian to see it. The Americans were not concerned by the cleavage, but by the violence.

17. This example illustrates my point that every society has its own sensitivities and comfort level, which set the standards for content regulation. Regulatory authorities have to be sensitive to these differences.

18. Mr Chan Soo Sen asked if mother tongue subtitles could be provided for all mother tongue TV news. MDA supports it. It is a good way to learn a second language especially one’s mother tongue. It will also benefit the hearing impaired and the elderly, especially the elderly who are only conversant in dialect. By reading the subtitles they will be able to follow the programmes.

19. As news is one of the most-watched programmes on free-to-air channels, MDA has worked closely with MediaCorp to introduce real-time subtitling for English, Chinese and Malay TV news. Subtitling for the 9.30 pm English news on Channel 5 was launched in October last year. In December, the service was extended to the Chinese news at 10pm on Channel 8 and the Malay news at 8pm on Suria, both of which are the highest rated time slots for Chinese and Malay news bulletins.

20. There is a technical problem in the case of subtitling for Tamil news. Subtitling for the Tamil news will be implemented when there is a viable system in the market that can produce real-time subtitles in Tamil.

21. Besides news, major national programmes such as National Day Rally and National Day Message are also subtitled. But I agree with Mr Chan that we should have subtitling for more and more programmes so that viewers will have more opportunities to learn and know their mother tongues better.