This monograph outlines the development of Singapore’s media from the first government-subsidised newspaper to radio, TV, Rediffusion, the Internet and today’s social media. Going beyond “just the dates”, it shows how the media in Singapore had once been extremely competitive, that Singapore was a media hub for Malay intellectuals in the region and how the newspaper licensing rules were inherited from the British who set the tone by curbing an English-language newspaper called Singapore Herald published by a Japanese publisher in the 1940s. It’s the Singapore media as few would have guessed.
To commemorate the 50th anniversary of Singapore’s Independence, the Institute of Policy Studies and Straits Times Press jointly launched the Singapore Chronicles series in 2015.

This 50-volume series seeks to record, explain and offer insights into what makes Singapore, Singapore. Covering a wide range of subjects, from the philosophical to the mundane, the fundamental to the practical, these Singapore Chronicles titles include Constitution, Presidency, Housing, Transport, Demography, CPF, Sports and Food. Each volume in this series will serve as a primer on the subject.

Written by leading experts, they will focus on key aspects of the subject, providing analysis as well as a historical account. Readers will gain an insight into what makes Singapore tick and also why it has chosen certain “paths un-trodden”.

Authors

Singapore Chronicles: Media