Role of Singapore's social media in recent haze problem

Imelda Saad Channel NewsAsia 4 Jul 13;

SINGAPORE: The power of social media was evident when Singapore grappled with the recent haze problem.

It has proven to be both a resource and bane for the authorities as they disseminated information and battled rumours at the same time.

As thick smog blanketed Singapore, rumours were also circulated about how the authorities may have manipulated data.

The allegation was swiftly rebutted by the authorities, who then created the “Emergency 101” website to dispel such rumours.

New media expert Andrew Bleeker said a crisis like the haze is one example where social media is critical for rapid response.

He said: "It's just such a way for a leader to immediately respond either in the defensive way, or an aggressive way, to get a message out in real time, because that's where the conversation is going on."

Giving an update on its efforts to engage people via social media, a spokesperson from the Communications and Information Ministry said: "The government is aware that the public wants to contribute its views as well as play a part in shaping government policies.

"Government agencies have been engaging the public and netizens on various issues including government policies through various online platforms. As of December 2012, our ministries and agencies had established 229 Facebook pages, 92 YouTube channels, 86 Twitter accounts, 20 blogs and 59 mobile apps. There has been active two-way engagement with the public on many of these online channels."

Trust is often an issue when it comes to online engagement.

Mr Bleeker said governments need to be able to leverage their online followers and networks to help spread their message.

He said: "Who people really listen to are their friends. And that's one of the real universal truths of social media. If you think about your followers, in almost all cases, your followers are already with you. So your real goal for social media isn't to educate them, but how is it you can make it easy for them to share.

"So everything should be about sharing, and that's when you see engagement succeed or not -- when you see people really sharing. Simply liking something doesn't get you very much. It's the sharing that's really valuable."

This strategy of propagating news via word of mouth through the social media would also apply to engaging prominent bloggers with a huge following. Mr Bleeker said since US President Obama took office, it has been a practice of the White House to invite the blogging community to its briefings.

Mr Bleeker said: "For the US, it's probably just a couple of years ahead of where the blogging industry is here. What has really happened is that the media has become one integrated media, not so much that there's a different standard for accrediting bloggers. It's just that it just becomes journalism at this point, once the bloggers become mainstream.

"And frankly, most of the bloggers that are left, because it's such a tough economy, now end up working for one of the major publications. I don't think bloggers want to be treated differently, I think they want to be treated like real journalists.”

When contacted by Channel NewsAsia, the Communications and Information Ministry said media accreditation is currently provided only to journalists working with news organisations who cover government events regularly.

They include journalists who work for online newspapers belonging to a parent company that publishes in print, said the spokesperson.

Baey Yam Keng, deputy chair of the Government Parliamentary Committee for Communications and Information, said: "In online space, a lot of people take on different personalities, and they can become very critical about everything.

"So one instinct is to back off. I think the fear of interaction is about being cornered into a debate, into a situation where there's no way out. So I think that's the greatest concern of the government."

Mr Baey, who is active on social media, said there are merits in engaging this group.

But he added that the government may need to consider the blogger's reach and track record, which includes writings that are fair and factual.

He said: "Perhaps Singapore will come to that stage in time to come. Ultimately, we must look at what our objective is. If the government is looking at channels which can reach a lot of people, then even bloggers who potentially have a lot of followers will also be a channel that we should be interested in.

"But of course, it is the level of confidence or trust that this blogger or this person is able to respect the rules of engagement. But I think this is something we need to develop over time -- to build that kind of trust.”

- CNA/xq