Letter to a young Singaporean journalist

Grunts may work hard, but management sets the tone of news rooms

Published on December 1, 2004 By Pranay Gupte In Blogging

Dear Zak:

Thanks for your gracious and thoughtful letter. I was quite touched by your sentiments concerning journalism, and I hope that you will be able to adhere to your values upon your return to Singapore. You write very eloquently indeed, and I will treasure your note for its substance, sentiments and sheer structure.

As you must know by now, surely, all news organizations respond to the tone and track record of their leadership. As long as bureaucrats and internal-security apparatchiks run The Straits Times, it won't matter how much hard work is put in by the "grunts" in the news room. In my view, the management is clueless about journalism generally; its mandate is to serve the government without engaging in or encouraging any serious form of internal questioning. To ask questions -- of oneself, as much as of others -- is an obligation for journalists, who work in the public interest.

I will always wish Singapore well. This is a fabulous place; I've been coming here since 1982. I have many friends here. But I am struck at the pervasiveness of fear about state scrutiny of private lives. It's not my place as an outsider -- an Indian-born American journalist -- to provide prescriptions for political progress. But what I've observed is scary.

I don't know if I'll be returning to New York soon; but it will be certainly by the time you complete your degree program at Columbia. I will look forward to meeting you; it will be a real delight for me.

With warmest good wishes,
Pranay
Email

Comments

No one has commented on this article. Be the first!

Welcome Guest! Please take the time to register with us.
There are many great features available to you once you register, including:

Richer content, access to many features that are disabled for guests like commenting on the forums.
Access to a great community, with a massive database of many, many areas of interest.
Access to contests & subscription offers like exclusive emails.
It's simple, and FREE!