Commentary: Does the world still need news media?

SINGAPORE: It is no secret that the media and journalism sector has experienced seismic shifts in recent years, many of which have increased pressure and challenges for those working in the industry.
The rise of digital platforms and social media have led to questions about the relevance of more traditional platforms such as physical newspapers and broadcasts of news bulletins at fixed timeslots on television and radio.
With technology enabling an almost constant stream of content on computers and mobile devices, and an ever-increasing population of digital natives, many experts have sounded the death knell of traditional or “mainstream” media, as advertisers and the revenue they bring follow their target audiences elsewhere.
World News Day is a global initiative to draw public attention to the role that journalists play in providing trustworthy news and information that serves citizens and democracy, via a campaign to underscore the value and importance of fact-based journalism, and the essential role it performs in our daily lives.
It thus marks a good time for us to consider the role, importance and future of the news media in Singapore now and in the years ahead.
I first entered the news industry as a full-time print journalist in 1999, but my first forays into the milieu began in the early 1990s as an intern or “cub reporter” as it was known in those days.
Back then, most news companies in Singapore and around the world had as their core values some variation of wanting to “inform, educate, entertain and engage” their audiences. This persisted as I transitioned to broadcast news later in my career in 2008.
An added proviso instituted by my boss at Mediacorp was to focus on ACT – accuracy, context and timeliness, in order of decreasing priority.
These values served as a guiding light for the journalists and editors I worked with, underlining the mission to ensure that the target audience was provided with accurate and timely information presented in an appealing and engaging format, that they could use to make the right decisions that would impact their lives.
While I am sure that such journalistic ethos and values are still alive and well in the various newsrooms in Singapore, the reality of the news business has meant that there are other competing pressures.
These include fighting against other platforms for eyeballs and clicks, which often see a rush for the lowest common denominator when it comes to attracting attention of target audiences.
There is also the constantly evolving consumption habits of those audiences, driven by developments in technologies such as digital and social platforms, and mobile devices.
Experts have pointed to shift in habits that reflect shorter attention spans, a lack of demand for longer form content, whether in print or broadcast, and a preference especially in younger consumers to obtain news from social media platforms such as Instagram and TikTok.
This can be problematic as many of such platforms favour and promote shorter content such as video clips that rarely delve into details and nuances of issues, and often highlight the “clickbait” aspects which may be more exciting for consumers, but are not always representative of the real issues at hand.
The critical tension that is created by these trends is between journalism’s mission and values, and the need to appeal to an audience that is fast moving away to other non-traditional platforms for their news needs.
What is the point of achieving the mission of producing high quality journalism if no one reads it? And worse, if the lack of an audience leads to falling advertising revenues and financial pressures?
These challenges then have the effect of making journalism and the news industry as a whole a less attractive proposition for young professionals and jobseekers, who might prefer a less difficult career path.
At the same time, it is probably not an exaggeration to say that the role of journalism has never been more important around the world and in Singapore.
The rise of the “low-information voter”, a phenomenon first observed and described by American political scientist Samuel Popkin in 1991, refers to a tendency by people to make political choices based on certain superficial cues or heuristics in lieu of more substantive information.
Some politicians have sought to leverage on this by playing to their bases with content that focuses more on their image and branding, rather than the usual debates and discussions of policies and positions on weighty issues.
Other bad actors, state and non-state, have also sought to take advantage of this low information environment to manipulate the populations in other countries to achieve their aims, which are typically not in the best interests of their adversaries.
This has given rise to disinformation and misinformation – respectively the spread of false information deliberately and unintentionally – which have come to collectively be known as the oxymoronic “fake news”. This can lead to national disruption and instability, as we saw in the US elections in 2016, Brexit, and most recently in the outbreak of violence in the UK following the tragic killing of three young children in Southport this July.
Beyond politics, fake news can also create a fertile environment for related threats such as scams, which are becoming more commonplace.
As the world continues to become more complex and complicated, the ability of people to make important decisions is being impacted by the profusion of false, inaccurate or fake information that is being disseminated either intentionally or unintentionally.
The efforts to address this insidious and global threat requires a multilayered response involving government, legislation and enforcement, education, and the work of other stakeholders such as independent fact-checkers and civil society organisations.
But the role of traditional or mainstream news and media organisations cannot be understated.
A credible and trusted news media ecosystem can and should function as a source of factual data for a country. The systems and processes, editorial oversight and integrity, and multiple layers of fact-checking and editing that should be part of any news organisation provide greater assurance compared to less professional platforms such as blogs that purport to be “citizen journalists”.
The question then is how journalism can reclaim and maintain a trusted position in society. This could be especially tricky in a country like Singapore where the media has often faced criticisms of being state-controlled and hence biased.
There have been a few solutions proposed by industry players in recent years, including a focus on producing products that target digital natives in their natural online habitat and offering more video and visual content that can be consumed on the go.
But I believe that a key factor will be a renewed emphasis on top quality content and excellent journalism, be it written or broadcast, that draws the audience in with compelling storytelling about issues that matter. This should include reporting that is fair and objective, and which is focused on bringing the truth to light.
It may sound simple, but is sometimes hard to execute if the focus is purely on boosting clicks from a fickle audience base, or chasing advertising dollars.
Given the critical role that journalism and the news industry plays in all societies, achieving this might be one of the most important objectives for countries in the years ahead.
Nicholas Fang is a former journalist and news editor and has worked across print, broadcast and digital platforms. A former nominated member of parliament, he is founder and managing director of Black Dot Research, a market and social research agency that runs an independent fact-checking platform.