N3 2019 N3Con 2019 CRAZY RICH, MAY 30-JUNE 2 ISSUE 4 HOLLYWOOD'S ASIA Chinese sci-fi and the space race THE FALL OF HONG KONG'S FREE PRESS

Google tools for The official magazine for journalists NEW• NOW• NEXT

COVERING ASIA’S NEW ORDER: EMOJIS: The growing media The little market and ideogram RETHINKING that could MARIA FORMATS: challenges RESSA: Arrested Podcasting, video, editor social media

STARTUPS NEW WAYS TO MAKE IT IN MEDIA N3 | 1 FLE_A350_900_C008Y15_E02_p_30APR.eps C 54 C 0 AAJA Bowling Championships Print Ad M 21 M 15 Y 30 Y 50 K 0 K 0 Cathay Pacific CX2019042_AAJA_8.5”x11”H_EN_A350.ai Trim Size 11”(h) x 8.5”(w) Type Area Artist Kwok Kin Inflight Magainze 4C 08May2019 (20:55) Bleed Area 1/8” 1 : 1

N3 2019 N3 2019

Contents

MOVE 4. Conference schedule BEYOND 6. Venue map THE HORIZON 7. President’s letter Let one of the world’s largest fleets of A350s 8-17. PANELS, move you further in award-winning comfort. Emoji as WORKSHOPS communication p. 30 AND EVENTS 39. Trump, Kim, and scrambling 18. COVER STORY to cover a non-news story Startups: Innovation, 40. Singapore’s P.N. Balji discusses entrepreneurship, and new ways to his new book “Reluctant Editor” make it in media 43. James Crabtree discusses “The Billionaire Raj” and India’s media 22-53. PERSPECTIVE landscape 22. Startup experience, grad school, 46. The Google News Initiative and opening up new opportunities 49. Mentor Match: Helping young 24. Maria Ressa, Rappler, and journalists to succeed government assault on media 50. Podcasting’s resurgence 28. The demise of Hong Kong’s free 52. Student work: The Hong Hong press 360 project 30. Jennifer 8. Lee on how emoji are changing 21st-century communication 54-61. FOCUS 33. Crazy Rich Asians and the 54. Press freedom index cultural reactions that follow it 55. Covering Asia’s New Order: 36. China joins film industry’s space China, authoritarian governments, race to project its scientific broken business models www.cathaypacific.com advancements 58. Singapore: Government to 38. Nas Daily: A message of decide what is fake news connectivity and 12 million followers 60. Malaysia: Press freedom gets a breath of fresh air

2 | N3 N3 | 3 NEW NOW NEXT SCHEDULE NEW NOW NEXT SCHEDULE MEDIA CONFERENCE MEDIA CONFERENCE 2019 2019

Plenary Sessions Career Track Plenary Sessions Career Track Breakout Sessions N3ConU and Student Events Breakout Sessions N3ConU and Student Events Skills Track Pre-registration Required Skills Track Pre-registration Required

DAY 0 | THURSDAY, MAY 30 DAY 2 | SATURDAY, JUNE 1

9:00 AM - 5:00 PM N3ConU Tour 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM Executive Newsroom Tour 8:30 AM - 9:30 AM Registration / Coffee Meng Wah Ground Floor Breakfast / Networking

7:00 PM - 9:00 PM Welcome Pizza Reception at Google Google Hong Kong 9:30 AM - 10:30 AM Meng Wah T2 China on the Rise

DAY 1 | FRIDAY, MAY 31 10:30 AM - 11:00 AM Break & Networking

11:00 AM - 12:00 PM The New Order in 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM Voice Is Power 8:00 AM - 8:30 AM Registration Meng Wah T2 Meng Wah T3 Meng Wah Ground Floor Business and the Economy

12:00 PM - 1:30 PM Lunch 12:00 PM - 1:30 PM Launching 12:00 PM - 1:10 PM Lunch Career 8:30 AM - 11:00 AM Investigative Data Reporting 9:30 AM - 5:30 PM Career Fair Meng Wah T2 Your Media Shum Reading Room, Conversations Meng Wah T2 Workshop Chong Yuet Ming Cultural Career Eliot Hall Salon Centre, 5th floor

1:30 PM - 2:30 PM The State of Press Freedom in Asia 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM Meng Wah T2 Shum Reading Room, Resume Doctor Cafe 330, Chong Yuet Eliot Hall Ming Cultural Centre 2:30 PM - 3:00 PM Break

11:10 AM - 12:20 PM N3ConU: How to Get the Most Out of N3Con Meng Wah T7 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM Mining China’s Social Media 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM Making Voice Visual (Advanced) Meng Wah T2 for Stories Meng Wah T3 11:10 AM - 12:20 PM Lunch Career Conversations 11:10 AM - 12:20 PM Lunch Career Conversations Shum Reading Room, Eliot Hall Meng Wah T2 Salon A: Anjali Kapoor Salon B: Chow Chung-yan 4:00 PM - 4:30 PM Break & Networking 4:00 PM - 5:30 PM Digital Tools for Journalism Day 2 Meng Wah T3

12:45 PM - 1:00 PM Meng Wah T2 Welcome and Opening Remarks 4:30 PM - 5:30 PM Meng Wah T2 Secrets to Compelling Videos

1:00 PM - 2:00 PM Covering Asia’s New Order Meng Wah T2 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM Gala Dinner Foreign Correspondents’ Club #StorySlam: Your Journey Behind the Scenes Silent Auction 2:00 PM - 2:10 PM Break

2:10 PM - 3:30 PM News Leaders Roundtable Meng Wah T2 DAY 3 | SUNDAY, JUNE 2 3:30 PM - 4:00 PM Break & Networking 9:00 AM - 3:30 PM Bloomberg Hong Kong Empathy and Ethics in Crisis Reporting 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM How I Got 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM Rethinking 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM Digital Tools for Meng Wah T2 THAT Story Meng Wah T3 Formats Meng Wah T7 Journalism Day 1 9:00 AM - 2:00 PM Investigative Data Reporting: Finding the Story in Data (Advanced) Bloomberg Hong Kong 5:30 PM - 6:30 PM Journalism Start- 5:30 PM - 6:30 PM Instagram for 5:30 PM - 6:30 PM Career Work- Meng Wah T2 ups: How They Meng Wah T3 News Meng Wah T7 shop on Salary 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM AAJA - Asia Training Network Powered by Google News Initiative Made It Negotiation Bloomberg Hong Kong

7:00 PM - 9:00 PM VIP Reception Bloomberg, Cheung Kong Centre, 25th Floor *Pre-registration & Photo ID required

4 | N3 N3 | 5 6|N3 Zela Chin Youkyung Lee Tom Benner Soo MinOh Selina Cheng Rebecca Isjwara Holly Chik Mike Raomanachai Kari Lindberg Joon-Nie Lau Holly Chik Mark Zastrow Gavin Huang Angie Lau K. OanhHa,chair Executive Committee K. OanhHa AAJA President 2019 coordinator Holly Chik,workshop Huang, SelinaCheng,chair Youkyung Lee, Gavin Programming Committee the AsianAmericanJournalists Association N3Con Soo MinOh Joe Pan, chair Sponsorship Committee chair Tom Benner, magazine Zastrow, website co-chair Rebecca Isjwara, Mark marketing chair Mike Raomanachai, Communications Committee isorganized by theAsiachapter of STIR Relations Public Event Management Holly Chik,coordinator Joon-Nie Lau,chair Newsroom Tour ambassador Holly Chik,student co-chairs Joon-Nie Lau,Grace Lee, N3ConU &Resume Doctor Kari Lindberg Holly Chik,chair Volunteer Committee Logistics and

letter from the president n te et eeain f storytellers of generation next the and journalists today’s empowering to cated Asever, AAJA-Asia remains dedi readers aboutwhat’sahead. the past, and how we can better inform news isbeingshapedbytheechoesof magazine, look athowtoday’s we’ll At N3Conand in the pages of this Asia’s NewOrder”--thisyear’stheme. how torisethechallengein“Covering porters and editors to share ideas about re for forum a today.is berates N3Con for China and theregionthat still rever Square protests, a watershed moment the 30thanniversary of the Tiananmen N3Con 2019 alsocoincides with scape. an increasingly competitive media land speed, clarity and analysis than ever in these changes -- and doing it with more nalists are beingtaskedwith chronicling New.Now.Nextjour Conference, Media As we gather for the 9th annual States isbeingchallenged. United the of influence the and China, Econo mies arebeingreshapedbytheriseof independence. its for fighting liances are shifting -- and thepress is Authoritarianism is ontherise,al K. OanhHa the statusquoisbeingupended. ------AAJA-Asia President K.OanhHa In AAJA spirit, ism in the region. We hope you’ll join journal us. quality support to community we’re building a diverseand inclusive many volunteer leadersandmembers, of help the With skills. leadership velop de region the in journalists helping on porting diversity in media and focused AAJA-Asia iscommittedtosup our audiences. to bring compelling, hidden stories to deeper dig to how and journalism, data ture workshops on investigative and fea also will N3Con AAJA-Asia TrainingNetwork. the by powered year, next the lastestdigital tools throughout the deavor, thechapter will offertraining in en this in support To accountable. er the truthtolightandholdthoseinpow with the latestreporting tools tobring Across AsiaPacific, N3| 7 ------N3 2019 N3 2019 PANELS PANELS THURSDAY, MAY 30 FRIDAY, MAY 31

Plenary Sessions Career Track Plenary Sessions Career Track Breakout Sessions N3ConU and Student Events Breakout Sessions N3ConU and Student Events Skills Track Pre-registration Required Skills Track Pre-registration Required Subject to change. Go to n3con.com for full schedule. Subject to change. Go to n3con.com for full schedule.

9:00 AM - 5:00 PM TOUR 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM TOUR 8:30 AM - 11:00 AM WORKSHOP 10:00 AM - 12:30 PM MENTORING N3ConU Newsroom Executive Newsroom Investigative Data Resume Doctor Tour Tours Reporting Workshop In speed-consulting rounds, mentors will re- view mentees’ resumes and other materials Designed especially for students - and wel- This tour designed for media profession- Data analysis has become an essential tool such as website or reel and help them under- come to all media professionals - the tour als brings you behind the closed doors of for all journalists, whether you cover a dai- stand how to target their next career goal. day kickstarts with a visit to an independent world-leading news organizations. Get a rare ly beat or want to conduct deep enterprise Applications open until May 15; drop-ins ac- Hong Kong media startup that aims to pro- glimpse into how they put out the news day stories. In this session, we start at the very cepted if spots remain. Bring your resume. vide a platform immune to commercial and by day, hour by hour, on news cycles that are beginning with Excel and learn how spread- political pressures. Then chat over lunch with getting impossibly shorter and shorter. Find sheets can be used to pull meaning from Location: a veteran editor about the tricky tightrope out what drives their coverage and unravel data. No prior experience is necessary. Bring 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM: editors here face when reporting on local the mysteries of how editorial decisions are a laptop with Excel or other spreadsheet Shum Reading Room, Eliot Hall and Mainland issues. After lunch, head north made. This is your chance to ask top editors software. 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM: to either an English- or Chinese-language and journalists the questions you’ve always Chong Yuet Ming Cultural Centre, 5th floor Location: Meng Wah T2 publication for a rare glimpse into how they wanted to ask! produce the news for their target audiences. 11:10 AM - 12:20 PM NETWORKING Participating newsrooms: Bloomberg, with Whether you are a local student from Hong Reuters, South China Morning Post Mark Horvit Kong or the Chinese mainland, or a foreign Associate Professor, University of N3ConU: How to student attending N3Con for the first time, Missouri School of Journalism you’ll be surprised by just how much goes get the most out of into the production of daily news and mar- vel at the various editorial innovations spear- N3ConU events brought to you by 9:30 AM - 5:30 PM NETWORKING N3Con headed by these newsrooms. First time to N3Con? Don’t know anyone? Career Fair Have no fear. N3ConU fuses programming, Participating newsrooms: CNN, Hong Kong tours, socials and mentoring for the ultimate Free Press, South China Morning Post For the first time at N3Con, we’re hosting student experience. All undergraduate and a career fair running all day Friday. Come graduate students — and any first-time par- and meet with media outlets and employers ticipants — are invited to an interactive ice- 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM NETWORKING around the region—and bring your resume breaker orientation that highlights key pro- and clips. Your next job could start here! The gramming, networking tips and practice, and Welcome Pizza Reception at Google companies who will be there include Thom- other advice on how to get the most out of son Reuters, The Wall Street Journal, Black- N3Con. Location: Meng Wah T7 Registration begins at 6:30 PM, all N3 attendees welcome! peak, Acuris, Telum Media, Risk Advisory, Bloomberg, S&P Global, and NBC News. with Location: Google Hong Kong, Times Square, Tower 2, 21st Floor Brolley Genster 1 Matheson Street, Causeway Bay Location: Chong Yuet Ming Cultural Centre Culture Editor, Korea JoongAng Daily

8 | N3 N3 | 9 N3 2019 N3 2019 PANELS PANELS FRIDAY, MAY 31 FRIDAY, MAY 31

Plenary Sessions Career Track Plenary Sessions Career Track Breakout Sessions N3ConU and Student Events Breakout Sessions N3ConU and Student Events Skills Track Pre-registration Required Skills Track Pre-registration Required Subject to change. Go to n3con.com for full schedule. Subject to change. Go to n3con.com for full schedule.

1:00 PM - 2:00 PM PLENARY 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM BREAKOUT PANEL 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM BREAKOUT PANEL Covering Asia’s New Order How I Got That Story Rethinking Formats

Asia’s undergoing transformative changes with shifts from the traditional bases of influence and A scoop uncovering abuses of power and Radio, video, print — how do we rethink these power. Strongmen and authoritarianism seem to dominate politics, while China is gaining eco- social injustice could be the result of diligent formats to reach today’s readers? Heads of nomic and political clout with its Belt and Road initiative. How are these shifts playing out, and record searches, a trusted source, an unfa- video, podcasts, and newsrooms share their what are the compelling stories to connect it all? miliar tipster. How do reporters first dive into ideas on how innovate old formats for to- a lead to an exclusive investigation? day’s media landscape. Location: Meng Wah T2 Speakers Location: Meng Wah T2 Location: Meng Wah T3

Shibani Mahtani Motoko Rich Speakers Speakers Southeast Asia correspondent, Tokyo Bureau Chief, The New York Regina Lay Lisa Yuriko Thomas Washington Post Times Freelance Journalist/Host Producer, TICTOC by Bloomberg

Richard C. Paddock Bhavan Jaipragas Southeast Asia Reporter, Asia correspondent, SCMP Wenxin Fan Jarrod Watt New York Times Reporter, The Wall Street Journal Podcast Producer, SCMP

2:10 PM - 3:10 PM PLENARY Chan Yun Nam Victor Pena Senior Reporter, HK01 Director of Video, Goldthread News Leaders Roundtable Yuzuha Oka News leaders from international and regional outlets give us their take on how they are rising to 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM WORKSHOP Reporter/Editor, NewsPicks the challenges newsrooms are facing, coverage priorities, diversity efforts and the state of play on digital strategies. Digital Tools for Location: Meng Wah T2 Speakers Journalists (Google) 5:30 PM - 6:30 PM WORKSHOP Adrienne Mong Roger Clark Vice President of International Vice President and Hong Kong From research to visualization, learn how to Instagram for News Newsgathering, NBC News Bureau Chief, CNN International use practical tools that can save you time and bring your stories to life. Learn best practices on using Instragram to report your story, how to get larger audi- Location: Meng Wah T7 Anne Marie Roantree Joey Chung ence, ways to engage with them, and what Hong Kong Bureau Chief, Reuters The News Lens founder with the news should look like on Instagram. Location: Meng Wah T3 Otis Bilodeau Eoghan Sweeney Senior Executive Editor, Consultant and Trainer, Chiman Ng Bloomberg Google News Initiative Strategic Partner Manager, News Partnerships, Facebook 10 | N3 N3 | 11 N3 2019 N3 2019 PANELS PANELS FRIDAY, MAY 31 SATURDAY, JUNE 1

Plenary Sessions Career Track Plenary Sessions Career Track Breakout Sessions N3ConU and Student Events Breakout Sessions N3ConU and Student Events Skills Track Pre-registration Required Skills Track Pre-registration Required Subject to change. Go to n3con.com for full schedule. Subject to change. Go to n3con.com for full schedule.

5:30 PM - 6:30 PM BREAKOUT PANEL 9:30 AM - 10:30 PM PLENARY 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM BREAKOUT PANEL Journalism Startups: How They Made It China on the Rise The New Order in

Startups share new models for journalism, how they decided on their audience, what content China’s influence resonates throughout the Business and Trade they produce, and how they make it work in today’s diverse media landscape. Asia Pacific as it beomes a leading actor in the region’s trade and economy. It’s also Asia is quickly becoming the center of glob- Location: Meng Wah T2 Speakers playing a leading role in the region’s politics, al economic power. The region is home to sometimes a driver in the heart of a dispute some of the fastest-growing economies in and at other times, a critical political pow- the world and some of the world’s biggest Ross Settles Mike Raomanachai er broker. Thirty years after the Tiananmen and most promising corporations. This panel Administer, JMSC Media-X fund Bangkok Bureau Chief, Tech360.tv Square protests, what does China’s rise tell will allow attendees to share ideas in small us about the region’s economy, democracy groups with the region’s top reporters and and politics? editors on story angles you pursue now to reflect this dynamism and how to tell com- Joey Chung Angie Lau Location: Meng Wah T2 pelling business stories. The News Lens founder Journalist, Forkast.News Speakers Location: Meng Wah T2 Doris Dumlao-Abadilla Writing Editor, Philippine Daily Speakers Inquirer Enda Curran 5:30 PM - 6:30 PM WORKSHOP Senior Reporter, Bloomberg News Y. Joseph Lian Professor, Yamanashi Gakuin Uni- Career Workshop on Salary Negotiation versity Jenn Hughes Asia Finance Editor, Reuters Philip Pan Startups share new models for journalism, how they decided on their audience, what content Asia Editor, The New York Times they produce, and how they make it work in today’s diverse media landscape. Yuri Nagano Freelance reporter Location: Meng Wah T7 John Carter with Economics Editor, SCMP Elaine Kurtenbach, Ron Brown Asia Business Editor, Founder & President, Banks Brown Associated Press 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM WORKSHOP 4:00 PM - 5:30 PM WORKSHOP Voice is Power 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM NETWORKING Digital Tools for Participants can develop their ‘Presentation- al Persona’ and enhance their broadcast per- Journalists (Google) Bloomberg VIP Reception formance or public-speaking skills. Bloomberg is proud to host the VIP reception at AAJA-Asia’s 8th annual New.Now.Next Media Location: Meng Wah T3 PART TWO Conference. Come mingle with news leaders, conference speakers, attendees and sponsors. with Location: Meng Wah T3 Refreshments and appetizers will be served. RSVP for free when you buy your N3Con tickets. Arthur Samuel Joseph with Eoghan Sweeney Location: Bloomberg Hong Kong, 25th Floor Cheung Kong Centre, 2 Queens Rd. Central Founder & Chairman, Vocal Consultant and Trainer, Awareness Institute Google News Initiative 12 | N3 N3 | 13 N3 2019 N3 2019 PANELS PANELS

SATURDAY, JUNE 1 SATURDAY, JUNE 1

Plenary Sessions Career Track Plenary Sessions Career Track Breakout Sessions N3ConU and Student Events Breakout Sessions N3ConU and Student Events Skills Track Pre-registration Required Skills Track Pre-registration Required Subject to change. Go to n3con.com for full schedule. Subject to change. Go to n3con.com for full schedule.

12:00 PM - 1:30 PM BREAKOUT PANEL 1:30 PM - 2:30 PM PLENARY 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM BREAKOUT PANEL 4:30 PM - 5:30 PM WORKSHOP Launching Your The State of Press Using Social Media Secrets to Media Career Freedom in Asia to Mine for Stories in Compelling Videos Kick-starting your media career, whether in This panel takes a hard look at the issues a traditional newsroom or new media outlet, that undermine press freedom today, with China for News can be daunting, especially in an evolving journalists sharing how they stand up to au- Chinese citizens live and breathe online, Intimidated by video? Want to be better at media landscape. What are the skills (and thoritarian regimes. even though China’s Internet feels like a par- multimedia? This workshop-style panel is knowledge) that you need to navigate in this Location: Meng Wah T2 allel universe to the rest of the world. How aimed at helping you think more like a vid- landscape and be successful? Hear from two can reporters mine Chinese social media for eo-journalist, whether you’re a text corre- veterans in the news business and one of Speakers compelling characters and stories relevant spondent in need of the basics or a broad- the world’s foremost career coaches as you to audiences globally? caster interested shifting towards digital. chow down your lunch! Fernando Garcia Sepe Jr. Deputy Editor for Multimedia, ABS- Location: Meng Wah T2 Location: Meng Wah T2 CBN News Location: Meng Wah T2 Speakers Speakers Speakers Mark Zastrow Michael Anti Ron Brown AAJA Seoul Co-Vice President CEO, Globus Mantai Chow Founder & President, Banks Brown Senior Video Producer, South Chi- na Morning Post

Shirley Yam Sophia Qian Xu Journalist, Video Editor, and Social Angie Lau Vice Chairperson, HK Journalist Laurel Chor Media Trainer Journalist, Forkast.News Association Freelance Producer and Photographer Tom Grundy Ching-Ching Ni Editor-in-Chief and Co-Founder, Peter Wong Editor In Chief, New York Times Hong Kong Free Press Journalist, Portland Tribune Chinese Website

3:00 PM - 4:00 PM WORKSHOP N3Con food and drink sponsored by Visceral Language: Making Voice Visual An advanced Voice workshop on professional and effective vocal delivery. Mandatory: Prior attendance of Voice is Power workshop. Attendees need to come prepared by bringing two scripts and have tape ready to roll on your own devices. Location: Meng Wah T3 with Arthur Samuel Joseph Founder & Chairman, Vocal Awareness Institute 14 | N3 N3 | 15 N3 2019 N3 2019 PANELS PANELS SATURDAY, JUNE 1 SUNDAY, JUNE 2 Pre-register for advanced workshops and find more details online at n3con.com Plenary Sessions Career Track Breakout Sessions N3ConU and Student Events 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM WORKSHOP Skills Track Pre-registration Required Subject to change. Go to n3con.com for full schedule. AAJA-Asia Training Network Academy 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM NETWORKING Become a Google News Initiative trainer! The full-day workshop will equip you to use Goo- gle tools more effectively to research stories, track sources and break news. You will become a Google News Initiative-certified trainer, able to conduct similar training workshops for your newsrooms.

9:00 AM - 3:30 PM WORKSHOP Gala Dinner Empathy and Ethics in Crisis Reporting Gain insight into seeing the world through the eyes of those caught in conflict in this unique Awards Night & Silent Auction masterclass. In collaboration with the International Committee of the Red Cross, explore where After two days of thought-provoking discussions at N3Con 2019, the conversation continues at the work of journalists and humanitarians can overlap. the Gala Awards Night and Silent Auction on Saturday, June 1, at 7:00 PM. 9:00 AM - 2:00 PM WORKSHOP AAJA-Asia will be giving thousands of dollars’ worth of awards to the winners of the Columbia Journalism School fellowship, Google Digital Award, leadership fellowships and travel stipends. Investigative Reporting: Finding the Story in The dress code is smart casual. Guests can bid on the many silent auction items ranging from hotel stays to Coffee Bean subscriptions. All proceeds go to helping AAJA-Asia continue to Data (Advanced Workshop) provide scholarships, fellowships, and fantastic programming throughout the year including our student journalism programs, such as JCamp and VOICES, as well as professional programs Dig into data using Excel, looking for investigative stories in data. This session will show you not such as the Executive Leadership Program. only how to use the software, but how to approach data when looking for story ideas.

at 7:30 PM: we welcome N3Con’s second year of #StorySlam, an opportunity to take the stage Location: All advanced workshops at Bloomberg Hong Kong, 25th Floor Cheung Kong Centre to share an impactful story about their journey in journalism. Five finalists will present their sto- ries during the Gala Awards night to compete for the US$500 prize!

Location: Foreign Correspondents’ Club Hong Kong, North Block ISSUE 4 WRITERS SPONSORSHIP DIRECTORS Joe Pan / STIR Public Relations 2 Lower Albert Road, Central Bennett Marcus Bill Poorman N3Con Silent Auction sponsored by Carla Sapsford Newman SPECIAL THANKS Elaine Ramirez Adrian Ma / Holly Chik Glenn Van Zutphen Irene Jay Liu / Jay Hartwell Grace Lee Jennifer 8. Lee / Lau Joon-Nie Rebecca Isjwara / Maria Wood EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Harrison Linder Tom Benner Nile Bowie Scott Harris FOUNDING DESIGN DIRECTOR Sean Lim EDITOR Joshua Cameron Selina Cheng Elaine Sheila Berman Ramirez EDITORS Wendy Tang Frances Fernandes Zela Chin Cover Kat Bouza by Eric Kye Lee Koi ILLUSTRATORS Tostevin Yohan Yun Eric Tostevin / Edmund Ip and Joshua Yvette Sin / Heidi Lee Cameron 16 | N3 N3 | 17 N3 2019 N3 2019 The dominance of tech companies Southeast Asian journalism, art and voices, local voices telling stories such as Google and Facebook have, research, are prominent critics of that are important and meaningful Innovation, entrepreneurship, in part, devastated the American lo- legislation to combat online disin- to them. We are not a news orga- cal newspaper industry with their formation recently proposed by the nization,” Thum says. “We are a platforms becoming the front page government of Singapore, which movement, not a profit-making or- and new ways to make it in media for millions in the digital age. Their they say enables the city-state’s ganization, and producing news, services have absorbed a government ministers to producing information is one of the huge share of adver- become de facto ar- ways in which we promote democ- by Nile Bowie tising spending and biters of truth. racy.” many upstart illustrations by Eric Tostevin outlets now set “New Naratif About half of New Naratif’s running aside a budget basically is a costs are met by paid membership If popular narratives around the current state of to pay them movement subscriptions that start at US$52 per journalism are anything to go by, some might to grow their for democ- year, though 10 percent choose to argue that there is a contradiction at the audience. racy, free- pay above that figure to show their heart of the industry. There are reports of dom of in- support. Singaporeans make up the shrinking newsrooms, heighted job inse- While digital formation, largest contingent of the site’s near- curity, falling revenues for media orga- disruption freedom of ly 700 subscribers, though the most has helped to enquiring read articles on the site are actually nizations, and eulogies for truth. instantly sati- in Southeast those published in Bahasa Indone- Overall, much of the data avail- ate questioning Asia,” Thum sia. able paints a disquieting picture. minds by making told N3 Maga- news and informa- zine. Though he “This idea of a paywall and paying Others claim we’re living through a golden age tion vastly more acces- and Han are Singa- for news isn’t a habit for Southeast for reporting – especially in-depth reporting. In sible, the twin specters of au- poreans who reside in and Asia in general,” Han told N3 Mag- the United States, outlets such as the New York Times and thoritarianism and viral falsehoods work from the city-state, the pair azine. “The way our paywall works the Washington Post are reporting record numbers of digi- are putting new strains on journal- was unable to register New Naratif is that, if you go to the site directly, tal subscribers, while readership for digital native platforms ism. Some of the places most argu- as a legal entity in Singapore, com- there is a hard paywall, but mem- like BuzzFeed, Vox Media and Politico are in the tens of ably impacted by the consequences plicating their work as a young me- bers have unique URL that they can of these developments are countries dia startup. share that will allow non-members in Southeast Asia. to click through it and read. We “It all comes back to “They just shut us down entirely share these URLs ourselves. The region boasts some of the from the beginning by not allowing world’s highest internet penetra- us to register,” said Thum, a histo- “It is our way of compromising be- putting your reader tion rates. Its media space has tra- rian and former national swimmer. tween reminding people that this ditionally been dominated by lega- “We are under no illusions that we sort of work costs money, but not or user or audience cy media companies that are either have any leeway to operate. We wanting to block access to anyone government-owned, party-owned know that the government definite- because if we want to be a move- or are part of a non-media conglom- ly does not like us and has already ment for freedom of information we or viewer first.” erate. Governments there are also accused us of being ‘contrary to Sin- can’t have a hard paywall,” she said. tightening civic space by champion- gapore’s national interest’.” millions and growing. ing sweeping laws aimed at combat- New Naratif is one of several start- Even with competition from ing “fake news.” Launched in 2017, New Naratif is ups in the region pushing a read- social media feeds and registered in the United Kingdom er-revenue model. on-demand streaming enter- To get a better sense of how journal- and employs 16 total staff across tainment, record readership ism can meet the challenges of our the region, from Malaysia and In- “We’re seeing models being built suggests the public appetite for era, a look at how the region’s start- donesia to Cambodia and Vietnam. around crowdfunding, subscrip- news – be it long-form, video or ups are facing adversity, innovating “We don’t just do research articles tions, memberships, events – stuff podcast – continues to rise with their operations, and staying in the and long-form journalism. We do to address demand-side needs. It vigor. It follows, then, that prob- black can be instructive. comics, videos, podcasts, and photo couldn’t be more exciting,” said lems faced by journalism today essays. Everything goes out in the Rishad Patel, co-founder of Splice, don’t pertain to any lack of rel- Ping Tjin Thum and Kirsten Han, Southeast Asian language,” he said. a newsroom transformation con- evance, but with technology’s the founders of New Naratif, a mem- sultancy whose mission is to drive impact on business models. ber-funded multimedia website for “The goal is to have Southeast Asian radical transformational change by 18 | N3 STARTUPS N3 | 19 N3 2019 supporting bold, forward-looking voked, a move widely linked to a of Brunei, especially when people plying technology to the practice media startups in Asia. controversial story it published on aren’t used to paying for news. We of journalism and creating value MEDIA STARTUPS TO WATCH visa policies for Muslim pilgrims have an advertorial section and a for each and every user,” which – if “Subscription models are beginning that garnered complaints from the staff that runs that and (it is) our done right – she says “allows media IN SOUTHEAST ASIA to work well. The carnage we’re Saudi embassy. most profitable side of the business startups to scale almost immediate- seeing is with large organizations at the moment and a very successful ly.” that are trying to support infrastruc- “It wasn’t our intention to start revenue stream in a sense that peo- ture and teams to move inventory a new publication, it was more ple see the value in those kinds of “Technology is not only a distribu- ASIA TIMES fictional stories and sketches that was created to serve advertis- out of frustration that there write-ups,” she said. tion opportunity, but a structural Founded as a Bangkok broad- alongside more traditional jour- ing dollars that don’t exist any lon- wasn’t anything worthwhile one for media. Content will drive sheet newspaper in 1995, Asia nalistic features and analysis. ger,” Patel said. He points to “de- coming up in the space,” said “Usually, we work with companies engagement, and increasingly will Times came under new man- sign-thinking” as an exercise media that want to promote events or prod- be the basis of the relationship be- agement and relaunched as an Ain Bandial, one of the Scoop’s NEW NARATIF firms can use to make an impact on ucts launching soon, and corporate tween you and your audience. The all-digital pan-continental news co-founders. “As small as it is, Described by its founder as a their operations. entities. Traditional web-banner ad- vision is in thinking how do we as site in 2016. It publishes coun- “vertically integrated democ- our organization wanted to vertising is not as popular. journalists evolve this journey we’ve try-specific geopolitical and create that culture where re- racy movement,” this Singa- “Some of the best work that media all been a part of,” said Lau, a former business news in English and pore-based member-funded re- porters felt they had the free- organizations can do is when they “I think everyone knows that media president of the AAJA Asia Chapter. numerous Asian languages from gional media startup publishes put their audiences first. More - of dom to pursue the kind of sto- in Brunei practices self-censorship three newsrooms across Asia. long-form journalism, comics, ten than not, when a media startup ries they wanted to do.” and we have to act within the con- Like their counterparts in the West, videos, and podcasts in English identifies a community, sees a spe- straints of the law, but we always audiences in Southeast Asia – es- FORKAST.NEWS and in a variety of Southeast cific need, and tests a media prod- The Scoop was established as a news want to try to push the envelope to pecially the millennial demograph- A digital media platform whose Asian languages. Founded in uct to address that need, they are website in September 2017, but has give voice to issues that are under- ic – are making use of journalism mandate is to provide defin- September 2017, it aims to able to create real value — and a since branched into doing weekly represented or not represented in and are growing more willing to itive coverage on all things build a community of readers media product that an audience is internet radio segments, YouTube mainstream media,” she said. “Our speak with their wallets to support blockchain, DLT, and crypto- across the region. willing to pay for,” he said. videos, as well as a recent foray into mission really is to inform our com- it. While business models are bound currency in a way that anyone physical publishing with a colorful munity and empower citizens to be to local contexts, the tactics and te- can understand. The Forkast. SAIGONEER “Identifying a user group, assessing print magazine. “Print rev- engaged.” nacity of the region’s startups hint News editorial team, based in Operating in one of the region’s needs, prototyping a media prod- enue can still be in- at remedies to the current media in- Hong Kong, is made up of both most restrictive media environ- uct to test assumptions, and refin- credibly lucrative The number of dustry malaise. veteran award-winning jour- ments, English-language news ing it iteratively with continuous in Brunei, where unique visitors nalists and blockchain industry site Saigoneer covers happen- feedback loops can create opera- old mind-sets to the Scoop as “This is truly the golden age of me- experts. ings in Saigon, or Ho Chi Minh tional efficiencies that involve small tend to dom- already sur- dia,” Patel believes. “The gatekeep- City, Vietnam’s largest city. cost structures and, if done well, inate,” she passed the ers are gone, the capital investment MALAYSIAKINI Blending lighthearted content high-value product lines that create told N3 population structures don’t necessarily matter A pioneering online news portal with hard news, the outlet actual communities. Magazine. of Brunei any longer, and advertising isn’t the and most of only game in town. Massive tracts covering Malaysian news and launched a weekly podcast last politics seen by many as laying year offering in-depth discus- The Scoop, a digital native media Apart from their traffic of mediocre content for faceless, the template for digital news sions on Vietnamese society and startup in Brunei, is a firm that dealing comes from nameless McConsumers aren’t the in Asia. Founded in 1999, the culture. straddles old and new models at with editori- Instagram. answer any longer. subscription-based news outlet once. As the tiny sultanate’s first al constraints 60 percent of has won numerous journalism digital-only English news outlet, it and a press its audience is “It all comes back to putting your THE SCOOP awards and set itself apart in also positions itself as Brunei’s first freedom deficit, between 18 to reader or user or audience or view- For Southeast Asia watchers, the Malaysian media landscape media brand for millennials. It was Ain said the main 34. Though these er first.” self-funded English language with its independent reportage. founded by four female reporters challenge is perfecting figures speak for- au news website the Scoop is a who worked together as staff for the the right business model to dience behaviour in one window into Brunei, one of the now-defunct broadsheet, the Brunei achieve financial sustainability. The of region’s smallest countries, the Nile Bowie is an American journalist MEKONG REVIEW region’s least reported-on coun- Times. young startup employs 6 full time takeaway is they look fairly consis- and correspondent for Asia Times, A quarterly magazine found- tries. Since its establishment in editorial staff and has managed to tent with others in the region and an all-digital outlet dedicated to ed in 2015 which covers the September 2017, the Scoop has Once a competitor to the Borneo stay in the black by funding its oper- beyond. Asian political, economic and secu- Mekong countries of Cambo- branched out into doing weekly Bulletin, the country’s oldest print ations entirely through advertising rity news. He is based in Singapore dia, Vietnam, Thailand, Laos internet radio segments and publication and currently the only and sponsored content. Rising digital reader engagement, and reports on current affairs in Ma- and Myanmar. The Phnom YouTube videos. They published English language newspaper in cir- says Angie Lau, founder and edi- laysia, Singapore and Brunei, as well Penh-based literary publication their first print magazine in culation, the Brunei Times folded “A subscription-based model is re- tor-in-chief at Forkast.News, under- as international relations, trade and carries essays, poetry, reviews, February. after its publishing license was re- ally difficult in a market the size scores new opportunities for “ap- diplomacy across Southeast Asia. 20 | N3 N3 | 21 ial projects barely related to journalism but that will go off to start media businesses. But if they push me to see innovation in media through prod- enter the newsroom, they will have a fresh per- Startup experience, uct development. spective for studying a media outlet’s audience, tailoring the content and distribution channels to Of course, there were costs to consider, and many them, and working with teams from tech devel- aspects of the experience did not live up to my ex- opers and audience analysts to the editors and re- grad school, and opening pectations. The diversity pipeline problem is fully porters to realize the best ways to reach their con- exposed in the faculty at Medill, where I did not sumers. Having more people knowledgeable about take a single class by a tenured professor who was the product and business sides of journalism brings female or a person of color. Although our interim more minds to the table to use creative approaches up new opportunities in dean is a black man, diverse faculty members are to address the systemic problems of faltering me- few and far between. dia companies.

Compared to Northwestern University as a whole, I don’t know if or how this degree will pay off, but media entrepreneurship Medill has the whitest tenured faculty at 82 per- it has given me new opportunities to challenge my cent, according the university’s 2017 diversity re- leadership skills and to network with inspiring en- by Elaine Ramirez port. Some cohorts such as sports have mostly white trepreneurs in the field. Now I’m less bound to my male students, while others like mine are interna- past and have new tools to choose my future. Grad tional Asian and female, and there is minimal inte- school isn’t for everyone, but those who are con- gration of students from different specializations. sidering it should evaluate what they want from Moreover, no diversity scholarships are offered to the experience, where they hope it will land them, As soon as I obtained my undergraduate journalism While I was comfortable covering technology and graduate students, and I can list by memory every the added value of each particular school such as degree, I knew my career path would stray from entrepreneurship as a freelancer in South Korea, I black, Hispanic and Asian American student in a alumni network or location, and what they must the beaten trail. The desire to experience the world needed more, and a pivot would require drastic ac- class of 140. My own scholarship covered about leave behind to take this step. For me it was the overpowered any need to find a conventional en- tion. Medill School of Journalism’s media innova- one-third of the estimated cost of $100,000; the opportunity, if I chose it, for a fresh start. try-level reporting job in the dying U.S. media in- tion and entrepreneurship degree at Northwestern rest was doled out in loans. International students dustry, which at the time was badly hit by the Great University in the U.S. attracted me with its lessons are expected to pay the entirety on their own. Recession. So I did the most reasonable thing: I in the fundamentals of business and technology Elaine Ramirez is a journalist and fled the country, first to Chile, then to South Korea. through the lens of content innovation. My program was created specifically for journal- founding editor of N3 Magazine. ists who don’t want to pursue the path of report- Because I took an unconventional path, I was thrust Compared to other reputable programs at Berkeley er to editor to whatever comes next as defined by into roles I didn’t believe I deserved. I went from and Missouri, the program was relatively short -- the traditional trajectory. My classmates with starting an indie culture website in Chile to edit- four quarters -- and gave me exactly what I wanted: at least five years of work experience had ing an English-language newspaper in South Korea a comprehensive experience exploring the gears the most to gain from this perspective. and running an expat print magazine on the side. working behind the scenes, considering innovative Does a master’s degree give me the an- Through my experience leading these publications, business models, and thinking about content from swers to solve dying news? Certainly I found that I contributed the most value not in the the perspective of the reader rather than the editor. not, but it has shown me frameworks stories I wrote, but in the editorial vision I helped Medill also prides itself on its unique alumni net- like user-centered design and agile others achieve. work, through which I’ve connected with inspiring development that help me consider journalists from reporters to engagement editors how content businesses can be more It was not until I was forced to reckon with the and CEOs at all types of publications. responsive to financial turmoil of a print magazine that Ireal- audiences and ized I was still ill-prepared for the leadership roles Best of all, I was able to apply and enroll within changing mar- I sought. AAJA’s Executive Leadership Program in months thanks to coincidental timing. Through my ket conditions. 2018 pushed me come to terms with who I was, program’s activities in Chicago, San Francisco and what I valued and what I wanted, and as soon as New York, I’ve been able to connect with like-mind- Few people, if I walked out the door of that five-day workshop, I ed people who care about making journalism sus- any, in began searching for new paths toward my goals. tainable and exploring ways to do it, expand my this pro- storytelling toolkit, and take part in entrepreneur- gram 22 | N3 N3 | 23 N3 2019 N3 2019 PANELS PANELS

media figures critical of the Rodrigo Duterte gov- Ressa points to the level of harassment against Maria Ressa, ernment. her and her organization as a clear indication of the government’s intentions: 11 cases filed against When Duterte was sworn in as president in 2016, Rappler and Ressa in 14 months. he threw down the gauntlet: “Just because you’re Rappler, and a journalist, you are not exempted from assassina- “I was forced to post bail eight times in two months. tion, if you’re a son of a bitch. Freedom of expres- I was arrested two times in five weeks,” she says. sion cannot help you if you have done something “I was targeted and harassed. But it isn’t just me. wrong.” There have been consistent and sustained attacks Government against independent media.” Three Philippine journalists were assassinated this year, “most likely by agents working for local poli- When journalists are labeled terrorists or enemies ticians, who can have reporters silenced with com- of the state, or charged with sedition or other Assault on plete impunity,” Reporters Without Borders says. trumped-up charges, the war on the press has en- Politicians attacking journalists and journalism has tered a new dangerous phase. Rights can be sus- become commonplace. pended, and in the name of national security, trials are less than fair and imprisonment lengthy. Media At the center of this storm stands Rappler, whose by Carla Sapsford Newman editor Maria Ressa was recently arrested on sedi- illustration by Edmund Ip tion charges -- allegedly for using foreign money to attempt a coup against the Duterte regime. “This “Just because you’re a is a critical juncture,” Ressa says, “ the weaponiza- tion of social media and abuse of power and use of journalist, you are not the law against us.” Press freedom is under attack worldwide. In Asia, exempted from assassi- some worrying strains of social media weaponiza- “The Philippines government is weaponizing ev- tion by heads of state have reached new levels of ery aspect of law it can find to attack Maria Ressa nation, if you’re a son of sophistication. and Rappler,” says Phil Robertson of Human Rights Watch. “They want to harass and retaliate against a bitch. Freedom of ex- Trolling of prominent journalists by state proxies her, shut down her investigative team and silence has become commonplace and increasingly the website’s independent journalist voice.” All be- threatening. In the Philippines, “astroturf- cause Rappler dares call out the egregious rights pression cannot help you ing” -- state agents or proxies abuses in Duterte’s so-called “war on drugs,” he pretending to be grass- says. if you have done some- roots advocates -- has been increasingly ef- “Let no one doubt that this a sustained assault thing wrong.” fective in attacking against freedom of the press in the Philippines,” Robertson says, “and Maria and her team are on the barricades fighting for the This is a most dangerous time to be a journalist, rights of an independent Ressa says. Journalists elsewhere who think they press.” won’t be affected should think again.

24 | N3 N3 | 25 N3 2019 N3 2019 PANELS PANELS The demise of Initially Ressa and fellow journalists laughed at a ing success in places such as Malaysia. recent government “Oust Duterte Matrix” when a government spokesman that alleged they were In the Philippines throughout the region, for- Hong Kong’s free press plotting to oust the president. eign-funded media outlets are increasingly brand- ed as mouthpieces of foreign powers or purveyors “We all poo pooed it. But a week later, they ar- of “fake news.” Social media conspiracy theories 2018-2019 TIMELINE rest this guy and he’s charged with inciting and examples of astroturfing abound, and govern- sedition for sharing a video,” Ressa says. ments have become more sophisticated in their “There is the possibility for more ar- war on the free press. 1 JULY 2018 rests.” The Hong Kong-China Liaison Office was report- The Philippine law against sedition is not unique in during a meeting with Hong Kong media chiefs. ed to have met with local media chiefs request- Muainstream media outlets removed the quote Fellow journalist and profes- Asia -- many governments across the region have ing that their publications refrain from quoting from their coverage shortly after without expla- sor at Columbia University’s similar laws on the books. In times of significant commentators who were “anti-China.” nation. It was reported that the Hong Kong-Chi- Graduate School of Journal- criticism against the power structure, these laws na Liaison Office had requested news outlets ism Sheila Coronel recently are invoked to arrest and silence journalists and 5 JULY 2018 make the amendment. wrote that mainstream Filipi- their outlets. A management-level editorial staffmember at no journalists have called RTHK, Hong Kong’s public broadcaster, was 2 NOVEMBER 2018 attacks on Rappler In Singapore, a government move to criminalize reported to have asked a reporter not to quote Self-exiled Chinese artist Badiucao’s exhibition, and others “tools ‘fake news’ has garnered international attention. comments by veteran HK-China affairs commen- organized by independent non-profit news outlet to advance U.S. he- The Singaporean ‘Protection from Online False- tator Lau Yui Siu because he was “anti-China.” Hong Kong Free Press, was canceled. Organiz- gemony over hoods and Manipulation’ bill, introduced in Parlia- ers said it was the result of threats that Chinese Filipino con- ment on April 1, 2019, was widely criticized as a 3 AUGUST 2018 authorities made to the artist. sciousness.” threat to free expression. Beijing officials in Hong Kong attempted to block pro-independence activist Andy Chan from 8 NOVEMBER 2018 The Philippine Center for The United Nations Human Rights Committee de- speaking at Hong Kong’s Foreign Correspon- Public art space Tai Kwun canceled an invitation Investigative Journalism scribed the criminal prosecution of libel in the Phil- dents’ Club. to Chinese author Ma Jian, who was scheduled (PCIJ) is another indepen- ippines as “excessive” and in violation of the In- to speak during the Hong Kong Literary Festival. dent organization under investigation, says ternational Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 23 AUGUST 2018 It rescinded the decision following public outcry. Former Hong Kong chief executive Chun Ying Coronel. of which the Philippines is a signatory. The coun- 21 FEBRUARY 2019 try ranks 134 globally in terms of press freedom, Leung publicly criticized the Hong Kong Foreign Correspondents’ Club for hosting a talk by Andy “As an independent, donor-funded nonprofit, PCIJ down one spot from last year. The funeral of Li Rui, veteran Chinese reformist Chan, and called for termination of the Club’s and personal secretary to Mao Zedong, was con- is freed from both commercial pressures and the land lease. spicuously absent from the prime-time evening business interests of media proprietors,” Coronel “The international community must stand firm newscast of Hong Kong’s largest public broad- says. “(However) raising funds from local foun- against this assault,” says Robertson of Human 4 OCTOBER 2018 caster TVB. Management allegedly ordered the dations or business groups could be fraught be- Rights Watch. “If Duterte has his way, the Philip- Hong Kong denied a visa renewal for Financial funeral to be excluded at the request of Hong cause they are all tied to local political or business pines media will be reduced to drug war cheer- Times journalist and Hong Kong Foreign Corre- Kong-China Liaison Office because Li had been groups.” leaders and his remaining critics will be relegated spondents’ Club Vice President Victor Mallet. critical of Xi Jinping. to remote corners of social media where they can Emboldened by a lack of response from tradition- monitored and attacked by troll armies that many 17 OCTOBER 2018 22 MARCH 2019 al external human rights critics such as the United believe are beholden to the government.” Singtao CEO and Publisher Siu Sai Wo quoted Former Hong Kong chief executive Chun Ying States, leaders across Asia are cracking down on the Communist Party’s Propaganda Department Leung publishes daily Facebook posts to high- media and arresting their biggest critics. Similar chief Huang Kunming for saying, “Beijing hopes light full-page ads on Apple Daily. He publicly government efforts to bring down “opposition” Carla Sapsford Newman is a member of the Asian Hong Kong media will not become a political urged advertisers not to advertise on Hong media use the foreign funding charge with increas- American Journalists Association. basecamp for interfering with mainland politics” Kong’s most circulated, anti-establishment daily.

26 | N3 N3 | 27 N3 2019 N3 2019 ported that Huang had said he hoped Hong Kong media would not be- The demise of Hong Kong’s free come a base for interfering with mainland politics.

Several publications later removed press at the hands of Beijing, its the quote from their coverage, without explanation. Hong Kong’s Cable TV delet- ed the original live video from its Facebook government, and its own page.

by Selina Cheng Hong Kong news publishers have long had a work- publishers ing relationship with Beijing officials, if not a com- pliant one. But the Hong Kong government’s latest push for a fugitive transfer bill with the Mainland and Taiwan maybe the death knell to what used to Lam be a free press. was For the first time in Hong Kong’s history, the gov- claimed that the Club event was illegal. taken ernment has denied both a work and a tourist visa Once passed, the government will allow the trans- across the to veteran journalist Victor Mallet, who was also Mallet says he was set to move to Paris this year, fer of fugitives for trial and detention in mainland border by the Hong Kong Foreign Correspondents’ Club’s so the visa denial only expedited his relocation. China on a case-by-case basis. Chinese secu- (FCC) vice president. He believes that worse thing could happen to a rity agents, but journalist, but nevertheless worried, “It is the first Shirley Yam, vice president of the Hong Kong Jour- after he returned An escalating series of events caused the Financial time this has happened in Hong Kong,” he says. “It nalists Association, says the Chinese government to Hong Kong for a Times’ Asia editor’s effective expulsion: Shortly af- would not be surprising in China’s context, but it is has a history of harassing journalists with criminal short stay, he defied ter the Hong Kong government officially banned in Hong Kong.” charges irrelevant to their work, such as drug pos- orders to return to the the Hong Kong National Party in late September session or smuggling, to stop them reporting or de- Mainland. As of this writ- 2018, the Club announced that it would invite Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam issued a taining and interrogating them about their sources. ing, Lam has fled to Taiwan Andy Chan to speak at a Club luncheon. Chan statement that immigration matters are decided Such charges will be covered by the amendment. in self-imposed exile. founded the city’s first political party advocating autonomously within Hong Kong and as a rule, the for independence from China. The party was virtu- government does not comment on individual im- Under the new bill, “Sources and their contacts “If I am the bureau head of an ally unknown among the local community prior to migration cases. “I think that’s nonsense,” Mallet will hesitate to pass any sensitive information to international medium in Hong the ban. Indeed, it was unclear whether it had any says. journalists in Hong Kong,” says Yam. This will ef- Kong,” says Yam, “I will certainly be members apart from Chan. fectively stifle critical or politically sensitive stories seriously thinking about if Hong Kong “This has been bad for Hong Kong’s reputation,” on China. a good place for the Asia bureau.” They will A week later, Hong Kong Free Press, a crowdfund- he says, “because it suggests Hong Kong is not as consider whether journalists safe to report on Chi- ed non-profit news site, broke the story that the autonomous as it claims.” In the past year, the Hong Kong government has na from Hong Kong, he says, and whether editors Hong Kong office of the Chinese Ministry of For- aggressively pushed for laws to restrict freedom may lose their working visa at any time. eign Affairs tried to block the Club from hosting While Beijing may interfere with freedom of ex- of expression, including the national anthem law, Chan. The club stood its ground and faced intense pression in Hong Kong, it has long been known which prohibits insulting the anthem or using it for Although the Journalists Association has called the backlash. The city’s former top official Chun Ying that local media chiefs meet with Beijing officials, parody or commercial purposes, and the fugitive bill “a sword hanging over the head of journalists,” Leung claimed that hosting the event would be il- sometimes directly relaying their message for the transfer bill. On the other hand, Yam says, the gov- Yam says that it’s worrying that the industry doesn’t legal, and even called on the government to termi- media. ernment has barely engaged with advocates who seem to be bothered by what’s going on. “The man- nate the Club’s below-market-rate lease. have long campaigned for the archives law and the agement and the editors (of Hong Kong media) are In October 2018, publishers from Hong Kong’s access to information law, which protect freedom silent,” she says. “This really bothers me.” Within days, Victor Mallet, who hosted the event mainstream press traveled to Beijing for a meeting of expression and of the press. as acting president of the Club, found that his with Communist Party Propaganda Department work visa had not been renewed. Mallet doesn’t Chief Huang Kunming. During an interview after- Lam Wing Kee, one of the five Hong Kong book- believe the threat was personal but “a form of pun- ward, Siu Sai Wo, the head of one of Hong Kong’s sellers kidnapped and detained in the Mainland for Selina Cheng is a journalist based in Hong Kong. ishment,” noting that the government had never largest media groups, Singtao News Corps, re- publishing books critical of China’s top leadership. 28 | N3 N3 | 29 N3 2019 N3 2019 mean. For example, ‘tapas’ might be ability to communicate in a written have male and female. That’s why mouse and plate: so mouse plate, form is through what they can pick they added it, in part because Amer- small plate is tapas. and choose on the emoji keyboard. icans care about race so much. It gets really interesting because AAJA: What about more personal the universe of what you know to descriptors? exist is in the context of this emoji keyboard: whether you see certain J8L: The major missing emoji is that food, whether you see women’s flat there’s no word for ‘I,’ and no word shoes, any kind of clothes, are very The little ideogram that could: for ‘you.’ That’s actually a problem micro representative of the universe in terms of linguistics; sometimes that you know to exist. I care very there’s a sort of up arrow and down much about this. how emoji are changing the face arrow, to represent I and you, or they will do finger point left, fin- AAJA: What about the ability to AAJA: I think it’s kind of cool ger point right. But what seems to choose the color of your ‘thumbs though. My wife is fair-skinned be emerging is that people are us- up,’ for example. It’s getting tricky African-American, so our kids are of 21st-century communication ing the human figures to represent to know what exact color to use. cappuccino. The different skin by Glenn van Zutphen themselves. I used the pale girl with tones really work for our family. the dark hair to represent me. What J8L: Originally emoji were supposed People should feel like they can you’re seeing is a lot of demand. to have no skin color. Different sys- relate to emoji, right? Jennifer 8. Lee, champion of more inclusive and representative emoji, The people trying to say the word ‘I’ tems chose different generic colors and the way they’re trying to pursue to be in neutrals. Apple choose yel- J8L: Now interracial couples are discusses the long journey from idea to DDD. skin color. low, Microsoft choose grey -- which coming to emoji. People love this is really creepy, like if you really look topic. We have to add many new Emoji. The little representations of onboard in 2015 when it named ers, for final approval. at the old Microsoft emoji, they look characters to cover all of the com- everything from our current state the ‘Face with Tears of Joy’ emoji like the monsters that hid under- binations and it gets complicated of mind to common objects, plac- as the Word of the Year. Its presi- AAJA: What are the challenges neath your bed! First of all, they’re as we add characters for male-male es, weather, animals, what we ate dent Casper Grathwohl said at the and the goals around representa- grey and they also have pointy ears. or female-female in order to be today, and even what our relation- time, “Traditional alphabet scripts tion. They look like aliens, and that went non-gender binary. And as society ships look like. Originally meaning have been struggling to meet the against being neutral. But in Ameri- evolves, we see non-gendered old- pictograph, the word emoji comes rapid-fire, visually focused demands J8L: There’s debate about whether ca, yellow is the Simpsons (cartoon) er adults, non-gendered children from Japanese and translates into of 21st Century communication. It’s emoji are actually counted as a lan- which is actually kind of white. Peo- so the number of characters keeps “picture” plus “character.” not surprising that a pictographic guage. Let’s look at why. What are ple do complain about skin color, growing. In terms of a single Uni- script like emoji has stepped in to emoji good at? They are good at Hair is another big thing: redheads but this is the kind of the beauty of code decision triggering the most The first set of emoji was released by fill those gaps -- it’s flexible, imme- nouns which are objects. They are so passionate and so angry that there Unicode, where anyone can propose number of characters, gender neu- J-Phone in 1997. It included 90 of diate, and infuses tone beautifully.” good at verbs which involve nouns were no redheads, or curly hair, or changes. trality has been huge. them, but the phone was expensive Now a simple surf to emojipedia.org and objects. So, to sing you have a beards. It is part of this very organic and not widely adopted. Two years unfolds the universe of ideograms. microphone, to skateboard there is demand of saying ‘I.’ Chromatically, There was a black mother in Tex- AAJA: What about the blended later Japanese artist Shigetaka Ku- a skateboard. But verbs are little bit it becomes very interesting. as, Katrina Parrott, whose daughter families? rita created the first widely used set At the March 2019 Google News- tricky; how would you say the word was 14 years old and came home of 176 emoji while working on NTT geist Un-Conference in Singapore, ‘to cheat’ in emoji? How would you AAJA: Can’t you just use the eye one day and said, “You know, I real- J8L: We really want skin tones ap- DoCoMo’s i-mode mobile Internet Jennifer 8. Lee talked about these say the noun ‘growth?’ emoji? ly like to see myself represented in plied to families because right now platform. It is said he was inspired little friends. The American jour- emoji.” So she learned what emoji you can only be a yellow family, and by several things: symbols used in nalist, author, and producer is also Emoji also are very good at emotion- J8L: It doesn’t always work in lan- were and she did this big proposal black families and other families are weather forecasts, Chinese charac- a vice-chair of the Unicode Emoji al states. Happy, sad-type adjectives guages that are not English. that basically ended up introducing agitated about that because they ters, street signs, and stock symbols Subcommittee. The subcommittee that are descriptive of emotional skin tones. don’t see themselves represented in used in manga comic books. Kuri- meets every week to consider all states. They’re also good at very in- AAJA: The use of and creativity the keyboard. But the combinatoric ta’s original set is now part of the manner of emoji challenges and to teresting subsets of adjectives and around emoji must certainly be I think what’s interesting is America explosion around families across all permanent collection at New York’s recommend new ones. Lee helped colors, for example. One of the re- generational? is probably the most obsessed about the skin tones is really a challenge. Museum of Modern Art. to get the dumpling and hijab emoji ally interesting things about adjec- race. The Americans said, “No it’s I’ve seen different calculations. But passed, for example. The subcom- tives is that you see people being J8L: Yes. We have a generation of really, really important to users. So, it’s something like 4,500 and 50 plus It’s hard to imagine our current tex- mittee then makes recommenda- creative: small becomes mouse, big kids who are going to read and write you have to add six (color) charac- change-combinations if you have ting lives without these little giants tions to the Unicode Consortium is elephant, slow is a snail or turtle. emoji, before they can read or write ters for every one character and re- all the family combinations: two of visual communication. Even the Technical Committee, which main- It can become more complex as you their native language. Their first ally now 12 characters, because we parents, one kid; two parents, two acclaimed Oxford Dictionaries came tains text standards across comput- analyze what emoji combinations 30 | N3 N3 | 31 Warner Bros.

N3 2019 N3 2019 kids; one parent, one kid; one par- AAJA: Tell us about the mosquito. ent, two kids; five skin tones across everything and genders across ev- J8L: The mosquito was really im- EVOLUTION erything. It’s complicated. portant to us and the Gates Foun- dation from a public health perspec- The reason why there were no skin tive. Like if you’re a public health OF EMOJI tones to begin with is that they official and you are trying -to com started in Japan where everyone municate with people who speak in- 1999 is basically kind of the same color. digenous minority languages in the So Westerners are conveyed by the regions where malaria is definite- Emoji are born! The orig- blonde person; there is also a char- ly an issue. One of the other areas inal set includes icons for acter which is called blonde mean- that we are focusing on is from a the weather, traffic, tech- ing kind of like Gaijin or Western healthcare perspective. Oftentimes nology, and time. and that is a hard coded character you have doctors who can’t commu- because that was the original Japa- nicate with their patients in a spo- nese emoji set. Then there is a man ken language in a critical situation. 2010 Crazy Rich Asians and the in a turban who is supposed to rep- We’re trying to figure out the set of resent an Indian person. And then emoji that is most helpful from a Unicode officially adopts there is a man with a little kind of healthcare perspective. emoji, adding hundreds hat and he is supposed to represent more—like cat faces emot- cultural reactions that follow it a Chinese person. AAJA: Who joins the emoji com- mittee? ing happiness, anger, and And that was how you conveyed tears. what was the Japanese notion of J8L: Companies pay $18,000 a year by Bennett Marcus identity and race back in those days. to have full voting privileges on Uni- You have blonde people which are code Consortium, though it’s about 2015 I read Crazy Rich Asians, portrayal of Asians in Western pop by Henry Golding’s polished British Western. You have Indian people to go up. But anyone can join the Emoji get a diversity up- the first novel in Kevin culture, diversity, and the bashing intonations. Instead, it was the sin- in a very kind of stereotypical way, Unicode Consortium as a non-voting date with five new skin of stereotypes, I didn’t know where gular portrayal of a very real issue and you have Chinese people. There individual. You pay $75 and you’re Kwan’s best-selling trilo- to start. I adored the movie, and the many Asian-Americans encounter. were no black people in that version on the email list and can show up tones and a set of same-sex books, because they are great enter- I was overwhelmed at the sight of but that is their world divided into on the meetings. To get on the sub- couples. gy, in January 2016 while tainment, and could go on at length an Asian-American-centric story on like four little pockets. committee involves some level of visiting Hong Kong. It was about that. However, I’m not Asian. the big screen for the first time in a doing work and being willing to do my first time in Asia; my husband generation.” We decided the skin tones on the an hour and a half phone call ev- 2016 had accepted a job in Hong Kong, My first thought was to gather com- Fitzpatrick skin system which is a ery weekend 8 am Pacific Standard Updates give rise to the and we’d soon be moving from ments from Asian-American culture “For me, the true star of Crazy Rich dermatological system based on Time. It is through persistence and single dad, pride flag, and our home in New York. The book journalists, but as I conducted re- Asians is its inversion of racial ex- how likely you are to get skin can- doing work you can get on the sub- had been on my list; now I really search, I found that there had al- pectation,” Jiayang Fan wrote in The cer. They took that and they applied committee; it helps if you bring a weightlifting woman emoji. should read it, I thought, and see if ready been quite a bit written on New Yorker, adding that when she it to emoji. diverse viewpoint, whether through it showed what people are like here. this topic. That alone tells me how was a child, Asians would tune in profession or a region of the world. important this mainstream Holly- to TV shows like “Dynasty” or “Dal- AAJA: Does it really matter that We need more designers. We need 2017 Kwan has a genius for humorous wood romcom with its all-Asian cast las” to see the world of America’s we might have hundreds of color more linguists. It’s cool because you New emoji proposals sug- storytelling; the book is a comic was to Asian-Americans. superrich. “The reversal, in Crazy combinations? I mean, who really can do something that impacts bil- gest characters to convey tour-de-force, and despite my jet Rich Asians, in which the audience cares … just give people options. lions of keyboards. lag, I devoured it in a couple of days. In Variety, Audrey Cleo Yap wrote is made to feel like an interloper vy- information across lan- (Now that I live here, of course, I that she found herself tearing up ing for a glimpse of Asia’s glittering J8L: It doesn’t matter on our fancy guage and culture, like haven’t met anyone remotely like partway through Crazy Rich Asians. class, is what makes the movie, as iOS or Android phones. It does mat- a mosquito to represent those wildly rich characters, but if It was an emotional experience, she many critics have deemed it, a land- ter on the $50 entryphone in Ugan- Glenn van Zutphen is an AAJA-Asia illnesses like malaria and any are reading this, I’m game for a explained, “not just because of how mark.” She wondered what it would da because those the emoji charac- member and a journalist based in ride on your private jet.) funny Ken Jeong and Awkwafina have been like to watch this movie ters are a heavy load — from font Singapore. Zika. are every time either is on-screen. at the age of 12 or 18. size to their memory size. It really When I was tasked with writing this Or because I could hear Michelle matters to them and it’s hard to find (Source: Wired Magazine) piece about the cultural significance Yeoh’s subtle Malaysian accent jux- The movie “subverts our expecta- a standard UX fix across devices. of the 2018 movie version, Asian taposed with Constance Wu’s dis- tions of the traditional West-East representation in Hollywood, the tinctly American one punctuated power dynamic, as the fantastical 32 | N3 N3 | 33 N3 2019

wealth of Asia’s elite families makes contemporary, stylish, at the top of Hong Kong’s most powerful family, searching for an ‘American Dream’ art and fashion, emotional, funny, and “The Emperor of Malibu,” a CBS seem almost provincial in compari- sarcastic and unapologetic. Confi- comedy about a newly-rich family son,” said Suyin Haynes in Time. dent.” from Shanghai and an old-money The CRA team realized that there US family forced to co-exist when Mark Tseng-Putterman put it suc- was a lot riding on the success of their children marry. the movie. “We can sugarcoat it all cinctly in The Atlantic: “The ex- we want, but the moment you bring An article in the South China Morn- travagance of Crazy Rich up an Asian-led movie, there’s one ing Post pointed out that despite Asians reflects a self-con- example to point to, and that’ll be earlier successful all-Asian pro- us,” said Chu. “To be on the biggest ductions like “The Joy Luck Club” scious announcement of stage with the biggest stakes, that’s (1993) and “Crouching Tiger, Hid- the Asian-American arriv- what we asked for.” den Dragon” (2000), such an ‘Asian wave’ has never materialized in Hol- al on the Hollywood stage.” And already this breakout hit has lywood cinema. boosted the careers of some of the Even the cast members got emo- lesser-known cast members. Sure, Yet the hit ABC sitcom “Fresh Off tional. “We’ve all been ‘that Asian’ Ken Jeong, Michelle Yeoh and Con- the Boat,” about a Taiwanese-Amer- on set at one point. That dynamic stance Wu have had plenty of work, ican family living in Florida, is now didn’t exist here,” Awkwafina, the but Henry Golding, who was plucked in its fifth season. Adapted from Korean/Chinese-American who from obscurity to play CRA’s lead- Eddie Huang’s memoir of the same played Rachel’s best friend, told the ing man Nick Young, has since shot name and starring Constance Wu Hollywood Reporter. She teared up movies alongside Western stars like and Randall Park, the show is popu- while watching dailies, saying, “I’ve Anna Kendrick, Blake Lively, Emma lar, I’d guess, because it’s funny. never seen myself as a character in Thompson, Matthew McConaughey a movie.” and Michelle Dockery. Like Kwan, Huang is brilliant, a multi-hyphenate writer, television “I’m so used to being the token When Awkwafina hosted Saturday personality, restaurateur and law- that I forgot how much it meant Night Live in October, she recalled yer with a gift for telling stories that to have your people around you,” camping outside the NBC Studios as people want to hear. Despite lip ser- said Filipino-American Nico Santos, a kid 18 years ago, when Lucy Liu, vice and movements like #MeToo who plays a cousin. “I didn’t have and #OscarsSoWhite, it’s not race, her idol, hosted. “I remember an Asian crew I rolled with until I religion, gender, sexual orientation found Crazy Rich Asians.” how important that epi- or nationality that hold sway in sode was for me, and how Hollywood, it’s money. The enter- “It’s moving; it’s really hard to de- tainment industry is not looking for scribe if you’re not Asian-American,” it totally changed what I “Asian stories” per se, but stories that Ken Jeong told Variety. “I always cry thought was possible for sell. CRA has grossed $238 million at that wedding scene. The charac- worldwide, with 73% of that com- ters that I care about… you realize an Asian-American wom- ing from the US box office. Costing they all look like me and something an,” Awkwafina said on only $30 million to produce, it has comes over me where it’s not a plot proven quite lucrative for Warner point anymore.” the show. “Standing here Bros. Studios. tonight is a dream I never All of this was intentional on the thought would come true.” So all of you attending this confer- part of CRA’s Chinese-American di- ence, keep telling your stories. rector Jon Chu, who had been look- ing for a project that would take on It remains to be seen whether the Asian underrepresentation on the success of this film portends a new “Asian wave” in Hollywood. Two se- big screen. Chu brought to the mov- Bennett Marcus is a freelance jour- quels are in the works, and Kwan ie’s producers a vision for “a way nalist based in Hong Kong. we haven’t ever seen Asians before, is developing two TV series, an un- named drama for Amazon about 34 | N3 N3 2019 N3 2019 operated by robots and establish a the direc- permanent human presence on the tor of The China joins filmPANELS industry’s space moon. WanderingPANELS Earth, had China is the third country after the repeatedly United States and Russia to deploy said that it is race to project its scientific a spacecraft on the moon in 2013. beyond the Chi- Chinese researchers discovered a nese film indus- by Wendy Tang new type of basaltic rock on the try’s technical and advancements lunar surface two years after the financial capability to space probe landed and the rover make a satisfactory sci- surveyed. fi film.

China has deployed the playbook of Earth was released over the Chinese The collective governments on With America moved on to explore But the idea of producing a spe- producing a sci-fi blockbuster — ex- New Year holiday period, a peak Earth joint force to build rocket Mars, China plans to send a rov- cial-effects-heavy space odyssey travagant special effects with dys- time for the Chinese box office. The thrusters to propel the planet away er to study Mar’s surface by 2020 film flourished when a homegrown topia and humans scramble to save movie has been extended the cin- from the solar system and find a and bring samples back to Earth by Chinese science fiction writer, Liu me- a planet facing obliteration — in a ema release until May and it has new home on a 2,500-year journey. 2028, according to Chinese state Cixin, became the first Asian author dia in- recent space disaster film, which grossed $684 million at the Chinese China along with France, US, Japan, media. Other ambitions include de- to win a prestigious industry recog- dustry to became the second-highest grossing box office as of April. and Russia’s space agency navigated ploy a reusable rocket by 2035 and nition, the Hugo Award in 2015. tell a positive movie in China’s history. the journey at an intergovernmental produce nuclear-powered space story that reflects the The box office success attracted space station. shuttles by 2040. The Wandering Earth is an adaption advancement of modern Chi- The Wandering Earth, China’s first Netflix to purchase the streaming of a same-titled short story by Liu. na, this movie has succeeded to con- science fiction blockbuster, draws rights and translated the film into In reality, China is The Chinese government has Gwo, the movie director, said in vince an audience that China has from the 1951 film When World 28 languages for its international viewed China’s military-run space an interview with state broadcast- caught up with the superpowers in Collides, Ishiro Honda’s 1962 release. The movie is a milestone for a growing presence program as a vehicle to enhance er that Chinese sci-fi movies allow space exploration. Japanese hit Gorath and China’s film industry. With a budget national prestige. China commem- viewers to understand Chinese cul- Michael Bay’s 1998 estimated at around $50 million, in space exploration orated the 60th anniversary of the ture. The Wandering Earth imbued China doomsday flick critics said the production values country’s space program in 2016, with cultural confidence in its film Armageddon. and special effects are praised for a with long-term deep- where President Xi Jinping empha- The movie portrayed collectivism industry and space science pro- The Wan- mid-budget Hollywood blockbuster. sized advancing aerospace science as various governments united on gram. The movie kicked off dering space ambitions. is an indicator of a mighty nation, a global mission to save humanity 2019 as the year of Chi- The film is seen as the emergence according to Chinese state media from planetary disaster. When the nese science fiction cine- of Chinese sci-fi, as the genre has Xinhua news agency. protagonist faced the ultimate chal- ma taking notice, espe- long been dominated by Hollywood The country earned a “world’s first” lenge of planet destruction, Chi- cially stories embody spreading American values and ide- space credential in January by land- na mobilized other nations to help with Chinese cultur- ologies in pop culture. As science ing a space probe on the far side of “China’s world-class with the last ditch effort to save the al characteristics. fiction films often showcase a the moon. The aerospace science scientists and techni- earth. It is in contrast with individu- More domestic sci- nation’s scientific advance- community hailed China’s technical alism often depict in American sci-fi fi films are -sched ment, China has effective- breakthrough to automate a space- cians in the aerospace with heroes saving the world or tak- uled to be released ly used the blockbuster craft’s final descent landing on a ing a vessel to abandon Earth. later in the year. It to project the country’s rugged and riskier terrain without industry demonstrat- remains uncertain global space power, ground control interference. Earth’s “Taking the planet with us on the in- if the momentum joining the film -in radio frequency is shielded on the ed the nation’s self-as- terstellar journey is a plot different of Chinese science dustry’s space race. moon’s far side. from the Hollywood model of ‘es- fiction cinema will surance,” Xi said. caping from earth,’ Wang Yichuan, persist. The movie is set Although America first put humans dean of the School of Arts of Peking in a near future on the moon in 1969 and still re- University, told Xinhua news. “It where the sun mains as the only nation conducted The nationalism and pride in space manifests the deeply-rooted attach- Wendy Tang is a freelance is dying, turn- crewed missions to Moon, China science have carried into the film in- ment to the family and homeland in writer for hire. She special- ing Earth is the first country to explore the dustry, although Chinese consumers Chinese culture.” izes in technology and science in inhabitable moon’s far side in search for lunar are used to Hollywood productions China. She has written for The Times with a fro- resources. The country has a long- and the expectations of Chinese As President Xi Jinping called on of London, the Telegraph and STAT, zen atmo- term goal to build a research base sci-fi films were low. Frant Gwo, professionals in the arts, cultural and a US life science news site. sphere. 36 | N3 N3 | 37 N3 2019

I had a list On its second day, the summit fell of prospec- apart. Both leaders rushed away tive story without comment, and at the media ideas and an center there was a frenzy to find out extensive shotlist of file footage, but what happened or more specifically Covering was prepared to throw all of that out -- what went wrong. the window depending on the flow of the news in the next few days. It Hours later, at his press conference, wasn’t until the day before my flight Trump said one of his most memora- Trump that I was notified that my Vietnam- ble quotes from Hanoi: “Sometimes Wikimedia Commons ese visa had been approved, and you have to walk, and this was just even then the process of physically one of those times.” and Kim obtaining the visa was chaotic and Scrambling to cover confusing at the Hanoi airport. The day had taken a turn that we Nas Daily: A message of connectivity hadn’t expected, and analysts from a non-news story My colleagues had told me the ap- around the globe were trying to plication approvals were taking so figure out what this would mean and 12 million followers by Harrison Linder by Grace Lee long because Vietnamese officials for the relationship between North were literally faxing the documents Korea and the U.S. But in the cha- one by one. The sudden influx of os, we still managed to report on A Trump-Kim summit is every plan- media and journalists had clogged some of our best stories from the Many people fantasize quitting foster connectivity and understand- Yassin and his team are in the pro- ning producer’s nightmare. When their system. summit – including the dismantling their day job to travel the world, ing across regions and cultures. In cess of moving to Singapore to set news of a second meeting broke -- of the Metropole hotel venue mo- a world that seems to be becoming up the Nas Daily Media Compa- but few go through with it. Nus- to be held in Hanoi, after last June’s At the Reuters bureau in Hanoi, ments after the meeting was called more and more divided, Nas Daily’s ny. They plan to use Singapore as seir Yassin, an Arab Israeli Harvard Singapore summit -- many of my many of my colleagues had already off. The lunch the two leaders were message of connectivity is a refresh- a home base from which to travel graduate, is one of the few who has colleagues and fellow journalists re- arrived from Singapore, Seoul, To- supposed to share was left cold ing change of pace. around Southeast Asia and produce acted on this impulse. sorted to buying multiple plane tick- kyo and elsewhere. We had been and decorations were swiftly taken content. ets to different cities and different planning for weeks, but even so, down. Beyond its ethos, Nas Daily’s en- In 2016, Yassin left his job as a soft- dates, due to the uncertainty and se- there was a nervous air of uncer- gaging cinematography, short and On April 20, soon after arriving ware engineer at Venmo and began crecy surrounding where and when tainty as we sketched out the next Covering the Trump-Kim summits simple messages, and the distinctive in Singapore, the Nas Daily team to travel the world on $60,000 in the summit would take place. couple of days. What would the two have made for long and unpredict- goofiness that Yassin brings to every hosted a meet-and-greet in the Sin- savings. Along the way, he created leaders possibly talk about? What able days at work, but if I were to video have contributed to Nas Dai- gapore Botanic gardens. People’s minute-long daily videos to share Up until mere hours before the actu- happens if they don’t reach a deal? take a time machine and tell my ly’s success. Action Party critic Kirsten Han crit- with family and friends through his ally two-day summit happened, the past-self in journalism school that icized the event, saying that Nas Facebook page, Nas Daily. venue was shrouded in mystery, and There was also pressure to find new I’d be reporting on meetings be- At first glance, Yassin and his videos Daily’s favorable views of the Singa- contingency plans were put in place and interesting ways to cover this tween U.S. President Donald Trump may seem pretty uncontroversial, porean government appeared to be Nas Daily quickly gained a viewer- just in case. Details like that encap- summit in a way that wouldn’t be and North Korean dictator Kim Jong but some of his videos have been getting it special treatment to set up ship beyond Yassin’s immediate cir- sulate just how bizarre it has been repetitive to Singapore. But it felt Un, grad-school me would proba- criticized for their lack of nuance. a large-scale public event. cle. Today, the Nas Daily Facebook for reporters like myself, covering for me like many of the questions we bly say ‘stop smoking whatever it is In a video about Singapore that show has over 12 million followers. the meetings between North Korean were asking this time around were you’re smoking.’ featured Prime Minister Lee Hsien At the meet-and-greet, fans received leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. Presi- the same as the last; there hadn’t Long, Yassin called Singapore an free “swag” and given a chance to Many aspects of the Nas Daily pro- dent Donald Trump. They’re unlike really been much notable progress So, at least my job is interesting. “almost perfect country.” A Singa- ask questions. Yassim said that, as gramming has changed since its in- any other news event that I’ve re- between the two sides since June porean internet activist group, The a tourist, he typically does not feel ception: The production value of the ported on in the past. 2018. Alternative View, challenged Yassin comfortable criticizing the places he videos has significantly increased. It Grace Lee covers Asia for Reuters. to spend a day living like an aver- visits. However, now that he lives in no longer sticks to a strict daily pub- I arrived in Hanoi on Saturday, Feb- Our task this time was to try and age Singaporean before declaring Singapore, he will consider being lishing schedule, and most videos ruary 23, less than a week before look past the pageantry and see it an almost perfect country. Yassin more critical of his new home. are closer to five minutes than one. the summit dates. I packed light; no if Kim and Trump make tangible responded in a Facebook post that heavy DSLR cameras or big tripods agreements beyond just sweep- those who complain about living Despite these changes, Nas Daily has – just a multimedia kit that would ing statements about de- Singapore should go the Middle Harrison Linder is a student member maintained its essential ethos. It has allow me to turn around and im- nuclearization. But of East to gain some perspective on of the AAJA and attends Yale-NUS always been about exploring plac- mediately record if breaking news course, that wouldn’t how privileged they are. College in Singapore. es and people around the world to were to happen. happen. 38 | N3 N3 | 39 N3 2019 N3 2019 A talk with P.N. Balji, journalists, who questioned his narrative. Some tices in Malaysia and Singapore under their cul- author of “Reluctant survived, some paid a heavy price. tures and governments? I wanted to tell the story of this brand of journal- A: My generation was very influenced by Fleet ism. Sixteen years later, the story is out in Reluc- Street journalism. From The Sun to The Times, Editor: The Singa- tant Editor. we read those papers religiously. The language, the headlines and the investigative spirit appealed Singapore journalists are a reticent lot; they carry to many of us. Over time, we also got somewhat pore Media As Seen their stories to their graves. The former editor in disappointed with what the western press was do- chief of ST, Cheong Yip Seng, broke that self-im- ing to chase circulation figures. So many of us felt posed taboo with his book, OB Markers My Straits that Singapore needed to develop its own brand Through The Eyes Of Times Story, in 2012. For the first time, a senior of journalism. We wanted to be professional yet editor broke that taboo by relating in vivid detail responsible. Reluctant Editor has many examples what went on between government and media, of how we did that, sometimes successfully many by Scott Duke Harris even the times when ST pushed back against LKY’s times unsuccessfully. A Veteran Journalist” orders. That gave me the added impetus to write Reluctant Editor. Q: Many veteran journalists who have wit- nessed the technological revolution —espe- TODAY. Balji’s work sometimes rankled the power- Q: Your chapter titles suggest that, initially, you cially the impact of the internet and social me- “Journalism,” George Or- ful Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, regarded as the did not want to be a writer and perhaps did not dia—bemoan the impact on the public’s trust in nation’s “founding father.” anticipate the career you had. Yet your long the journalism profession, and even the value well once said, “is printing and varied career perhaps suggests that you placed on knowledge and truth. What is your After leaving the profession in 2003, Balji worked came to regard journalism as a calling. Is that perspective? what someone else does not as media consultant and in crisis communications. a fair statement? He helped start the Media Studies Unit in Singa- A: I believe this kind of disruption cannot be want printed. Everything pore’s Ministry of Home Affairs and was the inau- A: I do say in Reluctant Editor that journalism was stopped. I also believe that well-researched and gural director of the Asia Journalism Fellowship, my interest in school days. My father was a poet. well-written articles with the right balance have else is public relations.” which brought in about 15 foreign journalists to Watching him write poems with a lighted cigarette a place in our society. My generation will have to familiarize them with Singapore and assist on proj- in one hand and a pen in the other late into the learn to embrace technology to get across this form The peril grows whenever that “someone else” ects of interest. night sparked my interest. From an early age, I of journalism. possesses great power. started reading The Straits Times. I was a hopeless Recently, Balji discussed his experiences in journal- introvert, so interviewing people for stories was a Q: The term “fake news” has become a cudgel Today, amid rising authoritarianism around the ism with N3 Magazine. torture. A couple of years later, I was charged with used by critics of the media. Now many civil lib- globe, two Pulitzer Prize-winners incarcerated in bribing a group of firemen. I wanted the scoops ertarians are concerned about Singapore’s plans Myanmar for 511 days, while on the opposite side Q: Why did you decide to write your memoirs, from them and they were reluctant to give us tip- to implement a law that would impose penal- of the world, the White House press corps fends off and what do you hope to accomplish in sharing offs. So I paid them. I was caught in the act in a ties on social media platforms like Facebook hard questioning as coming from “the enemy of the your experiences and perspective? coffeeshop and had to pay a fine of $1,000 exclu- and Twitter for the distribution of falsehoods. people.” The danger is often lethal, even far from sives. That was a dark period of my early years as a What is your perspective on these efforts? war zones. Journalists are keenly attuned to efforts A: Reluctant Editor has been inside me since I re- journalist. But it was also a blessing. I asked to be to stifle their work. tired from journalism in 2003. Journalists of my made a sub-editor. My editor agreed and I found A: No responsible and sensible person can support generation have gone through hell and high water, the space in the newsroom that fitted my introvert- fake news. But the devil, as always, is in the details. But the struggle is not new, as P.N. Balji attests in especially with the government’s efforts to control ed personality. Singapore has just introduced a bill on this. Some, Reluctant Editor. His new memoir spans his 40-plus media. And many of that generation had tried to including academics, are uncomfortable with its years of journalism, starting as a rookie reporter at do a responsible and professional job, sometimes Q: One chapter emphasizes the practice of sweeping powers. Like the power to be given to the Malay Mail to principal editing and leadership going against Lee Kuan Yew’s edicts at a time when “Western-style journalism.” Can you elaborate ANY minister to issue take-down orders to online roles at the Singapore Times, The New Paper and he brooked no nonsense with those, including on the evolution of journalistic values and prac- websites and the definition of fake news and public 40 | N3 N3 | 41 N3 2019 N3 2019 The challenges facing interest. The final and ideal solution is to get soci- facts. They owe their society a huge responsibility ety to separate the wheat from the chaff and iden- to try and get across the truth or at least some of India’s media landscape: tify and call out fake news. That is the long-term the truths. goal that should be taken seriously. Q: Was it difficult to leave journalism and take Q: The blurb of your book recalls the dangers on the role of a media consultant? What was it Shouting on TV news, that journalists faced in the 1970s, ’80s and like to be on the other side of the story? ‘90s: “Some lost their jobs, some had to leave the country, and some decided to give in and A: I joined journalism in 1970. I edited two news- a social media cesspit, live to fight another day.” You had your own papers, The New Paper and TODAY. Both did well. dealings with a dominant national leader in the It was time to go. So I quit in 2003. I went to do late Lee Kuan Yew. Are there lessons from your PR. I didn’t find the transition difficult as I realized and broken business models experience that might help embattled journal- there was a need for those in the business to get a James Crabtree ists today? clearer understanding of media. I realized I could by Tom Benner do that. A: Lee was a master politician. He oppressed the opposition or anyone who was against his narra- Q: When you look back on your career, do you tive. At the same time, he made sure that popula- have any regrets that you wish to share? vations, particularly because of social media. And tion saw the benefits of a controlled society. The India’s media market remains print media is still expanding, as opposed to every- material signs are all over the place. Also, he had A: Hardly any. Some mistakes have been made. strong, at least when compared where else in the world. The number of subscribers laws that controlled media. A strict application The profession of journalism has made me a better and readers is going up, and old print advertising of the libel laws made the media second guess its person. It was my university of life. It taught be to many other countries in Asia. hasn’t started to decline yet.” boundaries all the time. As though that was not communication skills and to sift out the truth from enough, former top civil servants were made CEOs the false, to detect the con man. And it helped me Yet James Crabtree, a former Financial Times However, the winds of change are beginning to and Chairmen of Singapore Press Holdings. But the to break out of my cocoon. journalist previously based in Mumbai, sees three blow. technological disruption in the form of the internet large shifts affecting India’s vast media landscape is putting the pressure on such forms of control. — worrisome trends that will continue to have a The rightward drift of television news The lesson, if there is one, is to fight the internet Scott Duke Harris is a Hong Kong-based journalist. coarsening effect on the state of the media in the stories with the government’s narrative. Let the world’s largest democracy. people decide which is the version they want to be- lieve. A bit idealistic, perhaps. But it is something The rising popularity of raucous television news, Several decades ago, news in India was dominated that needs to be done. which comes at the expense of more civil discourse by a small handful of print newspapers and one and public interest programming, combined with a government-owned television station. In the 1990s Q: What are your own habits regarding Face- lack of gatekeeping policies to prevent the spread and early 2000s, television was liberalized, and In- book, Twitter and other platforms? What is your of misinformation on social media has contributed dia’s TV news adopted a format that was heavily advice for journalists who have come of age to a rise in nationalistic and anti-minority rhetoric influenced by the BBC and other types of public with the internet. What advantages and pitfalls in India. Similarly, the country’s shift from print to interest television journalism. In the latter part of do you see? digital advertising signals a decline in print media’s the 2000s, however, a new kind of television jour- influence upon the general population. nalism began to emerge. A: I get most of my information from the Net. I use “The number of educated people with access to the it to access the world media. I read articles that Internet, to print media, to television, is rising very Enter Arnab Goswami, a prominent news anchor my friends share. This is an uplifting exercise. At quickly,” says Crabtree, who now works as an As- who started his career on a show called “The New- the same time we have to have a skeptical attitude. sociate Professor in Practice at the Lee Kuan Yew sHour.” In Crabtree’s critically acclaimed 2018 Can this be true? There seems to be contradictions School of Public Policy in Singapore. “The size of book The Billionaire Raj: A Journey Through In- in this report. Should I check it out? To the new- the advertising market, although small, is getting dia’s New Gilded Age”, Goswami is held up as a er journalists, I say check and double check your bigger. You’ve had an enormous amount of inno- prominent example of a shift toward right-wing 42 | N3 N3 | 43 N3 2019 N3 2019 commentary in Indian news, with Crabtree going across India has elevated the role of social media “It’s pretty clear the political Broken business models so far as to compare Goswami to Fox News’PANELS Sean outlets, such as Facebook and YouTube, through- PANELS Hannity. out the country, particularly with younger audi- parties know how to spread divi- ences. Facebook, for example, boasts 300 million While media in India is relatively free compared “[Goswani] pioneered this much more aggressive, users in India, significantly more than the number sive viral content around these to other countries in Asia, with spirited and often over the top kind of television news — which is of U.S.-based users — and that number continues rambunctious coverage of political news, and as networks,” he explains. “This has been even more partisan than something like Fox in the to grow.. the country’s growing middle class demonstrates true in other countries all around the region — in U.S.,” Crabtree says. The format of “The News- a larger interest in media consumption, Crabtree Myanmar, in Sri Lanka, in Thailand — but India Hour,” according to Crabtree, generally involved predicts newspaper circulation will fast become “In countries where, sudden- is larger. It’s population of users is bigger. It now “Eight or 10 guests, everybody yelling at each eclipsed by digital digital media. other at the same time in this cacophonous din in has better Internet connections. So, there’s a whole ly, social media has arrived host of problems that regulators are only beginning which the aim is to shock and to entertain...If you “On the surface, all seems well,” he says. “But un- to learn how to cope with.” watch it, it’s incredibly difficult to work out what with [a] huge force, and there derneath, the same tsunami is about to hit the her- is actually going on. If your aim, after watching an itage Indian media industry that hit in the West With the effective absence of gatekeepers working hour of television news, is to have a perspective on aren’t really these traditions — and in many ways it’s going to hit harder and in traditional print media, social media has yet to what’s happened that day and to learn something faster. about it, it’s pretty hopeless.” of well-funded independent catch up — and India’s spring elections, which be- gan April 11, will prove to be a test for the social “So few people are going to want to access print fact-checking media, this has media giants. It is reported there are some 87,000 publications, given the speed with which the election-related WhatsApp groups alone in India. become enormously problem- younger generation is shifting to phones. “[Social media companies] claim that they have atic,” says Crabtree. “The speed with which so- In the end, who do advertisers want to reach? They learned the lessons of what has happened in the cial media has arrived in India is really stunning.” want to reach young aspirational consumers — US, and during the Brexit campaign and in Bra- In the beginning, Goswami made anti-corruption a and those aspirational consumers are only going to zil,” says Crabtree, referencing recent issues in- central issue in his journalism, and he made India’s While the rise of social media is a boon to person- be reached on digital platforms.” previous administration his primary target. He has al communication across the Indian subcontinent, volving online political discourse in other parts of since sided with current Prime Minister Narendra Crabtree says it has also given way to an online the world. “But my suspicion is they’re not really remotely able to cope with the volume of informa- Modi and the Hindu nationalist right, reflecting a media environment that is rife with misinforma- Tom Benner is a Singapore-based journalist and tion that is going to be flurrying about the [Indian] more jingoistic and strident tone that is reflected in tion and fake news, as well as communal dishar- editor of N3 Magazine. other television news, Crabtree says. mony and unrest.. election.”

“That turn in the way that television news operates “In general, the Indian online social media sphere Although social media companies have made ef- has had a coarsening effect on public discourse in — particularly Twitter — is a fairly nasty place,” forts to control the proliferation of fake news and India,” he says. “It means ratings are pretty good, he says. “If you think Twitter is bad in the U.S., other forms of harmful viral content, such as Wha- but it means public interest journalism on televi- Twitter in India is a complete cesspit, particularly tApp’s recent implementation of a ban on message sion is much harder to find now. Arnab’s approach because it has become a medium where the right forwarding, Crabtree believes there’s still more has been so successful at winning ratings, others — they call them the ‘Modi Trolls,’ young passion- work to be done. have copied him — not just in the English language ate supporters of the Prime Minister — will engage media, but in the local media as well.” in online mob violence. Not literal violence, but “It’s hard to see how the social media companies well-coordinated trolling of opponents.” are going to voluntarily take steps to fix these prob- Social media, rabble-rousing, and .India’s social media woes aren’t just limited to lems,” he says. “They partly don’t know how to re- Twitter, either. The popular free communication spond — and they partly don’t want to, because divisive politics platform WhatsApp has been used to encourage their...business models are based on the spreading mob violence against minorities, coordinate lynch- of content. So, they have a kind of tension that is ings, and is responsible for stoking tensions be- hard for them to resolve.” The rapid increase in high-speed Internet access tween Hindus and Muslims, Crabtree says.

44 | N3 N3 | 45 N3 2019 Supporting readerPANELS revenue projects in Asia Pacific newsrooms by Ludovic Blecher, head of GNI Innovation

The Google News Initiative rep- tions from 18 countries. We heard built a paywall in 2017 and enjoyed resents our efforts to work with from news startups in Indonesia, early success. It will now make this the news industry to help journal- web publishers in Mongolia and model more dynamic, leveraging ism thrive in the digital age. One of Nepal, and video and audio broad- AI and machine learning to devel- the most powerful things we do is casters in Australia. After a rigor- op personalized content—includ- support media organizations come ous review, a round of interviews ing a customized newsletter—to up with new business models. and a thorough jury selection increase and improve reader process, we ended up providing engagement. We did that in Europe with the DNI support to 23 projects in 14 coun- Fund. Since its launch in 2015, we tries—amounting to a total of $3.2 Gamification to create com- have supported more than 600 million. munity-wide sharing: projects in 30 European countries, We also saw news organizations ranging from an open source tool- Several themes emerged from the experimenting with rewarding kit for subscriptions in Slovakia to applications we reviewed, includ- especially engaged readers with a consortium of over 70 websites ing: badges or tokens that can be used in Portugal with a data manage- to pay for access to events. Asahi ment platform that allows users Building or renovating mem- Shimbun, a national news publish- to log on to one site and be rec- bership models: er in Japan, will be issuing points ognised across all the others. For startups, this may just mean to subscribers in order for them to building membership model. “tip” stories and helping expand We wanted to take the lessons For established players, this can the market to non-subscribers so we learnt in Europe and launch a include creating group subscrip- that they can do the same. similar program globally. We put tions, more responsive platforms the word out internally and my and better targeted newsletters. All of the successful applicants colleagues in APAC were quick to Crikey, an independent news have committed to sharing best volunteer to be the first region to organization based in Australia, practices from their projects give it a try. As a result, in Novem- has over 90 percent of its total so that the broader APAC news ber we launched the Google News revenue coming from individual ecosystem can benefit from their Initiative (GNI) Asia Pacific Innova- subscribers. With the GNI funding, experiences. Stay tuned for up- tion Challenge. they plan to build a new subscrip- dates as these projects get off the tion offering that can be tailored ground. We chose reader revenue as to organizations, businesses and the theme of the first challenge, groups of all sizes. Finally, I’m pleased to inform AAJA and looked for applications from members that there will be a those who are pioneering ap- Using machine learning and second round of the challenge in proaches that involve everything AI to surface more engaging APAC in fall. Please, subscribe to from granting digital currency to content: the GNI Newsletter to stay tuned subscription-based membership A handful of organizations used and contact apac- models. trends emerging from big data gnichallenge@ to surface relevant and engaging google.com We didn’t know what to expect content to potential subscrib- if you have from such a diverse region. We ers. CommonWealth Magazine, any ques- were thrilled that within two a Taiwanese news organization, tions. months, we received 215 applica- N3 | 47 N3 2019 N3 2019 Bringing digital power Mentor Match: to journalists: Helping young journalists AAJA-Asia Training Gavin Network partners Huang to succeed by Zela Chin with Google In the summer of 2015, a recent university and Joon-Nie were one of the 16 Mentor Match pairs by Sean Lim graduate, Gavin Huang, moved to Korea for ad- in Asia last year. venture. The Chinese American had received a fellowship as a copyeditor for the Korea Joon- In 2019, the Asia chapter joined the national organ- gAng Daily, the local partner of the New York isation to launch a bigger and better Mentor Match Everybody loves the word ‘free’ you can easily show where sto- reporting. I’m glad organizations Times. Not too long, he was promoted to busi- program. Mentors and mentees were matched based whether it’s the critical portion in ries happen by building interac- like AAJA are partnering with com- ness editor, and then national desk editor. on geography, career interests, and gender. This year ‘freedom’ or a ‘free’ gift. At -AA tive maps. These are just some of panies like Google to train report- we have 92 pairs. The participants hail from across the JA-Asia, we have built the AA- the tools that our training network ers and editors, combining global A veteran AAJA member suggested that he apply U.S. and Asia, and even as far as Sweden and Lebanon. JA-Asia Training Network to bring allows to bring more accurate expertise with local context,” Seli- for the inaugural Mentor Match program in 2018. Asia members make up about 23% of the matches. free digital tools and techniques to and compelling stories in a faster na said. The year long program pairs students and young journalists in the Asia region to em- amount of time. journalists with seasoned veterans for career and Ideally, the pairs maintain consistent contact through- power their storytelling. At the Bloomberg Tokyo office, a professional advice. out the year through phone calls, online interactions, Moreover, in our region where jour- weekend session in its newsroom and in-person meetings. And they have opportunities to It comes out of a partnership we’ve nalists are often under-resourced provided a hands-on environment The career coaches at the N3Con media conference meet at the AAJA media conferences: N3Con in Hong strengthened over the years with and face oppressive opposition, with a high level of engagement in May 2018 taught Gavin that a mentor is a neutral Kong, May 30 to June 2, and National Convention in Google News Initiative to support technology can level out the play- between the trainer and the par- party who listens to your problems when you don’t Atlanta, July 31 to August 3. journalism’s evolution in the 21st ing field. ticipants. AAJA-Asia Tokyo lead- want to speak with colleagues. Taking that advice to century. er Marika Katanuma, who is also a heart, Gavin reached out to his mentor when he was The program is led by Zela Chin, Executive Vice Pres- “The AAJA-Asia community is im- reporter at Bloomberg, said: “The negotiating a job offer from Hong Kong’s South China ident of the Asia chapter, Hannah Bae, former Vice Though it’s a service particular- portant as ever,” says AAJA Asia session was a great opportuni- Morning Post last summer. President of the Seoul sub-chapter and current pres- ly for our members, our training Chapter President Oanh Ha, “at a ty for the participants to get their ident of AAJA-NY, and Ruth Liao, of AAJA-Seattle. workshops are also open to all time when some journalists around hands on tools that will be valuable Through the Mentor Match program, Gavin had been journalists and media profession- the region risk their lives daily to for their careers such as fact check paired with Joon-Nie Lau, a veteran of the Singapore The pairs are supported by monthly conference als regardless of AAJA affiliation as tell the area’s most important sto- tools. One reporter commented news industry, who had about 10 years of experience calls to provide troubleshooting and career coun- part of our outreach efforts. Every ries under challenging and some- that he liked the real-life examples mentoring young journalists. selling. The program is designed by Caroline Ceni- year, we select a distinct group of times repressive conditions.” and another media professional za-Levine, a career coach and AAJA member. AAJA members to become train- said it was very informative and “It took me 10 years to come to a conclusion, and if I ers in the latest tools including: Training sessions are often three practical.” can help someone reach that conclusion a lot faster… “AAJA has the best structured mentoring pro- advanced web search, translation, hours long held at Google campus- there’s no point in reinventing the wheel,” said Lau. gram,” said Lau, “it’s data extraction, mapping, AI, ma- es across the Asia region or at indi- For more information about the highly managed and chine learning and image verifica- vidual newsrooms based on special AAJA-Asia Training Network and She advised Gavin that during salary negotiations, he lots of support for tion. request. Our AAJA trainer Selina to learn how to attend a session or should ask: what grade is he coming in at? What is the mentees and Cheng recently instructed a group become a trainer, please visit www. salary range? Because if a person gets the high end of mentors.” You can expect to learn how to of about 20 staffers of CNN Digital aaja-asia.org. a salary range then he must get a promotion to get a quickly access data or informa- at their offices in Hong Kong. salary increase. She also advised him to ask about relo- tion through deep search without cation packages and housing allowances. Zela Chin is executive having to go through information “I hoped people could come out Sean Lim is the manager of the vice president of the requests. Images that are suspect of the sessions knowing a little bit AAJA-Asia Training Network. He is A couple of months later, Gavin moved to Hong Kong. Asia chapter, Asian can be verified as real or fake be- more about maximizing the tools a freelance writer based in Seoul, He works as a commissioning editor for Goldthread, a American Journalists Joon-Nie fore getting into your story. And they may already use everyday for South Korea. video-heavy culture publication from the SCMP. Gavin Association. Lau 48 | N3 N3 | 49 N3 2019 N3 2019

Podcasting’s resurgenceby Sheila Berman

“We are seeing an intensive and One of the notable podcasters in Asia is Steve Stine, However, podcasts while inexpensive still require should have a great experience. The guest must whose Inside Asia Podcast is available on Stitcher good content, in addition to good audio equip- have a great story to tell, the audio should be good, intense interest and resurgence and Apple iTunes. His guests have included Clay ment. With millions of podcasts available, listen- music and sound effects should be unobtrusive but Chandler, Executive Editor, International for Time ers’ attention needs to be captured and sustained. evocative. in podcasts again,” says Glenn Van Zut- Inc, and Asia Editor for Fortune, Raja Samu Samu phen, founder of VanMedia Group with over 25 VI of Maluku, the current Secretary General of In the case of Stine’s podcast, loyal listeners have Despite all the above, sustainability is the key. Van years of experience as a journalist. the Association of Indonesian Rajas and Sultans, commented on the “unique perspective”, “insight- Zutphen predicts that within the next 18 months, Stephanie Dickson, Founder of Green is the New ful and intelligent knowledge” on Asia of his guests, half of the podcasts will fold. The lack of sponsor- Statistics from the recent Edison Research showed Black Asia, and Thomas Morgan, Financier turned and “excellent topics chosen by the host”. Stine’s ship or advertising revenue will be the main rea- that in the United States, 22 million adults were fa- Film Director. tagline encapsulates his mantra, that is to converse son. miliar with podcasting in 2006. That number grew with “Asia’s leading movers, shakers, thinkers, and to 64 million in 2018 and is projected to reach 197 According to Van Zutphen, there are two reasons provocateurs.” This has enabled him to have over “People have to make money and with advertisers million this year. In March 2018, Apple announced for this resurgence in interest. From the producers’ 80 episodes and has earned him the reputation of … they want to see eyeballs or ears. They want to that its podcasts “passed 50 billion all-time episode side: being the go-to source for Asian insights. see how many people are connecting to your pod- downloads and streams” cast. If you can’t show them that you’ve got five, Van Zutphen cites 3 factors required to have a suc- ten, twenty fifty thousand listeners who are in their 1. Podcasts are good for generating content. “Ev- cessful podcast. demographic of who they want to get to, they’re Podcasting, a combination of the word “pod” from erybody is looking for a way to get their informa- not going to give you money.” Apple’s iPod and the word “broadcast,” is not new. tion and to get their viewpoint out front It was called audio blogging in the ‘80s, and since and center.” 1. Focus. Audience identification Time will tell if Van Zutphen is correct in his pre- then has risen and fallen out of favour. is crucial. Podcasters can not diction. be everything to everybody. 2. Podcasts are cheaper to Recent interest could be attributed to the increas- It must cater to a specific produce. Unlike videos, ing digitisation of publications, short attention niche. span of consumers, and convenience of mobile podcasting generally Sheila Berman is the PR and Marketing Director gadgets. With many traditional print publications only requires a good for All Black Ventures, and the content writer and shutting down, journalists being laid off, and the audio recorder. 2. Length. Find producer for Shmi Shem prevalence of fake news, consumers are actively out the appropri- looking for alternative sources of information and For consumers, the ate length for the entertainment. Research had shown that podcast accessibility of audience. Inves- listeners, in the US, at least, are loyal, affluent, and podcast drives the tigative journal- TOP 7 PODCASTERS (Asian-American Centric) educated. interest. “Pod- ism will require casts are actu- nearly an hour INSIDE ASIA by Steve Stine Across the Asia Pacific, podcasting is still finding ally easier for due to the story. ASIA GEOPOLITICS by The Diplomat its feet, though countries like South Korea and Ja- more people to Normal podcast ASIA BRIEF by Asia News Weekly pan are ahead of the rest. As a journalism medium, access no mat- should not be ASIA TECH PODCAST by Graham Brown news agencies have seen the value. The search for ter where they more than 30 THEY CALL US BRUCE by Jeff Yang and “news” in Stitcher results in over 34,000 podcasts are globally and minutes. Phil Yu from Fox News, CBS, NBC, Bloomberg, Asia Ris- they don’t have to worry about 88 CUPS OF TEA by Yin Chang ing, even CNN. Individuals, not affiliated with any 3. Production bandwidth,” said CHEWING THE FAT by Louisa Chu and news agencies, have contributed to the number of value. Cheap Van Zutphen. Monica Eng available podcasts. doesn’t mean bad. The audience 50 | N3 N3 | 51 N3 2019 Reporting from overseas for the first time? When in doubt, get back to basics. student work: the hong kong 360 project

Last spring, the Ryerson School of Journalism in Toronto launched its first ever inter- national summer course, sending 10 university students to Hong Kong to attend AA- JA-Asia’s N3 Conference. We saw this as a unique opportunity to put our students’ bur- geoning skills to the test — they’re used to reporting in Canada, but what kind of stories could they produce from spending two weeks in the other side of the world? by Adrian Ma photos by Declan Keogh Most of the students didn’t speak Cantonese or Two, because we wanted to capture a range of Mandarin or had ever been to Hong Kong before. experiences and perspectives of Hong Kong. We We needed to be real with ourselves — we could wanted to ask the people who lived there what never hope to learn everything required to report they believed was important to know. authoritatively and authentically on Hong Kong’s incredibly complex political, economic and social Our students saw Hong Kong in a completely dif- issues in a few short few weeks. There are foreign ferent light after exploring stories about aban- correspondents and Asia-based reporters who have doned villages in the New Territories, fiercely dedicated their entire careers to reporting on this proud craftspeople in dying trades, and same-sex region, so what were we going to realistically add couples fighting for acceptance, just to name a few. to the conversation? The result of their efforts was an ambitious mul- We decided the best approach was to get back to timedia feature that was recently selected as run- basics — be curious, be humble, be a listener more ner-up for the Emerge Award, a national student than a talker. Focus on telling stories about people. journalism prize, for best Multimedia Production. You can view the project at project.journalism.ryer- We called our project “Hong Kong 360” for two son.ca/hongkong360/ reasons.

One, because wanted to fully capture the visual Adrian Ma is an assistant professor at Ryerson magic that is Hong Kong’s cityscape in panoramic, School of Journalism in Toronto, Canada. 360 degree video. N3 | 53 N3 2019 N3 2019 FOCUS: ASIA FOCUS: ASIA Covering Asia’s New ASIA-PACIFIC Order: It’s Grim PRESS FREEDOM Out There,

The 2019 World Press Freedom Index compiled by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) shows how hatred of journalists has degenerated into violence, contributing to an increase in fear. The number of countries re- Folks garded as safe, where journalists can work in complete security, continues to decline, while authoritarian by Bill Poorman regimes continue to tighten their grip on the media.

The RSF Index, which evaluates the state of journalism in 180 countries and territories every shows that Can it even be called “news,” the fact an intense climate of fear has been triggered — one that is prejudicial to a safe reporting environment. The hostility towards journalists expressed by political leaders in many countries has incited increasingly serious that the news media and journalism and frequent acts of violence that have fuelled an unprecedented level of fear and danger for journalists. are having a tough time? We’re fa- (From Reporters Without Borders) miliar with the long-term trends that have made the practice of journalism an ever more difficult endeavor. Audi- RANK / COUNTRY / SCORE ences and advertising dollars are hard- er to come by, at least in their traditional 7. NEW ZEALAND 10.75 80. BHUTAN 29.81 142. PAKISTAN 45.83 forms. Governments and people in posi- tions of power always seem ready to take 21. AUSTRALIA 16.55 84. TIMOR-LESTE 29.93 143. CAMBODIA 45.90 steps against journalists and reporters. Even so, the past year or two have been particular- ly tough in Asia, with these trends intensifying in 22. SAMOA 18.25 106. NEPAL 33.40 150. BANGLADESH 50.74 worrying ways.

38. PAPUA NEW GUINEA 24.70 123. MALAYSIA 36.74 151. SINGAPORE 51.41 On the business side of journalism, the consistent The growth of digital advertising and alternate outlets, growth of 41. SOUTH KOREA 24.94 124. INDONESIA 36.77 152. BRUNEI 51.48 like social media, continues to erode the tradition- digital media al financial base of news organizations. -Newspa has also increased pers continue to be especially hard hit. the challenge of retain- 42. TAIWAN 24.98 126. SRI LANKA 39.61 171. LAOS 64.49 ing audiences. Social media PricewaterhouseCooper’s most recent Global & remains a huge and growing draw, 45. TONGA 25.41 134. PHILIPPINES 43.91 176. VIETNAM 74.93 Media Outlook anticipates that global circulation especially in Asia. In a recent report, Global will essentially remain flat. In Asia, the number of Digital 2019, We Are Social and Hootsuite record 52. FIJI 27.18 136. THAILAND 44.10 177. CHINA 78.92 news consumers is growing, but at the same time that tens of millions of new social media users are the competition for ad dollars is increasing. Com- coming online in the region. panies’ efforts to diversify their revenue streams 67. JAPAN 29.36 138. MYANMAR 44.92 179. NORTH KOREA 83.40 can produce strange results. Singapore Press Hold- Chasing views and ad dollars is hard enough, but ings -- publisher of the national daily, The Straits practising journalism also has been extremely dif- 73. HONG KONG 29.65 140. INDIA 45.67 Source: rsf.org/en/ranking/2019 Times -- now earns two-thirds of its profits from ficult. Here are some examples of the difficulties properties that it owns and operates. journalists have faced while reporting in Asia: 54 | N3 N3 | 55 N3 2019 N3 2019 FOCUS: ASIA FOCUS: ASIA

1. China has been imposing a generalized crack- Official Secrets Act, although there have been claims many other places, to make sure we understand purpose of an elected government,” Lee said. “The down on journalism. More particularly, the Finan- that the police set them up. those issues and talk though how to handle various government has taken, and will from time to time cial Times’ Victor Mallet in Hong Kong has been ef- scenarios.” have to take, firm measures to ensure that, despite fectively ejected. Mallet, who was vice president of Incidents such as these have had a chilling effect divisive forces of different cultural values and life- the Hong Kong Foreign Correspondents’ Club, was on the region’s journalism and have prompted Another positive sign is the burgeoning media styles, there is enough unity of purpose to carry the denied renewal of his work visa after the club host- poor rankings for many Asian nations in the latest start-up culture and community that is developing. people of Singapore forward to higher standards of ed a pro-independence speaker. This incident and the Reporter Without Borders World Press Freedoms A company called Splice - a Singapore start-up - life, without which the mass media cannot thrive.” current anti-media climate led to a drop in the mea- Index. Even so, there are some hopeful indicators. is working to foster an entrepreneurial media cul- sure of Hong Kong Journalists Association press free- ture. Asia encompasses many places and cultures In other words, nation-building and stability could dom to 45 on a 100-point scale -- the lowest since the One example is the growing number of social me- so a host of media companies will be required to override Western notions of what journalism is all survey started in 2013. dia users. More potential news consumers are com- serve all of those readers, viewers, and listeners about. That’s a choice that Asia governments and ing online, and growth in potential audience will with their innumerable interests and languages, peoples will be wrestling with for some time. 2. In the Philippines,the government of President precede solid audience growth. The trick is to find a business model that can sus- Rodrigo Duterte has repeatedly arrested journalist tain these operations. Maria Ressa of the social media site The Rappler. The Fine journalism continues to uncover information Bill Poorman is a freelance journalist, writer, pod- government says the site violates foreign ownership important to the public. Colleagues of the two im- And no matter what the state of the business side cast producer, and video producer, living in Singa- rules, but press advocates say the harassment is a prisoned Reuters journalists in Myanmar complet- of journalism or the political climate, the need re- pore. response to critical reporting. ed their work and published the story last year. The mains for high-quality, public-service reporting and Wall Street Journal played an important role in analysis that helps people to participate in public 3. bringing to light the Malaysian 1MBD scandal, in life and make their lives better. In South Korea, the ruling party posted a person- which the then sitting prime minister, Najib Razak, al attack against a reporter in March for a story that was accused of funneling hundreds of millions of “I don’t think that news consumers are different in they claimed criticized the ruling government’s policy dollars of state money into personal accounts. Asia than elsewhere,” says AP’s Moritsugu. “Every- toward North Korea. The attack contained a deroga- one is hungry for information. Where information tory term for a Korean who works for a foreign news Ken Moritsugu was recently named the Associat- is restricted, there are journalists able to seek out outlet. The party later withdrew the post and apolo- ed Press news director for greater China. Even in information from other sources, from foreign me- gized after pressure from some press groups, includ- today’s environment, he says, the need for quality dia to bloggers and social media.” ing the AAJA-Asia chapter and its Seoul subchapter. journalism remains, even if extra precautions are needed: The challenge is to separate fact from fiction. That’s 4. So-called “fake news” laws are increasing. Ma- why news literacy -- the ability to be a discerning laysia passed such a law in 2018, though it may be “In some cases, it may take more time to get what shopper -- is crucial in the digital era. repealed. The government of Singapore passed a sim- we need,” he says. “We just have to stick with it ilar law. These regulations are intended to criminal- and not give up.” Asian journalists, however, may have to content ize online falsehoods, but press advocates are con- themselves with a different perspective on that cerned that governments would use them to suppress Nonetheless, it’s important to remain aware of the mission. Lee Kuan Yew, the former prime minister information they dislike. risks, he says. and “founding father” of Singapore spelled out his particular take on the press in 1971 at the Interna- 5. Two of Reuters’ Myanmar reporters, Wa Lone “We want to tell the China story as accurately and tional Press Institute in Helsinki. and Kyaw Soe Oo, were sentenced to seven years im- completely as possible, but we don’t want to take prisonment for their investigation into the killing undue risks or endanger anyone we interview,” “Freedom of the press, freedom of the news media, of Rohingya, spending more than 500 days behind Moritsugu says. “We probably have more conver- must be subordinated to the overriding needs of bars. The reporters were convicted of violating the sations before a reporting trip than we would in the integrity of Singapore, and to the primacy of 56 | N3 N3 | 57 N3 2019 N3 2019 FOCUS: SINGAPORE FOCUS: SINGAPORE

or remove an item could apply to the ministers to dence in the government. Singapore’s answer challenge an order, and if denied, could turn to a court as the final arbiter. Critics worry the appeal That last provision worries Singaporean jour- process would be slow, intimidating, and costly. nalist P N Balji, who wrote: “The proposed law to fake news: correction allows any minister, without any oversight and Proponents say these fears are overblown. While check, to act against those whom they believe and takedown orders, the bill targets factually incorrect statements, are guilty of contravening the law. This is un- it does not apply, they claim, to opinions, criti- precedented in modern Singapore’s legal history. fines and jail cisms, satire or parody. Supporters of the bill say Let us not forget that we are talking about hu- the country’s small size makes it especially easy man beings, not some supreme saints, and they by Tom Benner for online rumours to exacerbate existing ten- are more than capable of erring”. sions in the multi-religious, multi-racial society. For example, could the “public interest” be used Singapore passed a far-reaching new law on May pliance. Singapore’s is unique as well because But government involvement in determining as an excuse to issue a correction or takedown 8 to combat the problem of online falsehoods. any minister can issue the directive (corrective what’s true and what’s false has many saying the order for something that casts the government in or take down) without judicial oversight. (An) bill will set a dangerous precedent. a negative light? Would something that is critical Singaporean lawmakers voted to grant govern- appeal can be made after the fact but the order of a current administration qualify as detrimen- ment ministers broad powers such as the abili- will remain in place during appeal process,” said Critics of the bill say the legislation will give tal to public confidence in government? ty to demand corrections, order the removal of a spokesperson for the Asia Internet Coalition, government officials unprecedented powers and content, or block websites deemed to be propa- an industry association whose members include will stifle free speech in an era when around the During a marathon two-day debate in parlia- gating falsehoods contrary to the public interest. Facebook, Google and Twitter. world, populist leaders label the media as the ment, Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shan- Penalties for not complying with orders include enemy of the people. Singapore, whose govern- mugam took issue with claims the law will have steep fines and jail time. Those tech giants and others have been under ment regulates its large local media outlets, has a “chilling effect” on free speech, and said the fire all over the world for not doing enough to a relatively low press freedom ranking of 151st new measures will affect “falsehood, bots, trolls While Germany has passed a law allowing for police their platforms for misinformation. Some in the world, below countries including Russia and fake accounts.” takedown orders on social media sites, that law worry the Singapore legislation may be copied and Myanmar. is specifically focused on hate speech. by other countries. “In the wrong hands, legislation such as the Singapore’s law goes further, allowing govern- Phil Robertson, Deputy Asia Director, Human one under discussion, can be misused for selfish Tom Benner is a freelance journalist based in ment ministers to singlehandedly decide if an Rights Watch, said: “Singapore’s leaders have gain. No government or minister – good or bad Singapore and editor of N3Magazine. online post is factually incorrect and contrary to crafted a law that will have a chilling affect on – should be allowed to wield such broad powers. the public interest. internet freedom throughout Southeast Asia, The bill should be withdrawn pending a genu- and likely start a new set of information wars as ine and robust discussion on how best to com- Journalists, academics, and global tech compa- they try to impose their narrow version of ‘truth’ bat ‘fake news’ ”, a letter signed by journalists nies have grave concerns about the possible im- on the wider world.” warned.. pact on free speech and abuse of power. Penalties for not obeying a correction or take- The bill empowers government ministers to act “Singapore’s law is the most broadly scoped due down order include up to 10 years’ jail time and to protect national security, public health, pub- to very broad definitions and criteria like ‘public SGD$1 million (USD $735,080) in fines. lic finance, public safety and tranquillity in the interest,’ with both a correction order and take friendly relations between Singapore and other down order and severe penalties for non-com- An individual or a web portal ordered to correct countries, and the weakening of public confi- 58 | N3 N3 | 59 N3 2019 N3 2019 FOCUS: MALAYSIA FOCUS: MALAYSIA

ist Clare Rewcastle-Brown in London. She was also for taking too long to abolish these repressive laws, denied entry into Malaysia in 2013. including the Human Rights Commission of Malay- Press freedom is receiving a breath of sia (Suhakam). On April 20, the Home Ministry is- Despite recording a significant improvement as sued a statement to deny that it was backtracking fresh air in Malaysia compared to 2018 (145), Malaysia was still cate- from its pledge to change the arsenal of draconian gorised under the “difficult situation” together with laws. by Koi Kye Lee its Southeast Asian neighbours. Timor Leste, how- ever, performed better than others and was placed In a report by the New Straits Times, the ministry in the “problematic situation” group. It jumped 11 said various agencies and authorities involved in places and secured the 84th placing in the index. the task are in the midst of preparing and making Malaysia media are seeing a new dawn of hope fol- Najib Razak’s ruling coalition suffered a surprising the necessary changes to such laws. It further said: lowing the 2018 general election and its surprising defeat in the May 2018 general elections — its first Malaysia ranked the second after Timor Leste, “As explained before this, KDN had formed the outcome. The Pakatan Harapan (PH) alliance led defeat in modern Malaysian history.” while Indonesia came in third at 124th, Philippines Special Legal Study Committee and the Technical by veteran leader Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad oust- (134th); Thailand (136th); Myanmar (138th); Committee to peruse all the six laws which come ed Barisan Nasional (BN). The BN, or known as the “Journalists and media outlets that had been black- Cambodia (143rd); Singapore (151st); Brunei under the ministry.” KDN is the Malay acronym of National Front, had ruled Malaysia for six decades listed, such as the cartoonist Zunar and the Sar- Darussalam (152nd); Laos (171st); and Vietnam the Home Ministry. since its independence in 1957. awak Report investigative news website, have been (176th). able to resume working without fear of harass- The six laws are looked into by the two commit- Shortly after their historic win, Dr Mahathir, 93, ment,” RSF also said in the statement. The repeal of the Anti-Fake News Act 2018 (AFNA) tees are the Peaceful Assembly Act (APA), Securi- was quoted as saying by various Malaysian media by the current government also contributed to Ma- ty Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (Sosma), that the new government would not restrict press It further added that the general environment for laysia’s improvement in the index. AFNA was in- Prevention of Crime Act 1959 (Poca), Prevention freedom or take action against any inaccurate news journalists is much more relaxed, self-censorship troduced by the Najib administration and was fast- of Terrorism Act 2015 (Pota), Printing Presses and reports unless it is a threat to national security. has declined dramatically, and the print media are tracked in Parliament before the elections last year. Publications Act 1984 (AMCP) and the Sedition now offering a fuller and more balanced range of Act. The new government’s stand on press freedom has viewpoints including the ability to print supporting The Paris-based organisation also said Dr Maha- given Malaysia the chance to climb 22 places to articles across both sides of the political divide. thir had kept his promise to repeal the Orwellian The committees are made up of representatives rank 123rd out of 180 countries in Reporters With- provisions of the anti-fake news law. However, it from the Attorney-General’s Chambers, Malaysian out Borders’ (RSF) annual World Press Freedom Zunar, whose real name is Zulkiflee Anwar Haque, added that the authorities still had draconian laws Bar, Suhakam, legal practitioners, and academi- Index this year. was hit with nine sedition charges for allegedly in- which suppresses media freedom. The laws includ- cians. sulting Malaysia’s judiciary in a series of tweets on ed the Sedition Act 1948, the Official Secrets Act This is a big shift in Dr Mahathir’s apporach, as the handling of former opposition leader Anwar 1972 and the Communications and Multimedia in his previous stint as Prime Minister, the politi- Ibrahim’s trial of sodomy charges in 2015. He was Act 1998. cal maestro was not known for tolerance. Malay- also banned from leaving the country, but after the Koi Kye Lee is a former multilingual journalist with sia saw great development and economic growth PH ousted Najib, his immigration blacklist was lift- RSF said: “Under these laws, which need a com- the New Straits Times and TODAY. during his 22-year reign between 1981 and 2003. ed. plete overhaul, the authorities have strict control But at the same time, he also restrained freedom over publication licences, and journalists can be of expression. Whistleblowing website The Sarawak Report was sentenced to 20 years in prison on sedition charges. blocked after publishing exposes detailing allega- These laws pose a constant threat to media person- According to RSF, the improvement in the coun- tions of financial management and bribery in Ma- nel, who still cannot express themselves with com- try’s ranking was due to the PH’s victory against laysia’s sovereign fund 1Malaysia Development plete freedom, despite all the progress.” BN. The RSF said: “Press freedom is receiving a Berhad (1MDB) that were linked to Najib. The breath of fresh air in Malaysia after Prime Minister website is operated by British investigative journal- Meanwhile, many have criticised the government 60 | N3 N3 | 61 N3 2019

AAJA-Asia and Google partner to award student digital journalism projects We collaborate with the news industry to AAJA-Asia and Google News Initiative partnered once again to honor excellence in digital student journalism. Two $1,000 prizes went to the top two journalism projects that put “new ways of sto- rytelling” into practice by utilizing digital technology to tell stories that matter in the region. build a stronger future Undergraduate and graduate students of all disciplines were encouraged to exercise their cre- ativity and showcase their talent in using multiple mediums including but not limited to text, au- dio, videos and social media such as blogs, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, SoundCloud, Twitter, for journalism through WordPress, and YouTube.

The first winning project was ‘Hong Kong 360,’ a collaborative effort products, partnerships by an undergraduate team from Ryerson University in Ontario, Can- ada. Last summer, a team led by Adrian Ma traveled to Hong Kong to document life from diverse viewpoints. Through 360/VR videos, and programs. written features, and photography, they told stories that ranged from the LGBTQ+ community in Hong Kong, to the tensions between the pro-democracy activists and pro-Beijing forces. The project took months of research, reporting, and assembly. It resulted in an interac- tive website that hosts all of the stories they produced.

The second winning project was ‘From the Wallflowers’ by University of Hong Kong undergraduate student Jasmine Leung. It was a daring podcast series that explored the issue of mental health in Asia. With a collection of 19 episodes in total, the series documented real first- hand experiences, eastern and western medical views and support groups in Hong Kong. It was sparked by the creator’s own journey with mental health and response to Hong Kong’s wave of student suicides in 2016.

AAJA-Asia is honored to support creative projects such as these that usher in the next genera- tion of journalists and storytellers who are able to master new technologies to impact more lives.

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