Singapore's "Straits Times" Newspaper Run by Intelligence Officers

Singapore's "Straits Times" Newspaper Run by Intelligence Officers

 

" ...I honestly think that intelligence personnel -- whether past or present -- do not belong in the news room.

The paper (The Straits Times) is run by editors with virtually NO background in journalism. For example, my direct editor was Ms Chua Lee Hoong, a woman in her mid 30s. She was an Intelligence Officer.

The associations and practices of several Straits Times personnel are highly questionable. It's a news room culture that is totally alien and inimical to the very idea of honest, fair and open journalism.

I don't believe that The Straits Times, as it is run now, brings honor or prestige to Singapore.

As a journalistic vehicle, it's actually quite a disgrace. "
- Pranay Gupte

Pranay Gupte was asked by Singapore's Straits Times newspaper to "depart involuntarily" from his job as Global-Affairs columnist and Senior Writer with The Straits Times on November 16, 2004.

Read here Profile of Pranay Gupte

Read here "Open Letter to PM Lee Hsien Loong" from Prany Gupte

The following is an excerpt of what he has to say about the corporate culture of Straits Times (Singapore) and its journalists/reporters:

The Straits Times has NO competition in Singapore.

It's owned wholly by a company called Singapore Press Holdings, whose stock is sold publicly but whose affairs are closely monitored by the government of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, son of Singapore's founding father, former prime minister Lee Kuan Yew.

The paper is run by editors with virtually NO background in journalism.

For example, my direct editor was Ms Chua Lee Hoong, a woman in her mid 30s. She was an intelligence officer. Read here on Singapore's Internal Security Department

News Compass Note: In a 2001 article in The Australian, Eric Ellist named the following as forming part of the intelligence apparatus involved in Singapore's Straits Times:

• Cheong Yip Seng , editor-in-chief, has been with the paper since 1963. He's proud of former intelligence operatives in his newsroom.

• Ms Chua Lee Hoong, the Straits Times' most prominent political columnist who had worked with the secret police for nine years. Chua Lee Hoong is very open about the fact that she is a former Internal Security Department "analyst". "I'm not ashamed about [being ex-ISD]," she said. The Government sent her to Oxford University for a degree in politics, philosophy and economics. Her pro-government columns are perceived by others as insights into official thinking. She took a swipe at former Malaysian PM, Dr Mahathir Mohammad over the water supply dispute by calling him '21st Century Hang Tuah'.

• Tjong Yik Min, Executive President of Singapore Press Holdings(SPH): From 1986 to 1993, Tjong was Singapore's most senior secret policeman, running the much feared Internal Security Department (ISD). Now Tjong is a media mogul, the Executive President of SPH, Singapore's virtual print media giant, which controls all but one of the country's newspapers. Mention Tjong's name in Singapore and three things usually come up. Paramount is that he ran the ISD during the 1987 blitz. Second, is that he was a classmate of Lee Kuan Yew's son and prime minister Lee Hsien Loong. And third, is that he's of Indonesian-Chinese extraction. The first speaks to the wariness many Singaporeans have of the ISD, which is part CIA, part FBI, and part Secret Service. The ISD is the hammer the Singapore Government has engaged to whack – sometimes literally – real or imagined threats to stability. The second reference speaks to Tjong's perceived influence with Singapore's premier political family.

• Ms Irene Ho on the foreign desk, and Ms Susan Lim, Jakarta Correspodents, both described as an "analyst" with Singapore's intelligence services.
  

Other key editors are drawn from Singapore's bureaucracies and state security services.

They all retain connections to the state's intelligence services, which track everyone and everything.

At the newspaper, I was struck by the total absence of conversation or banter in the huge newsroom.

Having spent two decades at the New York Times, including my student days in the United States, and having run my own newspaper subsequently, The Earth Times - not to mention my 18-year tenure as a columnist at Newsweek International, plus 16 years at Forbes as a contributing editor - I was accustomed to the spirited atmosphere of news rooms, not to mention disagreements and disputes.

Like newsrooms everywhere, the newsroom of the Straits Times has its share of jealousies, resentments and fiefdoms.

It is also a poorly run organization.

For example, my editor, Ms Lee, killed a substantial quote that I obtained from Mr. Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, chairman and publisher of the New York Times, on the grounds that he was "distracting."

When I wrote an e-mail note to Arthur, whom I've known for a long time, to explain why his generously given quote to me was not used, here's what I received from Mr. Cheong Yip Seng, the editor-in-chief of the Straits Times:

" We do not do this on this paper, namely apologise to a newsmaker whose quote we did not use. if I were the newsmaker, I would think poorly of the paper. if the nyt uses every quote of a noteworthy newsmaker, they will need to double the pages they use daily. ----- Forwarded by Cheong Yip Seng/SPH on 14/11/2004 06:37 PM ----- "

Needless to day, Mr. Cheong missed my point entirely.

Arthur Sulzberger had made a special effort to communicate with me from 13,000 miles away to give me a long personal statement about the New York Times and its directions. I used the quote in a column on the media, but, of course, it was edited out. I felt that in view of my own long tenure at the Times, and my friendship with Arthur, I owed him an explanation, at the very
least.

It was common courtesy on my part, not brown-nosing to Arthur, who doesn't take to kindly to obsequiousness anyway.

Ms Chua, my editor, also killed two other exclusive interviews I'd obtained in recent days, mainly through my access to important people gained over four decades in international journalism.

She said that what was said by Dr. Supachai Panichpakadi, the Director-General of the World Trade Organization, and Mr. Peter G. Peterson, Chairman of the Council on Foreign Relations - and the author of a recent best-seller - was "boring."

In fact, both were timely interviews.

Dr. Supachai spoke about ending textile quotas which, starting in December, will give developing nations unprecedented access to the markets of industrialized nations.

And Mr. Peterson spoke about the troubling U.S. deficits, and how both Republicans and Democrats have been irresponsible about dealing with the current-account deficit that's expected to balloon past US$600 billion this year.

Ms Chua further recommended that I should turn to a white colleague in the news room for lessons on how to ask questions.

Since I didn't come to the Straits Times to be re-educated in journalism - after a pretty distinguished career of my own - I felt that her advice was inappropriate.

She was, of course, well within her rights to kill any story she wanted, but people like Dr. Supachai and Mr. Peterson aren't usually accessible to inconsequential newspapers such as the Straits Times.

Be that as it may, I thought that the editor (Ms Chua) - who was trained as an intelligence officer, not as a journalist - was way out of line in recommending that, at age 56, I take lessons in journalism from a white man at the paper.

Among the things that I was hired for, incidentally, was mentoring young people at the Straits Times.

When I arrived in Singapore - which was some months ago - I was quite astonished to see how many non-Singaporean Indians in professional positions were serving with coolie-like servility that they would never display back at home. What was going on here?

"You have to play by the rules," one Indian-born colleague said. "You cannot shake the boat too much. In fact, you dare not shake it at all. The money is good here, so I can swallow an insult or two."

The behaviour of Ms Chua, the editor, may be simply the kind of office politics that people holding power engage in every now and then.

But it's also part of a broader attitude that I detect among many Singaporeans in journalism's top echelons here - that no one else's record or accomplishment or opinion counts but theirs. Any divergence of view is immediately regarded as subversive dissent.

This is an important point because if Singaporeans are going to be perceived as filled with
hubris and an unbending my-way-or-highway attitude, it is going to be increasingly difficult for this country to attract the talent it needs to sustain its economic ambitions.

In fact, young Singaporean professionals are emigrating to Australia and Europe in record numbers because they feel stifled here.

But Singapore lives in a unique goldfish bowl, and its own standards of economic excellence require its citizens to be more sensitive and magnanimous when it comes to dealing with outsiders. After all, Singapore has created a pretty well-functioning secular society for itself - even though one might argue that, in the cultural scheme of things, Tamils and Malays play second sitar to the Chinese.

This is such a beautiful place with such beautiful and giving people. It's hard not to be a well-wisher.

But the Straits Times as a model of dynamic, open-minded journalism? It will happen on the day that it starts to snow here on the equator.

But don't expect to practice the journalism of fairness and forthrightness. This simply isn't the place for that.

At least, not as long as nail-pullers are running the news room. I got out before they pulled out my nails.

But it still hurts.

Pranay Gupte's farewell note:

Dear Friends:

As some of you may have heard, The Straits Times and I parted company on November 16.

Some Singaporeans, of course, don't necessarily value the good will, professionalism and experience that veteran outsiders such as me bring.

I came to Singapore wanting to share my extensive life experience with young journalists; I leave with great sadness that I never quite got to do that.

I leave with sadness, too, over how journalism is practiced in Singapore, at least at The Straits Times.

Call me old-fashioned, if you will, but I honestly think that intelligence personnel -- whether past or present -- do not belong in the news room.

The associations and practices of several Straits Times personnel are highly questionable. That's the paper's business, of course, but I scarcely think that such people should be educating longtime and established journalists such as me about professional practices and conduct.

Such lectures are best given by those who truly understand the rules of evidence required for reporting and writing -- and I'm afraid that most Straits Times personnel don't qualify.

Journalistic values are not subject to cultural relativism; they are universal. There's only one way of telling the truth.

At least, that's what I was taught at The New York Times, Forbes and Newsweek International, where I have spent most of my journalistic career. And four decades after starting out in international journalism, I continue to believe that as strongly as ever.

A trusted friend of mine, a well-known American in New York -- and fellow life member of the Council on Foreign Relations -- said to me the other day, after hearing about the Straits Times episode, "Well, what did you expect? What kind of a place did you think Singapore was going to be when you took the job?"

As a longtime admirer of Mr. Lee Kuan Yew, I had always been fascinated by Southeast Asian culture, and my earlier visits to Singapore created in me a continuing desire to want to live here and partake of the culture and traditions, at least for a while.

When I arrived here in September 2004 for what I thought would be a long-term assignment, I did not realize how short lived my tenure was going to be. The way I look at it, leaving Singapore will be my loss entirely.

Meanwhile, The Straits Times will continue doing just fine, of course. And why not?

It's the only broadsheet in a one-horse town.

I wish the paper well, even the nail-pullers and bureaucrats whose idea of journalism begins with tolerating no professional disagreements - however minor - and ends with complete, unvarnished propaganda that ill serves Singapore in a world of rapid globalization.

It's a news room culture that is totally alien and inimical to the very idea of honest, fair and open journalism.

It's also a sorry reflection on the secular and progressive society that Mr. Lee Kuan Yew courageously set out to build nearly 40 years ago.

I don't believe that The Straits Times, as it is run now, brings honor or prestige to Singapore. As a journalistic vehicle, it's actually quite a disgrace.

There are a lot of young, talented and ambitious men and women at The Straits Times who, if given the opportunity, will be able to produce a first-rate newspaper; indeed, I was impressed by the enterprise of some of these young people, and I would have loved to have worked more with the, perhaps even offering myself as a mentor.

I know the value of mentorship; I benefited greatly in my younger days through the guidance of great editors such as A. M. Rosenthal, Seymour Topping and Arthur Gelb of the New York Times, and in later years through the guidance of giants such as James W. Michaels of Forbes, and Louis Silverstein, the legendary designer and art director.

Even at The Straits Times, I learned a lot from Chua Huck Cheng, a veteran journalist who taught me how to write editorials more sharply.

So I wish the young staff of The Straits Times the very best in their careers and in life.

I want to end this epistle by emphasizing that I do believe that history will remember Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew kindly, even though he has his detractors in Singapore and at the Straits Times as well; I also believe that he is one of our contemporary era's greatest figures.

I'm not so sure that institutions such as Singapore's main broadsheet newspaper fully serve the society that the Minister Mentor helped create.

I do believe, however, that Mr. Lee's legacy will endure in the most positive and nourishing way because he taught us that the rule of law, strong institutions of governance, and incorruptible public officials are fundamental to the building of modern societies.

---------------------------------------------------

Summary Profile of Pranay Gupte:

Global-Affairs Columnist and Senior Writer, The Straits Times, Singapore, April 2004 to November 2004.
_ Editorial Director, The Daily Star / International Herald Tribune, Beirut, Lebanon, January 2004 to March 2004.
_ Business Editor, The Daily Star / International Herald Tribune, Beirut, Lebanon, September to December 2003.
_ Editor-in-Chief and Publisher, Present Tense Magazine on the Web (www.presenttensemagazine.org), January 2003 to August 2003.
_ Asia Correspondent: Bloomberg News, June-July 2003.
_ Editor-in-Chief and Publisher: Present Tense Magazine, May 2003. (Present Tense was a one-issue pilot in print.)
_ Editor-in-Chief and Publisher: The Earth Times, New York, 1991 to 2002.
_ Editorial Adviser: The Calendar & Chronicle, monthly newsletter of the Council on Foreign Relations, 1999 to 2001; helped redesign publication.
_ President and Founder, Earth Times Books, 1999 to 2002.
_ Columnist: Newsweek International, 1986 to 2004.
_ Contributing Editor: Forbes, 1984 to 2000.
_ Contributing Columnist: New York Daily News, 1997 to 2000.
_ Mentor: Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, 1996 to present.
_ Founder and Director: International Commentary Service, a not-for-profit media and educational company for television documentaries, 1988 to 1993.
_ Senior Information Adviser to the Secretary-General of the 1992 Earth Summit: 1991-1992.
_ New York Editor: Asian Finance, 1987 to 1991.
_ Information Adviser to the World Commission on Environment and Development: 1985 to 1986.
_ Foreign Correspondent, Africa: The New York Times, 1979 to 1982.
_ Metropolitan Reporter: The New York Times, 1978 to 1979.
_ United Nations Correspondent: The New York Times, 1977.
_ Long Island Correspondent: The New York Times, 1973 to 1977.
_ Assistant to the Executive Editor, A. M. Rosenthal: The New York Times, 1970 to 1973.
_ Summer Clerkships: The New York Times, 1968 and 1969..


Books

_ Currently working on a book on Islam, to be published by Farrar, Straus & Giroux, in 2005.
_ All of Us: Births and A Better Life: Population, Development and Environment in a Globalized World. Selections from the Pages of The Earth Times. New York: Earth Times Books, 1999.
_ Mother India: A Political Biography of Indira Gandhi. New York and London: Charles Scribner's Sons Inc., 1992. Major reviews in US and international publications, including front-page reviews in the Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times; first-serial rights to Vanity Fair magazine.
_ The Silent Crisis: Despair, Development and Hope in a World Without Borders. New Delhi and London: Vikas Publishing House, 1990.
_ India: The Challenge of Change. London: Mandarin-Methuen, 1989.
_ Vengeance: India After the Assassination of Indira Gandhi. New York and London: W.W. Norton & Company, 1985; first-serial rights to The New York Times Magazine.
_ The Crowded Earth: People and the Politics of Population. New York and London: W. W. Norton & Company, 1984; first-serial rights to The New York Times Magazine.


Affiliations

_ Life Member, Council on Foreign Relations, New York, since 1999.
_ Member, American Society of Magazine Editors, since 2001.
_ Member, Magazine Publishers Association, since 2001.
_ Member, Board of Directors, American Forum for Global Education, 1998 to present.
_ Member, Royal Overseas League, London, since 2000.
_ Member, Advisory Board. Indian Institute of Journalism, since 2001.
_ Member, United Nations Correspondents Association, since 1988.
_ Member, Overseas Press Club, New York, since 1994.
_ Member, Singapore Press Club, since 2004.
_ Member, Society of Environmental Journalists, since 1994.
_ Member, South Asian Journalists Association, New York, since 1994.
_ Member, American Asian Journalists Association, since 2003.
_ Member, Authors League and Authors Guild of America, since 1985.
_ Member, American Society of Journalists and Authors, since 1985.
_ Member American P.E.N., since 1985.
_ Member, Sigma Delta Chi (Professional Journalists Organization) since 1984.
_ Member, the Newspaper Guild of New York, 1968 to 1984.

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