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07 25.02.19
ISSN NO. 0218-7310
Social media for social causes
This year’s Social Impact Week encouraged students to use their social media accounts to advocate for causes that matter to society
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Supporting social causes through social media This year, the annual Social Impact Week organised by NTU’s Welfare Services Club was refined to better allow students to contribute to social causes in their own ways – by using social media YUKI LING THE 2019 Social Impact Week, an annual event organised by the NTU Welfare Services Club (WSC), focused this year on encouraging students to show support for social causes through the use of social media. Held on 29 and 30 Jan at North Spine, the event followed the theme “Orenda”, which refers to a supernatural force present in all people that empowers them to effect change in the community. The event in-charge (IC) for Social Impact Week 2019, Ong Jun Peng, a second-year Nanyang Business School student, said: “In previous years, Social Impact Week was an outreach event which sought to bring social causes into the limelight, such as the elderly and the intellectually disabled.” This year, the event focused on allowing students to contribute to change on top of the outreach, through the use of social media. Participants had to capture themselves completing the activities and then upload the pictures or videos on their social media accounts as forms of publicity for the social causes. The activities were categorised under learning about the community, learning to serve and pledging to serve the community.
The event, held on 29 and 30 Jan, saw students and external organisations set up 33 booths at the North Spine.
PHOTOS COURTESY OF QI KAI QIAN FOR WSC
Learning through participation
This refinement better allows students to contribute tangibly to social causes, in view of their busy schedules, said 22-year-old Ong. For example, for learning about the community, participants filmed themselves explaining one of the chronic diseases faced by children served by Operation Hope – a Special Project portfolio under WSC that reaches out to children and youths suffering from chronic and life-threatening illnesses. Participants could also upload videos of themselves using sign language to convey “hello, how
Prizes were given out to participants who completed the social media-related activities at the booths.
can I help you?” to raise awareness for the deaf community. To go further, participants could even commit to participating in a social cause. For instance, they could pledge
to go straw-free on their social media accounts, to show support for the eco-friendly movement. The idea is to utilise the power of social media to reach a wider audience and to raise awareness
about various social causes. “Even if you can’t commit to volunteering at the moment, you can help to spread awareness,” said the co-event IC, Cheryl Choo, 21, a second-year student from
the School of Social Sciences and School of Humanities. Zannatun Noor, a second-year student from the School of Physical and Mathematical Sciences who took part in the event’s activities, said: “Spreading information about the less-privileged communities through social media is more convenient as many students use social media.” With increased awareness, everyone from these communities can be included and treated equally by the public, the 21-year-old added. The event had a total of 33 booths. These included 15 portfolios from WSC, such as their Regular Service Projects serving the elderly and the intellectually disabled, NTU clubs and external organisations such as the Social Development Initiative Academy. Moving forward, the essence of Orenda will continue to guide the planning of future Social Impact Weeks even though the theme may change from year-to-year, said Ong. In encouraging more NTU students to step up and spur positive change, Choo said: “You don’t have to be a hero to effect change. All it takes is a small step to make a difference.”
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Maritime Business Society launches inaugural Maritime Discovery Night With a thriving job market in the maritime industry, a networking workshop was launched at NTU to connect employers with prospective hires in a creative new way JONATHAN CHEW THE Maritime Business Society (MBS) conducted its first ever Maritime Discovery Night last month, held at The Arc. The event was a hit among students – more than 80 students attended the event, with at least 20 more remaining on the waitlist. Jointly organised by MBS and the Centre of Excellence International Trading (CEIT), the workshop was conducted not as a seminar with speakers, but in a format similar to a speed dating event. At such events, participants are usually given a few minutes to converse with a partner. Once the time is up, they have to move on to a new person. At the end of the event, participants indicate if they are interested in any of the people they have met with. In similar fashion, students who attended the Maritime Discovery Night had 15 minutes to speak to a representative from invited companies. For the last eight years, the event was known as the Speakers’ Series and featured speakers from the maritime industry. But this year, MBS president Melvin Chin said that the society decided on the change in format to make the event more engaging than previous years. Chin, a second-year student from the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, said: “Previously, we organised lectures by guest speakers. You wouldn’t know if students were even listening or were simply on their phones. “With this Maritime Discovery Night, the format allows students to engage better with the speakers face to face, and encourage them to ask questions,” said the 22-year-old. Organising the workshop was not without its difficulties. “Since we are students, some of the industry speakers wouldn’t respond to us,” said Chin. “However, we managed to get some of the speakers onboard through personal connections.” Chin even likened the workshop to a private tutorial session. Students learned first-hand about the daily life of the speakers, how to market themselves as prospective employees, and the state of the maritime industry in Singapore. This was especially useful for students who were looking for internships at some of the compa-
Maritime Studies students Ryan Chin (left) and Ng Jun Hao (second from left) listen closely as BBC Chartering Singapore CEO Mr Henrik Pederson talks about the industry during the event. PHOTO COURTESY OF CEIT
nies in attendance. For Audrey Ngo, a fourth-year student from the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, the event was her first time experiencing a networking workshop in this manner, and she felt that the speed dating format was helpful in easing her fears. She said: “It’s nice for us to be able to talk to the speakers in groups as it helps to reduce the fear of asking questions, especially from those of us who have never been to such events.” Another participant was Chong Le Wen, a third-year student from the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, who agreed with the sentiment. “The style in which the event was conducted is very unique, and it also forces us to gather around for a discussion, which makes it more informal,” said the 21-year-
“With this Maritime Discovery Night, the format allows students to engage better with the speakers face to face, and encourage them to ask questions.” Melvin Chin, 22 President Maritime Business Society
old. However, she said that the time given to interact with each speaker could be lengthened in the future, as she felt that there
was not enough time to delve into more complex information or questions. Speakers at the event included professionals from well-known companies in the maritime industry, such as Eastern Pacific Shipping and PSA Singapore. One of those was Mr Henrik Pedersen, chief operating officer of BBC Chartering Singapore, an international shipping company with a focus on specialised marine transport. Mr Pedersen felt that because of the style of the event, he could cover a lot more ground than he would usually be able to. “It allowed me to get my message through while being close to the groups, and helped me to inform them better,” said the 68-year-old, who has more than 30 years of experience in the industry.
“It allowed me to get my message through while being close to the groups and helped me to inform them better” Mr Henrik Pedersen, 68 Chief Operating Officer BBC Chartering Singapore
The response from the event was summed up as "very encouraging" by Chin, whose presidential term ends at the end of this semester. He said: “We will try to explore similarly engaging options, in order to encourage even more students to come for such events.”
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FUSE and JASH to merge in new academic year The fusion of the Joint-Hall Music Festival and Joint-Hall Bash hopes to bring more hall residents together in August 2019
Hall 10's jam band, Hœ Nø, performing at last year's FUSE, which was a standalone event that took place in March 2018. This year, it will be combined with JASH.
PHOTO COURTESY OF FUSE 2018 Facebook page
REXANNE YAP THE annual Joint-Hall Music Festival (FUSE) and Joint-Hall Bash (JASH) will not be taking place this academic year. Instead, the Joint Hall Vice Presidents (JHVP) and the FUSE committee have decided to combine the two into a single event in August 2019. The event will have two segments, a concert and a carnival, helmed by the FUSE Committee and the JHVP respectively. The concert will retain FUSE’s tradition of inviting each hall’s jam band to perform a maximum of two songs. But the off-campus clubbing event that JASH has traditionally been known for would instead be replaced by the carnival, held on NTU grounds. JASH was originally organised by the JHVP to celebrate the end of the Freshmen Orientation Programme every August in semester one, while FUSE was run by the FUSE committee every March in semester two. FUSE chairman Jeremy Low, 24, said that the merger hopes to revive a declining hall culture due to the increase in the total number of halls and the two years of guaranteed hall stay. Low, a third-year student from the School of Materials Science
and Engineering, said that the name FUSE would remain unchanged, regardless of the merger. While the proposal for the event has been approved by the Student Affairs Office, the exact date and location are unconfirmed. “We planned for the event to coincide with the freshmen programme in each hall and serve as a finale for the Hall Freshmen Package. “As such, we hope that this upcoming FUSE-JASH event can serve as one of the many events planned by the various hall committees in NTU, to rekindle the passion that residents have for their hall,” explained Low. The previous JHVP committee went through many discussions on the format of JASH, in order to make it more inclusive for all hall residents. Some felt that it should remain a clubbing event as in previous years, but others felt that the event should be accessible and enjoyable for all hall residents. But the event ideas suggested were similar to the format of FUSE, and were beyond the committee’s budget allowance. The solution that the previous JASH executive committee therefore proposed was to combine
the two events into one, according to a member of the previous JHVP who declined to be named. He added that funds intended for this year’s JASH have been transferred for the next committee’s use.
A welcome change
Many hall residents have reacted positively to the merger. Hall of Residence 5’s jam band manager, Ong Yi Jie, prefers to have the combined event at the start of semester one. “This is the period where everyone is in their big orientation groups. Holding the event in semester one can attract much more people compared to holding it in semester two," said Ong, a 23-year-old student from the Nanyang Business School. The potential of a combined event garnering a larger audience is a welcome change for 21-yearold Rebecca Pang, who sang for Tanjong Hall of Residence at FUSE last year. “FUSE was a nice event overall, but it needs more publicity,” said the second-year-student from the Nanyang Business School. Chia Jia Rui, a third-year-student from the School of Physical and Mathematical Sciences who
went for JASH 2016 in her freshman year, would not attend the clubbing event again as a senior. “For the whole school to participate, I think that having a carnival is a better idea instead of clubbing”, said Chia. But Keagan Sng, 28, who organised JASH 2017, felt sad that future freshmen would not be able to experience a “rite of passage” at the end of hall orientation.
Preference for semester two On the other hand, Hall 1’s jam band manager Goh Kay Vin, 23, was worried that there might be too many events happening at the start of the semester. “It may be too overwhelming for the freshmen. And for the jam band community living in the hall, we won’t have anything to look forward to in semester two,” said Goh, a second-year student from the Nanyang Business School. Chua Ze Ping, a bassist for Hall 9’s jam band, said that his juniors who wanted to perform for FUSE were also looking forward to the event being held in March. “Having the event in August may not be such a good idea because the band members may find it harder to meet up to practice during the summer break. Jam
band is essentially a hall activity,” said the second-year student from the School of Social Sciences JHVP head Puah Zhao Xi, 20, said: "We think that there are more ways to involve and integrate the hall residents other than clubbing. The second-year Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information student said: “Many will think that the new FUSEJASH event will be like another NTU Fest, but we are working towards making it more different to promote hall life for the residents."
“Having the event in August may not be such a good idea because the band members may find it harder to meet up or practice during the summer break.” Chua Ze Ping, 22 Second-year student School of Social Sciences
Lifestyle Fighting the stigma of mental disorders
Depression may hit anyone, including youths, but many are hesitant to seek help due to the stigma associated with mental health issues and their interventions. Krishveen Kaur finds out what can be done to address this
GRAPHIC: NAMITA KUMAR
DURING the Advancing Research to Eliminate Mental Illness Stigma (ARTEMIS) talk held in NTU early this month, Ms Shazana Shahwan, a researcher at the Institute of Mental Health (IMH), pointed out the need to overcome the misconceptions associated with depression and mental disorders in general. ARTEMIS is an NTU research study conducted in collaboration with IMH, aimed at evaluating the effectiveness of an anti-stigma talk on mental disorders for NTU students. This is the first such study that solely targets the NTU population. Students who are willing to participate in this study have to do a pre-talk questionnaire, attend the ARTEMIS anti-stigma talk and complete two more post-talk questionnaires to assess the lasting impact of the talk. The talks were held in February and research on their impact is ongoing. “Depression is more than just the blues,” said Ms Shazana, who specialises in clinical psychology. A local mental health study conducted by IMH in 2016 highlighted that nine per cent of the local population aged between 18 to 34 suffered from depression at some point in their lives. But among these youths, only 20 per cent would come forward to seek help. Said Ms Shazana: “This is due to
certain biases that still exist. Society tends to say things such as ‘these people are mad’, and ‘they will never get better’. “This may prevent people who show symptoms of mental illnesses from seeking help due to the fear of being diagnosed. And as a result, they suffer in silence,” she added. Through the questionnaire provided before and after the ARTEMIS talk, students were able to reflect on their personal biases of mental disorders and its interventions. “The questions are the same in the pre- and post-talk questionnaires so we can assess if students learnt anything from the talk,” said Ms Shazana. Professor Anthony Kwok, the principal investigator of this study and Associate Provost of Student Life, said: “By introducing these kinds of informative talks, we hope that students gain more courage to seek help from someone.”
Stigma of mental disorders In 2014, a group of final-year students from the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information launched a campaign titled Embrace(D) to raise awareness on common mental disorders among young adults, such as depression, or as it is medically known, Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). In their campaign report, the
students mentioned that depression is still a taboo topic, especially among youths. It is also not a topic commonly read up by youths online. The team surveyed close to 400 youths, aged between 18 to 25, and found that 70 per cent of them had responded ‘agree’ or ‘strongly agree’ to the statement: “If they had depression, most would not tell anyone.” Eunice Goh, 27, a member of Embrace(D) who graduated in 2015, believes that counselling can be an important psychological intervention for youths who might be susceptible to mental disorders or face emotional stress in general. “Our campaign highlighted the importance of talk therapy through counselling in order to build a community of caretakers and make mental disorders less of a taboo topic,” she said. “I guess counselling in school is sort of an in-between? Less daunting than a professional medical practitioner, and intimate and personal enough to form a true bond and friendship.”
Building a community of support The University Wellbeing Centre (UWC) says it encourages students to seek help through its counselling services. One of its initiatives is NTU’s Peer Helping Programme.
Peer helpers, who are NTU students, are trained by the counsellors at the UWC to provide emotional support for students. A former peer helper, who wanted to be known only as Lee, shared their attempts to “build rapport within their social circles and provide them with a confidante that they need”. Lee said that first-year students usually experience anxiety in adapting to a new environment, while the second and third-year students tend to face academicrelated problems. He said: “The peer helpers gather in groups of 10 where we share what we encountered and provide input on how we could have dealt with the situation better.” “Through the training we learned to maintain professionalism by asking the right questions so that those who need our help won’t shun us. “A question to ask is, ‘Are you eating and sleeping well?’ while a question to avoid is ‘What do you have to be depressed about?’,” he added. Lee believes that one of the biggest challenges faced by peer helpers would be getting the students to take that first step to call the UWC. “It is as if they have an affliction. The student might be afraid of people perceiving them as mentally unstable,” said Lee.
Avenues to seek help But for people like NTU student, Josh (not his real name), reaching out to the UWC was a natural choice. He chose not to seek help from professional institutions outside of school as he felt that his problems were related to school and studies. Josh went for eight counselling sessions at the centre and was pleased with the look and feel of the place. “They had a nice waterfall and the counselling room was minimally decorated. I like that the chairs were comfortable and there were tissues if you needed to cry,” he said. But he did not tell his peers or family members that he went for counselling sessions as he feared being misunderstood. Another student, Ashley (not her real name), believes that counsel-
ling is helping her deal with her emotional stress. Ashley is still attending weekly counselling sessions and is keen on continuing her sessions until she graduates. “I think maybe people expect that they go in and their problems get solved. My counsellor does not tell me what to do. “She gives me a template worksheet to constantly question why I feel this way and now I have the tools to deal with my emotions.” Professor Kwok, the principal investigator of this study, believes that there are many available venues for students to seek help. “I like to describe it as a ‘no wrong door’ policy. If you knock on the counselling door but for some reason that door is difficult to knock on, you can knock on another door which is the peer helper door. Or the Faculty-in-Residence (FiRs) door, for those staying on campus,” said Professor Kwok. “I am very proud to say that in NTU, when students reach out for help, it almost always leads to a better outcome than if the student did not reach out at all,” he added. Students may also reach out to pastoral care staff located at their faculties, as well as their Associate Chairs (Students) at the respective schools, and hall officers, FiRs and residential mentors at the Halls of Residence for help.
USEFUL HOTLINES Counselling helplineUniversity Wellbeing Centre (UWC) 6790 4462 6338 3383 (after office hours) 24-Hour Hotline Samaritans of Singapore (SOS) 1800 221 4444 Mental Health Helpline Institute of Mental Health (IMH) 6389 2222 Women’s Helpline Association of Women for Action and Research (Aware) 1800 353 5800
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Opinion EDITORIAL Use social networks to drive positive change INSTAGRAM, Facebook, and YouTube are more than just platforms for curated photos and viral videos. In today’s digital age, millions of users are taking to these social networking sites to express their personal opinions and participate in active discussions about current affairs. With over 70 per cent of the world’s population on social media, these channels have become the means to spread powerful social messages, relating to salient topics like climate change, racial discrimination and gender equality. The purpose of such digital advocacy is to inform and galvanise the relevant target audience to take action against a specific cause. This year, the annual Social Impact Week organised by the NTU Welfare Services Club (WSC) in January encouraged students to use their personal social media accounts to promote social causes in Singapore. For example, participants at the event had to take videos of themselves explaining a chronic disease and post it on their social media account to raise awareness for the children of Operation Hope, a Special Project portfolio under WSC that helps youths suffering from chronic illnesses. The relatable and personal nature of user-generated content (UGC) on social media tends to
be perceived as more “authentic” than traditional advertisements that target the masses. This increases the credibility of the message. According to a 2017 survey by marketing startup Stackla, 60 per cent of those surveyed said that UGC is three times more authentic than branded content. For consumers, authenticity equals influence. Additionally, online content can be conveniently shared within seconds, making it easy for social messages to go viral. Given that most students are already well-versed in the use of social media, the next step is to stay updated on current affairs so that they can use their online voice to shed light on key issues faced by society today. However, students must be cautious not to adopt the “herd mentality” – promoting a campaign just because everyone else is doing the same defeats the purpose of the message. Before committing to support a social cause on their social media accounts, students should be well-informed of the issue by asking questions and doing adequate research. The amplification of social causes via social media will only be effective if the user truly believes that he can play a meaningful role in the movement.
THE NANYANG
CHRONICLE CHIEF EDITOR Khairul Anwar
DEPUTY CHIEF EDITOR Natalie Choy
LIFESTYLE EDITOR Edwin Chan
OPINION EDITOR Jeanne Mah
SUB-EDITOR
CHINESE EDITOR
Nicole Lim
Tan Yu Jia
NEWS EDITOR
Deepanraj Ganesan
DIGITAL EDITOR
PHOTO/ GRAPHIC EDITOR
PRODUCTION SUPPORT
Joel Chan
Joe Tok Kenny Wong
BUSINESS MANAGERS
FACULTY ADVISORS
Vanessa Tan Vinice Yeo
Wu Shangyuan Zakaria Zainal
LAYOUT SUPERVISOR Yeo Kai Wen
Natasha Ganesan
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GRAPHIC: DARRYL CHEONG
Social media: a threat to morality
ARIF TAN
IN JANUARY last year, the Singapore government announced the formation of the Select Committee on Deliberate Online Falsehoods to focus on strategies to curb the dissemination of fake news. Later that year, three members of the committee attended the international hearing on disinformation held in the British parliament. With participants from nine countries engaging in discussions on how to combat fake news, the conference was a reflection of how social media had become a powerful platform to spread false information to the masses. Studies also show that people are emboldened to be more verbally aggressive on social media than when they interact face-to-face. But at the root of all these problems is the lack of a moral compass when using social media platforms; people comment, create or share content without fully examining the consequences of their actions.
Ubiquity of social media hooligans In the virtual world, a social media hooligan is one who posts nasty comments, or direct discriminatory remarks towards others. It could also include sharing posts that humiliate others. It is easy to hide behind a veil of anonymity on the internet. Even in cases where parties are not anonymous, the aggressive environment created by a few individuals can influence others to become aggressive as well, a study on online aggression from the Computers in Human Behaviour journal revealed. An example of this was when hoards of netizens lashed out at Malaysian celebrity Dato’ Aliff
Syukri following the unethical marketing of his beauty products on a television show in November 2018. Netizens disparaged him, calling him “rich but stupid” and levelled other ad hominem attacks at him. While the celebrity in concern might have erred, the verbal aggression made towards him was excessive and uncalled for. Unfortunately, such behaviour online is characteristic of netizens of all age groups.
Damage control is difficult At the moment, online hooliganistic behaviour is not always punishable by law or regulations. In March 2018, The Guardian reported that a user in Sri Lanka posted on Facebook to “kill all Muslims, don’t even let an infant of the dogs escape”. The post was flagged by a netizen for its hate speech content. However, Facebook responded that the post “did not go against its community standards”, and merely asked the user to block the person who posted it. If a comment of this nature cannot be taken down by relying on existing laws and regulations, it is worrying how society is ever going to be safe from online hooliganism. Furthermore, if derisive and divisive comments stay online, this may give the impression that such remarks are harmless. This can pollute the online environment and influence others to engage in more cyberbullying. In an incident this year involving a Go-jek driver and his female passenger, the parties were caught arguing on video over the route taken by the driver. In the video, the lady then claimed that she was being
kidnapped by the driver and suggested that the driver was being racist towards her. When the video went viral on the Internet, the reaction from the online community was massive. What started out as netizens passing a judgment on who was at fault escalated into attempts to humiliate the female passenger with offensive memes of her circulating online. In articles addressing the Singapore-Malaysia maritime dispute, many netizens from both sides of the Causeway also became aggressive, deriding each other’s countries and even proposing that war should take place between the two nations. In this respect, the online community did not consider the consequences of their comments. They have lost their ability to exercise good judgment and are instead aggravating situations that are already problematic and divisive. For us to harness the good of social media, we need to stop being keyboard warriors. We do not need to vent our frustrations online or make unnecessary comments that add fuel the fire. In the event of any social injustice, we should alert the relevant authorities instead. It is also the role of community leaders to act on netizens’ misuse of social media. Political leaders have to propose laws against cyberbullying and work with social media giants to remove any derogatory or personally offensive comments. Religious leaders should encourage their followers to be kind and avoid being impulsive. On a personal level, we should be highly conscious of our tendencies online, exercise more selfrestraint and engage with others more calmly and with maturity.
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Driving change through humour and heart The primary purpose of Zyrup was to entertain by gossiping about relationships and influencers. Despite gaining a sizable audience of 49,000 subscribers within 3 years of its launch in 2014, their lack of credibility hampered the discussion of salient topics. While purely relying on controversial entertainment may not be ideal, having content that is “too safe” may also hinder discussion on important topics. The People of Singapore, who run two accounts on Facebook and Tumblr, emulates a style similar to the Humans of New York website. The ground-up initiative, created in 2013, tells the stories of Singaporeans through snapshots. Stories like a father who lost his son to suicide and a woman who lost her partner to gang violence are among those featured on the website. As the creator of the page gathers content through one-off interviews with the man in the street, many of the respondents shared about experiences that put them in a good light.
GRAPHIC: DARRYL CHEONG
REXANNE YAP A HIV-positive gay man in Singapore recently opened up about how he chose to love despite the odds in a video posted by Millennials of Singapore (MOSG), a YouTube channel that shares the voices and lives of millennials in Singapore. Avin described the shock and shame of receiving his test result. He recalled how his mother broke down when he told her the news, and how he felt guilty every time he tried to be intimate with his partner. At the end of the video, Avin said that people still hold many mistaken beliefs about the HIVpositive individuals, including how infectious the condition is. Instead, he stressed that successes in treatment have allowed him to continue being intimate and that at the end of the day, everyone wants to be loved and accepted – even HIV patients. In the comments section of the video, netizens praised him for his bravery. Many felt that his story helped to dispel society’s misconceptions about people living with HIV and they expressed empathy for him. His compelling story encouraged viewers to engage in positive discussions. The video clocked more than 60,000 views, driven by MOSG’s popularity and reputation of being a platform for discussing social issues.
Since its launch last January, MOSG has been releasing relatable local content – at times controversial – to prompt its millennial viewers to have more enlightening discussions on salient issues in Singapore. For example, it aired an openly gay pastor’s perspective in the wake of the petition for the repeal of Article 377a in September 2018. MOSG enables those who want to have their voices heard on these issues to find an audience on social media. The appeal of its videos lies in its showcasing of authentic and entertaining personal stories.
The video (on a HIVpositive gay man) gained more than 60,000 views, driven by MOSG's popularity and reputation of being a platform to discuss social issues. Despite being a young channel, it gained 120,000 subscribers in 2018 alone and became recognised by YouTube as the #1 Rising YouTube Creator in Singapore in 2018.
This suggests that to effectively air alternative voices to change the national dialogue, media channels could consider the example of MOSG — to think of creative ways to showcase heartfelt, authentic, and important perspectives.
What makes MOSG unique On MOSG, the segment Millennial Stories shares the lives of those who challenge societal norms such as mental illnesses and gender stereotypes. Love and Relationships divulge the struggles of couples in committed relationships. When I Was Your Age allow for parent-child discussions about topics that would not be covered in a conservative “Asian” household. An example would be a mother and her millennial daughter who engaged in a candid discussion about their first boyfriends, including details like when they first had sex and the total number of men they had dated. While MOSG’s topics are often sensational entertainment, they set the agenda for the discussion of social issues. Its content appeals to human interest, while their non-anonymous guests narrate their stories in ways that are authentic and credible. Furthermore, the stories on MOSG take the form of short snippets on YouTube, and longer narratives on
its website, enabling some stories to be easily consumed while taking the time in their longer stories to break down more complex issues.
The perfect balance But not all media channels are as effective in encouraging national discussions. Striking the perfect balance between increasing audience reach and encouraging change is not easy for many local productions.
MOSG's content appeals to human interest, while their non-anonymous guests narrate their stories in ways that are authentic and credible. Zyrup, a YouTube channel that used to host a talk show similar to MOSG’s Real Talk, focuses on entertainment news and sensational topics. Different guests were invited every episode. They were mostly celebrities, such as YouTube personality Hirzi Zulkiflie and local artist Narelle Kheng.
The stories on MOSG take the form of short snippets on YouTube, and longer narratives on its website, enabling some stories to be easily consumed while taking the time in their longer stories to break down complex issues. Known as “social desirability bias” in social science research, the featured personalities would be less likely to voice a challenging opinion about society. Being “too safe” due to worry about public image stifles discussion about societal issues – the same issues that may have given rise to their circumstances. In the fight for attention in a heavily-mediatised world, knowing how to present stories and represent people is imperative if content creators want to effectively express the voices of people. To strengthen the quality of our social media discussions, we could showcase authentic stories that push boundaries on taboo topics. Hopefully, doing so would lead to better conversations on uncomfortable but important topics. Promoting empathy in this manner might be the first step to spark significant and lasting change in our nation.
女英雄登上大荧幕 既有魅力又有实力
— 刊17页
生活
自学魔术师继续突破自我 谢坤良 ● 报道
有机会与一名伙伴在著名旅游 部落客亚新面前表演。 田伟杰说，当时因为希望有 所突破，秉持“挑战不可能” 的精神，在知道亚新在新加坡 有粉丝见面活动后，决定试图 找机会现场为他呈现魔术表演。 “我当下觉得这是一项不可 能的任务，但我们最终凭着坚 持，与工作人员再三劝说下， 他们终于应许我们与亚新近距 离见面。也因为这一次的表 演，亚新邀请我们在他下一个 粉丝见面会的舞台上表演，这 超乎了我们的想象。” 目前，田伟杰正在为3月17日 的南大文化活动俱乐部 CenterStage 才艺比赛总决赛做准备。 问道他将会为观众带来什 么样的魔术表演，他透露演出 将会是“全新的概念”，结合 了社交媒体软件以及近距离互 动，为观众带来不一样的视觉 体验。
田
伟杰从小一直都对幻想 主题的事物感兴趣。他 10 岁时与家人乘坐一艘游轮，被 船上一场舞台魔术表演深深吸 引，随后便要求母亲到玩具店 购买一盒儿童魔术套装给他。 虽然盒子里头都是一些很简 单的儿童版魔术卡片和道具， 但他当时觉得非常新奇，并从 那天起开始独自在家中摸索、 钻研魔术。 从此，开启了田伟杰的魔术 之旅。这名年仅25岁的黄金辉传 播与信息学院一年级学生，去 年甚至受邀在著名旅游部落客 亚新 (Nuseir Yassin) 于新加坡的 粉丝见面活动上演出。今年， 他也成功晋级了南大文化活动 俱乐部 CenterStage 才艺比赛总 决赛。 田伟杰说，自己原本是个性 格非常内向的人，一开始不怎 么会表达自己的想法。在众人 面前表演魔术让他磨练胆量， 随着一次又一次的表演，他慢 慢变得更有信心。 “通过魔术表演我可以扮演 不同性格的角色，要求观众听 从我的指令，最终成功做出令 人难以置信的事，这种感觉非 常奇妙，再加上能受到朋友们 的认同，从而激励了我继续想 出更多新魔术的点子。”
17岁正式出道 田伟杰自学魔术七年后，决定 向外发展这门艺术，于2011年 参加了由本地电影新闻网站Sinema所举办的 “M for Magic” 魔术 师海选，最终得到了在网络节 目中表演街头魔术的机会，也 荣获了“观众票选奖”(People’s Choice Award)。 年仅17岁的他是当时年纪最轻 的入围者之一，这也是他首次 收到专业魔术师指导的时候。 “我很荣幸可以在节目中与
In summary
田伟杰从小就自学魔术，一路上也不断争取在多种场合表演，提升并挑战自我。 本地知名魔术师组合岑政聪 (JC Sum) 和蔡蕙 (Magic Babe Ning) 合 作，他们非常愿意栽培新人。 两人甚至在节目开拍的前几天 邀请我到他们的工作室，亲自 教导我一些表演魔术的诀窍， 让我获益良多。” 为了累计经验和提高知名 度，田伟杰起初到了各个慈善 活动，医院、和餐厅等场所义 务表演魔术。虽然这段时间没 有收到任何酬劳，但他表示自 己是开心的。 “每当我的魔术表演能够成 功让观众体验前所未有的震撼
感，让他们顿时相信所发生的 一切都是真实的，我觉得这就 是最大的收获。”
魔术唤起童年感受 田伟杰说，在设计一个魔术表 演时，他往往会先设定一个效 果，例如“把杯子变不见”， 然后再寻找多种方式去达到其 效果。 除了阅读相关书籍以及观看 教学视频，他每次设计魔术表 演的灵感主要来自日常生活。 平日在逛超市或家具店的时 候，他都会更加留意架上的商
图片： 田伟杰
品，并开始构思哪一些商品可 以融入表演中。 对田伟杰而言，魔术有一种 独特的魅力，让表演者和观众 回归童年感受。 “在构思点子时，魔术师 需保持着孩童般的思维，相信 一切都是有可能的，想出的表 演才能天马行空，让人意想不 到，从而唤回观众心底童年的 惊奇感。”
“挑战不可能”的精神 至今，田伟杰已在无数个平台 上表演，最令他难忘的经验是
ONE OF the finalists for this year’s NTU Cultural Activities Club (CAC) CenterStage Talent Competition, Darren Tien, shares with the Nanyang Chronicle his journey of becoming a magician. Fascinated by magic from a young age, the first-year student from the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information has been performing magic semi-professionally for the last eight years, including at popular travel blog Nas Daily’s fan meet in Singapore last year. The 25-year-old discusses the inspiration behind his performances, and how saying “yes” to spontaneity and embracing discomfort have given him the most memorable moments in his career so far.
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CHRONICLE 07 言论
从 "有故事的人" 到 "会讲故事的人" In summary WITH THE recent announcement of the Design-Your-OwnModule initiative at the National University of Singapore, which encourages students to pick up new skills beyond their academic curriculum, this opinion piece discusses a potential new module that NTU students can benefit from —that teaches the non-academic skill of storytelling. Good storytelling can help students improve their communication and persuasion skills, as well as strengthen their personal branding. When a good story goes viral, it can even attract more career opportunities and help pave one’s way into the job market.
图片: SORFINA IBRAHIM
据
亚洲新闻台的报道，国大 的学生在来临的八月，在 新措施“自行设计课程”(DesignYour-Own-Module， 简称 DYOM) 的推行之下，将可以自由向学校 申请开办自己想要学习的科目。 此项措施鼓励学生积极学习课 纲以外的事物，朝向自己热忱以 及专业的领域去发展。 举个例子，一名国大大一学生 提议开办有关团队合作及沟通等 非技术技能的课程，他相信能够 帮助想要学习如何培养团队精神 的同学。 若有同样机会在南大开办课
纲以外的“必修课”，笔者认为 我们应该学习好说个人故事的能 力。虽然在南大的事业筹备课程 有简单说明这技巧，我们还是需 要更深地了解并掌握这能力。 能说出一则动听的故事，让一 个生涩枯燥的大道理，或者是简 单却不以为意的理所当然，甚至 是一套难以直接言传的价值观， 有效率地达到沟通交流、说服打 动别人的目的。 说服别人，方法不计其数。摆 数据，讲道理 — 权威数据可以 增加说服力。但数据终有数据的 极限，感激、怜悯、宽恕......还
是会有些道理是数据不能告诉我 们的。 笔者本身常被台湾著名主持 人兼畅销书作家蔡康永的故事打 动。生活中的经历和想法，他都 善于讲它们淬炼成一个个引人入 胜的故事，把观众带入故事的跌 宕起伏中，按着自己的节奏向我 们娓娓道来，用最温柔的方式传 达自己的想法和见解。 除了说服别人，说故事的能力 也能开创商机。笔者曾在一场南 大就业与实习指导处 (Career and Attachment Office) 举办的师徒制群 体 (Mentorship Community) 旗下的
讲座会上，听到一名导师分享他 如何用自己成功创业的故事，吸 引其他商业的关注。 他说，当时他受邀申请一项比 目前工作高薪的新工作。顺利闯 过三关面试后，他得到面试官们 的一致肯定，并确认了自己能够 得到这份新工作。 他决定当下辞职，争取时间去 度假旅行。 然而旅行回来时，却因为“我 们需要更多时间”“我们正在修 改着条规”等原因，让一场原本 就要到手的工作转眼就落空。六 个月后，他收到了新公司的回复
说公司部门在转型的缘故而不再 需要他了。 导师借着这个故事做出了延 伸：在机会没有找上门的时候， 我们应该继续等待，坐以待毙或 者是勇敢去拼搏一次？要走向一 条大部分都在选择的那条安逸的 路，或者踏上一趟需要闯荡的冒 险之旅？ 他选择了一条窄路，走出自己 的舒适圈，自立门户，凭着他的 本领及努力成功创业，成立属于 自己的数字营销公司。 他这番对于自己创业的故事 分享，以及另一篇关于一个马来 同胞为了捍卫自己的宗教而拒绝 了十二份工作邀请的故事，在领 英 (LinkedIn) 打动了不少人，使他 个人档案的关注人数更增至3万 人。他随之获得了各种企业巨头 的辨识并拥有了更多的商机，然 而这当中他不曾在宣传自己身上 花费任何一分钱。 在僧多粥少的情况下，一个擅 长说自己故事的人，配搭上才华 和努力，所散发出的魅力及影响 力能让自己脱颖而出，吸引众人 把目光投注在他一人的身上。 只会做事，远远都不及于那些 既会做事又会说故事的人。 市场行销的发展演变至今，谁 说的话更有理，谁说的故事更好 听，人们就更愿意听谁的。 倘若有机会，笔者想要亲自设 计开办类似的课程。我们应当让 故事思维成为生活中的一部分， 好好学习并掌握它，让它将来发 展成为我们与人沟通、踏入社会 职场的通行证。 （文 / 黄迪勤）
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07 CHRONICLE
娱乐
女性英雄登上大荧幕，颠覆传统电影形象 身
材瘦小的女孩穿着轮滑 鞋，在环形的赛道中极速 前进，躲过高大敌人射来的机 械臂爪，将前方拦路的对手打 倒在地......这是《艾莉塔：战 斗天使》(Alita: Battle Angel) 最为 激动人心的片段之一。 过去的数十年中，电影院里 充斥着男性主导的影片，大荧 幕上的男性角色勇敢机智，行 动力强，而女性在电影中所处 的地位却略显尴尬。 美丽柔弱的邻居女孩，是主 人公理想中的爱人；狡猾狠毒 的美女反派，不断引诱或阻挠 主人公实现目标。 似乎女性在电影里的形象已 经被定型，毫无新意可言。 近些年，随着女性意识的觉 醒和女性运动的发展，电影行 业也开始意识到女性的重要性 和多元性。 电影里的女性证明她们是超 级英雄，地位可以和男性平起 平坐，实力强大并足以让人崇 敬的。
图片： 索尼影视动画
图片：DEN OF GEEK
以一敌十的战斗天使 《艾》讲述了机械合成少女艾 莉塔 (Alita) 在战斗的过程中寻找 失去的记忆和自我的故事。 影片中的艾莉塔外形瘦弱， 拥有天使一般美丽天真的面 孔，可瘦小的身体里却蕴藏着 巨大的能量。 她有着娴熟的战斗技巧，身 形灵活矫捷，运动天赋惊人， 而在看似平凡的躯体下，隐藏 着一颗强大的心脏。 艾莉塔从不惧怕挑战，甚至 对于战斗有着难以解释的热忱。 她不是一个手无缚鸡之力的 少女，而是可以以一敌十的战 斗天使。 当夜幕里的艾莉塔拿起武 器，与比自己高大数倍的敌人 对决时，她是一个强大无畏的 英雄。 尽管电影未能彻底摆脱男性 英雄的影响，在对艾莉塔的塑 造上并未体现出独具女性特色 的英雄特征，但当她战胜一个 个阻碍，剑指夜空时，已经宣 告了一个属于女性英雄的新时 代即将到来。
首个女蜘蛛侠优雅又坚强 另外一部展示女超人的电影是 2018年底上映的动画长片《蜘蛛 侠：新宇宙》。 蜘蛛侠的故事虽早已被观众 所熟知，但这部影片却聚焦在 平行宇宙的蜘蛛侠们身上，讲
图片： AVIRON PICTURES 述六个不同宇宙的蜘蛛侠如何 齐心协力拯救布鲁克林的故事。 影片中的六个蜘蛛侠各有特 点，但最引人注意的是蜘蛛女 侠格温。 作为首个在电影中出现的女 性蜘蛛侠，格温实力非凡，善 良勇敢。 她既是乐队鼓手，也是优雅 的舞者。 多年的舞蹈功底赋予了她非 凡的灵活性与超强体力，作为 最早穿越到本宇宙的蜘蛛侠， 她迅速的适应能力、精准的直 觉和果决的行动力也使她的形 象丰满动人。 当她摘下面罩，露出炫酷的 发型来到观众面前，不仅仅是 公开了自己的真实身份，更是 在告诉观众，女性一样可以成 为超级英雄。
女性战地记者触摸人心 在真实战争里，女性也在其中 展示特别的力量。 《私人战争》最近正在个别电 影院小规模上映，根据战地 记者玛丽科尔文的真实故事改 编，讲述了她生前的作为，包 括她的个人生活以及报道各地 战争时所经历的危急时刻。 玛丽科尔文作为一位女性战 地记者，有着异常执着的工作 热忱与超凡的行动力。 她以独特的女性视角，挖掘 着触动人心的事件，新闻切入 点细腻且充满感情。 她坚持前往战地并非是为了 找到博人眼球的故事，而是为 了将受到战争波及的人民的苦 难传达到世界各地。 影片中也涉及到科尔文的私 人生活，这个烟酒不离手，用
语也不算文明，甚至有些神经 衰弱的女性身上有许多普通人 也会有的缺点。 然而，在面对危险的战争 时，她的执着善良与不怕死的 精神，与以往战争片中经常被 炮火吓得尖叫，需要男性角色 保护的女性形象完全不同。 在科尔文身上，观众不仅能 看到不输男性的勇气与魅力， 也有女性独有的脆弱与坚定。 也正因如此，这个复杂多面的 角色才如此真实又令人敬佩。 近年女性意识的觉醒，促进 了电影中女性形象的转变，使 之变得更加重要也更加丰满。 今年即将上映的多部电影， 也有极其重要的女性角色将亮 相，不断展露其丰富多元的形 象，且让我们拭目以待。 （文 / 郑雯婕 ）
In summary STRONG female characters have been a common feature in films in recent years. In Alita, the lead is a robothuman hybrid who rediscovers her special abilities and fights evil cyborgs with a fiery passion. Meanwhile, Gwen, the first female Spider-Man, is both a drummer and a dancer, showcasing her flexibility and strength as a multi-faceted superheroine. In A Private War, war journalist Marie Colvin fights to tell stories with sensitivity and courage. These films mark a rising trend towards positive female representation in the movie industry today.