Press release
31st May 2006
Singapore

New Media: The New Frontier In Communications And PR

The Singapore UPA President & Consulting Director at MicroUsability, Gul Amir Khan, speaks at the 5th Annual Conference on "New Media: The New Frontier In Communications And PR" on 31 May 06 at the Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel, Singapore.

"New Media: The New Frontier In Communications And PR"

The 5th Annual Conference was held on 31 May 06 at the Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel. Dr Lee Boon Yang, Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts was the Guest-of-Honour.  

About 250 senior representatives from the private and public sectors in Singapore and the region gathered to explore the challenges that the new media poses to traditional concepts of news and journalism. The one-day conference saw an exchange of ideas and views about the ups and downs of the new media, such as blogs, podcasts and explored how developments in digital media have impacted traditional concepts of journalism.

Dr Lee Boon Yang, Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts, who delivered the keynote address urged responsible use of the new media. He said that the government encouraged the free flow of information and exchange of views on all media platforms. However, the same rules and principles that apply in the traditional media had to apply to the new media as well. Commenting on the challenges and opportunities for communicators, Dr Lee noted that the new media formats meant greater opportunities to exercise creativity in information delivery, and more avenues to better engage and feel stakeholders’ pulse through interactive communications.

Asked why the PR Academy had chosen the theme of new media for its annual conference this year, its MD, Ms Sulosana Karthigasu, observed that new media has thrown up a whole new world in communications. PR officers needed training in new media and its applications if they are to successfully leverage on the new media’s opportunities.

She noted that this need for specialized training was not unique to Singapore. For instance, a survey by Vocus Inc, a US based PR Company, of 1,000 newspaper, magazine and internet journalists in the US had shown that only 33% of corporate websites provided adequate information for journalists looking for information on corporate websites. Ms Karthigasu added: “Corporate websites are the first point of contact for anyone looking for information on the Net. If a website does not provide the required information within two to three mouse-clicks, the visitor leaves the site in frustration; very similar to any frustrating encounter at physical service counters.
“The PR Academy thus focuses on teaching public communicators on how to communicate using new media and ensure that their corporate websites are user-friendly, and provide information in simple language that meets the needs of net surfers looking for quick, digestable nuggets of information”.

The Academy’s conference on new media is especially timely as Singapore is now in the process of unveiling iN2015, (Intelligent Nation 2015), the next phase of national infocomm infrastructure to provide enhanced wired and wireless network nationwide. Coupled with more of our IT-literate younger generation joining our workforce in the coming years, it is important for everyone to learn how to deliver information via the Net in an interesting and easily digestable manner.

The conference speakers included leading Singaporean PR expert, Mr Basskaran Nair, Adjunct Assoc Prof, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, Consulting Director, Gul Amir Khan, popular bloggers Mr Miyagi and Mr brown and Mr Jonathan Hall of BBC (UK) Production and Training (New Media, TV and radio). The day’s deliberations culminated with a thought provoking and stimulating roundtable discussion moderated by Dr Cherian George, of the School of Communications and Information, Nanyang Technological University.