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PN Balji Biography

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“How, I asked, would people debate freely if the fear factor hung over conversations that some deemed controversial? I concluded: “As long as the government is perceived as Big Brother waiting to pounce on those who are critical of policies, and as long as the talented and the bright imagine a conspiracy at every corner, you tell me, how to become a world-class country?”

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Book:Reluctant Editor: The Singapore Media as Seen through the Eyes of a Veteran Newspaper Journalist
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“Editors knew they were in a charmed circle, being privy to the policymakers’ thinking, but these off-the-record sessions were also a double-edged sword as they tied editors’ hands. When reporters uncovered stories on which editors had already been briefed, such stories had to be held back until the official announcements were made. Editors also found themselves hemmed in when they evaluated stories, because they always had to bear in mind what had been discussed with the ministers. Such privileged meetings hung like an albatross around many editors’ necks.”

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Book:Reluctant Editor: The Singapore Media as Seen through the Eyes of a Veteran Newspaper Journalist
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“Will the Singapore government be amenable to this type of journalism, as it had spoken out publicly on many occasions against mixing news with analysis and comment; the separation of news and analysis and comment had to be like that between church and state.”

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Book:Reluctant Editor: The Singapore Media as Seen through the Eyes of a Veteran Newspaper Journalist
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“Cheong genuinely believed that being pro-government was nothing to be ashamed of. I read his book as a reminder to new ministers and new editors that the relationship was a special and delicate one needing mutual respect. That is why he gave some examples of the difficult negotiations and the give-and-take with the government. He feared that it was becoming a more one-way subservient relationship.”

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Book:Reluctant Editor: The Singapore Media as Seen through the Eyes of a Veteran Newspaper Journalist
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“Peter’s management style was very different from that of his predecessors. He was a listener, always ready to hear out his journalists when they approached him. He ran an open and transparent newsroom and believed in the principle that government and media should not be one. There should be a line, no matter how thin, between the two. He believed the PAP was good for Singapore, but not that all its actions were correct.”

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Book:Reluctant Editor: The Singapore Media as Seen through the Eyes of a Veteran Newspaper Journalist
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“In a private setting, Leslie and Minister for Information and the Arts George Yeo engaged in a debate over the issue, with George Yeo finally declaring that the government would defend its Members of Parliament even if they were wrong.”

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Book:Reluctant Editor: The Singapore Media as Seen through the Eyes of a Veteran Newspaper Journalist
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“I think one structural explanation could be that precisely because the internet has emerged as a platform on which the government gets attacked every day, the government is guarding its control of mainstream media even more jealously.”

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Book:Reluctant Editor: The Singapore Media as Seen through the Eyes of a Veteran Newspaper Journalist
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“Those who tried to demonstrate some form of independence and fairness in their reporting and editing have paid a high price. The Straits Times editor, Han Fook Kwang, was sidelined and made managing editor after a rare display of fairness in political journalism when he gave the Opposition, especially the Workers’ Party, more editorial space than what was allocated during previous elections.”

PoliticsSingapore
Book:Reluctant Editor: The Singapore Media as Seen through the Eyes of a Veteran Newspaper Journalist
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