Anti-establishment element will always be inherent, says PM Lee at The Zaobao ForumTHERE will always be an anti-establishment element in a new media environment, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at a forum last night.self storageHe said that to get the support of the people, the government must continue to do its work, try its best to communicate and involve people in its initiatives to give them a stronger sense of satisfaction."We can't wish for new media not to exist, but we can try our best to use it," Mr Lee said in Mandarin, in response to a question from a member of the audience, who asked how the government regards online views about how it is disconnected from the people."Satisfied people don't have time to go onto the Internet. Unhappy people often go there," Mr Lee said. "I'm not saying all opposing views are just grouses, but this is a worldwide phenomenon of the new media that we have to understand. If people conclude that the new media is reflective of the views of an entire country, we are in trouble," he said."So the government must continue to do its work. We can't always be looking to see if the Internet approves or disapproves . . . but after doing our work, we must try our best to communicate with people and let people understand what we are doing."Mr Lee was speaking to 300 members of the Chinese community, including readers of Chinese daily Lianhe Zaobao, academics and students, at The Zaobao Forum held at the Singapore Press Holdings auditorium. Lianhe Zaobao is celebrating its 90th anniversary this year and launched its web portal, zaobao.sg, yesterday.In the two-hour session, Mr Lee spoke 迷利倉bout the benefits and challenges posed by the transformation of the media landscape into one dominated by the Internet. He also spoke of Zaobao's international role in reflecting Singapore's take on events in China and North-east Asia, as well as its domestic role in balancing the transmission of Chinese culture and values, and the paper's position in a multi-racial and multi-ethnic society.New media offers benefits in its ability to transmit information quickly, bring together friends and families who are physically apart, and organise people in support of causes.But there are challenges, seen firstly in criminal activity such as hacking, which recently brought down some websites not just in Singapore but around the region.Cyberbullying is also a growing problem, as well as "trolling" - abusive remarks found in online discussion forums, often by strangers hiding under the guise of anonymity."We must fight back against trolling, and provide a safe, responsible online environment which promotes constructive participation," he said. He added that the government's feedback arm, Reach, will from mid-December require users to log in before they can participate in discussions.Mr Lee also fielded questions on a range of topics on journalism, bilingualism and his own experience with new media."I feel there's value in new media," he said. "Through Facebook, I can directly transmit my thoughts to netizens. But there are limitations . . . the post about the owl (in the Istana) was the most successful. I got 500,000 views. If I can get 200,000 views on a post on economic development and productivity, I would be happy."迷你倉
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