The Straits Times
Type	Daily newspaper
Format	Broadsheet
Owner	Singapore Press Holdings
Editor	Han Fook Kwang
Founded	July 15, 1845
Language	English
Price	S$0.80 at newsstands, S$0.70 for subscription
Headquarters	Singapore
Circulation	Estimated 400,000 daily
Website: http://www.straitstimes.com

The Straits Times is an English-language broadsheet newspaper based in Singapore, currently owned by the Singapore Press Holdings (SPH). It is the highest-selling paper in any language of the country, with a daily circulation of around 400,000. File links The following pages link to this file: The Straits Times ... Newspaper sizes in August 2005. ... Singapore Press Holdings Limited (SPH) is the leading newspaper and magazine publisher in Singapore. ... July 15 is the 196th day (197th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 169 days remaining. ... 1845 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... ISO 4217 Code SGD User(s) Singapore, Brunei Inflation 0. ... ISO 4217 Code SGD User(s) Singapore, Brunei Inflation 0. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Newspaper sizes in August 2005. ... Singapore Press Holdings Limited (SPH) is the leading newspaper and magazine publisher in Singapore. ... Best-selling English language daily newspapers as of 2002, with circulation: The Sun 3,541,002 United Kingdom (tabloid) The Daily Mail 2,342,982 United Kingdom (tabloid) The Daily Mirror 2,148,058 United Kingdom (tabloid) The Times of India 2,144,842 India USA Today 2,120,357...

The Straits Times, the oldest newspaper of any kind in Singapore, was established on July 15, 1845, during British colonial rule. July 15 is the 196th day (197th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 169 days remaining. ... 1845 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Currently, the paper is perhaps the chief general news source for the country's English-language residents. The Singapore Press Holdings publishes two other English-language dailies - the broadsheet Business Times and The New Paper, an afternoon tabloid. Today is a free tabloid published by Mediacorp Press targeting working adults. All three competitors lack the scope and coverage of The Straits Times. Singapore Press Holdings Limited (SPH) is the leading newspaper and magazine publisher in Singapore. ... The Business Times , also known as the BT, is the name of two financial newspapers published in South East Asia. ... The New Paper is Singapores second highest circulating paid English-language newspaper, first launched on July 26, 1988 by Singapore Press Holdings (SPH). ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Look up today in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

It is a member of the Asia News Network. The Asia News Network (ANN) is a network of Asian daily newspapers that share editorial content with each other, including breaking news, features, editorials and personality profiles. ...

About the paper

The Straits Times functions with 16 bureaus and special correspondents in major cities worldwide. The paper itself is published in three main sections: the main section focuses on Asian and international news, with subsections of columns and editorials. The "Home" section focuses on local news, together with the Forum (letters to the press), sports and finance pages. A separate lifestyle, entertainment and the arts section is titled Life!. The French word bureau, which originally referred to an office, can in English refer to: a sort of desk with drawers, such as a writing table or a pedestal desk the Bureau Mazarin is a 17th century desk form named after Cardinal Mazarin a public office or government agency the... Finance studies and addresses the ways in which individuals, businesses, and organizations raise, allocate, and use monetary resources over time, taking into account the risks entailed in their projects. ... A stilt-walker entertaining shoppers at a shopping centre in Swindon, England Entertainment is an event, performance, or activity designed to give pleasure or relaxation to an audience (although, for example, in the case of a computer game the audience may be only one person). ... The arts is a broad subdivision of culture, composed of many expressive disciplines. ...

Currently, the newspaper publishes three weekly pull-outs ("Digital Life," "Mind Your Body," and "Urban," on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, respectively). All three pull-outs are printed in tabloid format. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

The Straits Times is the only English-language newspaper with an active Internet forum in Singapore. A separate edition, The Sunday Times, is published on Sundays. A typical Internet forum discussion, with common elements such as emoticons, avatars, and quotes. ...

Criticism

Since Singapore's independence in 1965 and increasingly in the 1990s, the paper has come under criticisms from more liberal members of the public. While generally a reliable source of local and international news, the ST is decidedly conservative and non-confrontational on public issues, particularly on politics and society. To some, the paper is at times a propaganda mouthpiece of the Singapore government, biased towards the right-wing ideology of the ruling People's Action Party. Freedom of the press is a foreign concept to implement in Singapore, with writer Catherine Lim, describing the local press as practising self-censorship. Politics is the process by which groups make decisions. ... An Australian anti-conscription propaganda poster from World War One U.S. propaganda poster, which warns against civilians sharing information on troop movements (National Archives) The much-imitated 1914 Lord Kitchener Wants You! poster Swedish Anti-Euro propaganda for the referendum of 2003. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Left-Right politics. ... Party logo with a symbol of red lightning that signifies action. ... Freedom of the press (or press freedom) is the guarantee by a government of free public press for its citizens and their associations, extended to members of news gathering organizations, and their published reporting. ... Catherine Lim (Chinese: 林宝音) is a Malaysian-born Singaporean, a Straits-born Chinese author, born in 1942, in Penang, Malaysia. ... Self-censorship is the act of censoring and/or classifying ones own book(s), film(s), or other kind of art to avoid offending others without an authority pressuring them to do so. ...

Opposition figures are given little or no press coverage, in terms of interviews or statements. One local political satire website has even gone so far as to jokingly label the newspaper as the "State's Times" [1].

The Newspaper and Printing Presses Act of 1974 requires all newspapers to be publicly listed into both ordinary and management shares, with management shares having 200 times the voting rights of ordinary shares and approval from the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts needed for any management share transfers. Hence, past chairpersons of Singapore Press Holdings have all been civil servants. In particular, SPH's current executive president Tjong Yik Min served as the head of the ISD from 1986 to 1993, and prominent political columnist Chua Lee Hoong and as well as editors Irene Ho and Susan Sim are all former ISD employees. ^[1] The Old Hill Street Police Station is currently the headquarters of the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts, Singapore. ...

Cherian George, a journalist and art editor of the paper, has given an insightful description of press workings in Singapore. He stated in a convention conference in 1998 at the University of California, Berkeley that "the PAP power is hegemonic power, in the Gramscian sense: it is a perfect blend of coercion and consent", concluding that "Singapore's newspapers are, at least in part, willing partners, of the state....the PAP did not suppress the press in order to cover up corruption or hide its mistakes. It did so out of a sincere belief that the press as an institution had a narrow and short-term view of the public interest, and that it could obstruct good government. Singapore's press model thus reverses the equation of your First Amendment. Here, the press, seen as the pure expression of democracy, is protected from the government, which, despite having been elected democratically, is assumed automatically by your political culture to have undemocratic tendencies. In the Singapore model, the elected government is the expression of democracy, and it is protected from the press, which is unelected and therefore undemocratic.... Sather tower (the Campanile) looking out over the San Francisco Bay and Mount Tamalpais. ...

"the 'freedom from the press' model does mean that newspapers must operate within much narrower perimeters than their counterparts in most parts of the world. It must accept its subordinate role in society...The tone of stories must be respectful towards the country's leaders. They can be critical, but they cannot ridicule or lampoon." [2]

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has ranked Singapore 147th out of 166 countries in its second annual World Press Freedom Ranking in 2004. In 2005 Singapore's rating improved somewhat when it was ranked 140th by the same organization. However, this minute improvement was somewhat reversed in 2006, when it was ranked 146th out of 168 countries, close to its 2004 ranking by RSF. Reporters Without Borders, or RWB (French: Reporters sans frontières, Spanish: Reporteros Sin Fronteras, or RSF) is a French origin international non-governmental organization that advocates freedom of the press, founded by its current general-secretary, Robert Menard. ...

Lee Boon Yang, the Singapore Minister of Communication, Information and the Arts publicly protested against the basis on which Singapore was given the ranking. Instead, he asserted that the local press was running on a "different media model" from many of the countries gauged in the RSF rankings that has "evolved out of our (Singapore's) special circumstances" and was being "non-adversarial" towards the government. [3] George Yeo, when he held the same portfolio as Lee, also stressed that the media was not to be a "fourth estate" in ruling the country (presumably because the media lacks the mandate from the electors); instead, the role of the press was to aid "nation building", in view of Singapore's heterogeneous society and peculiar vulnerabilities as a small nation. Lee Boon Yang (born 1947) is the Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts and a member of the Cabinet of Singapore. ... George Yong-Boon Yeo (Chinese: 杨荣文; pinyin: Yáng Róngwén), or simply known as George Yeo, is the Minister for Foreign Affairs in Singapore. ...

Owing to political sensitivities, the Straits Times is not sold in neighbouring Malaysia, and the Malaysian newspaper New Straits Times is not sold in Singapore. At one point, during an international dispute over the sale of water, the newspaper was banned in Malaysia. The New Straits Times is a Malaysian English-language newspaper. ...

Straits Times Interactive

Launched in 1999, the Straits Times Interactive was free of charge and granted access to all the sections and articles found in the print edition. On the 15 March 2005, the online version began requiring registration and after a short period became a paid-access only site. Currently only people who subscribe to the online edition can read all the articles on the Internet, including the frequently-updated "Latest News" section. 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... March 15 is the 74th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (75th in leap years). ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

A free section, featuring a selection of news stories, is currently available at the site. Regular podcasts, vodcasts and twice-daily (midday and evening updates) radio news bulletins are also available for free online. An orange square with waves indicates that an RSS feed is present on a webpage. ... Vodcast (a portmanteau of video podcast or video on demand-cast), VODcast or video podcast is an emerging term used for the online delivery of video on demand video clip content via Atom or RSS enclosures. ...

The Straits Times' decision to make its online edition almost entirely subscription-funded is in contrast to other traditional newspapers' online editions, which often only charge for certain sections (such as archives) or for digital editions. However, the latest AC Nielsen Net Ratings figures show that Straits Times Interactive has attracted about five million page views a month since May 2006, making it the top online daily in the country which is read by more than 4% of the adult population monthly, largely professionals and executives. Nielsen//NetRatings is an Internet media and market research firm that conducts studies of Ad Relevance and Ad Intelligence, in addition to Internet Audience Measurement. ... May is the fifth month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar and one of seven Gregorian months with the length of 31 days. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ...

Community programmes

The Straits Times School Pocket Money Fund

The Straits Times School Pocket Money Fund

The Straits Times School Pocket Money Fund is a community fund set up by The Straits Times to ensure that less well-off pupils are adequately well-fed in schools. They are given either S$30 (for Primary School students) or S$50 (for Secondary School students) every month, to ensure that they have enough pocket money for their recess (breaks during school hours). This is a copyrighted and/or trademarked logo. ... This is a copyrighted and/or trademarked logo. ...

The Straits Times Media Club

The ST Media Club

The Straits Times Media Club is a youth programme to encourage Youth readership and interest in News and Current Affairs. Schools will have to subscribe for at least 500 copies, and will receive their papers every Monday. A Youth Newspaper, IN, is slotted in together with the main paper for the students. This is a copyrighted and/or trademarked logo. ... This is a copyrighted and/or trademarked logo. ...

The Straits Times School of Rock Competition

The Straits Times School of Rock Competition was incepted in 2005. Budding young bands with members aged between 13-18 compete to be the ultimate Youth Band in Singapore. The finals of the competition was held at a local shopping mall in small town, Bishan: Junction 8 on the 31st July 2005.

The band 3dash1 won against the 206 bands that signed up for the competition. 3dash1 comprises the following members: Muhammad Ashik, 18, from Singapore Polytechnic, bassist Andhika, 17, from Nanyang Polytechnic and drummer Mohammed Nashir, 19, from ITE Simei. The band received prize money of S$5,000 (US$3,008), and was offered a management contract from artiste management company, Music & Movement. Singapore Polytechnic (Abbreviation: SP; Chinese: 新加坡理工學院), the first polytechnic established in Singapore, was founded in 1954. ... Nanyang Polytechnic (Chinese: 南洋理工学院) is a modern campus located next to Yio Chu Kang MRT station, Singapore. ... Establish on 1 April 1992, ITE is a statutory board under the Ministry of Education in Singapore. ...

The Straits Times National Schools Newspaper Competition

The National Schools Newspaper Competition started its inaugural year in 2005. Although 20 schools qualified for the semi-finals based on their school newsletters, only 10 schools made it to the finals. These 10 secondary schools then participated in the finals, a 24-hour challenge held at the SPH News Centre on 12-13 December 2005. The aim was to produce a 4 page, A3 sized newsletter within that time.

Anglo-Chinese School (Barker Road) beat 9 other schools to emerge as the "Gold" (1st) prize winner, taking home S$5,000 cash and a trophy. The team consisted of Timothy Fang, 15, Whang Yihang, 15, Michael Davies, 15, Mervyn Lau, 14, and Ian Yap, 14. Raffles Institution and CHIJ (St. Nicholas) came in "Silver" (2nd) and "Bronze" (3rd) winners respectively. Anglo-Chinese School (Barker Road) is a Secondary School of the ACS family located at the Barker Road campus, Singapore. ...

In 2006- the second year of the competition, Victoria School defeated the other 9 schools emerging as champions ("Gold" prize winner) taking home S$3000 cash and a Thinkpad x41 tablet PC. CHIJ (St. Nicholas) and Raffles Institution came in "Silver" (2nd) and "Bronze" (3rd) winners respectively. This does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...

Notable personalities

• Cheong Yip Seng (Editor-in-Chief)
• Han Fook Kwang (Editor)
• Felix Soh (Deputy Editor)
• Zuraidah Ibrahim (Political Editor)
• Warren Fernandez (Foreign Editor)
• Sumiko Tan (Life!/Urban Editor)
• Susan Long (Journalist)
• Ching Cheong (Senior journalist - Presently held by Chinese authorities on espionage charges)

Zuraidah Ibrahim is the political editor of The Straits Times, a Singapore-based newspaper. ... Sumiko Tan is a Singapore journalist for The Straits Times. ... Susan Long is a senior correspondent for The Straits Times in Singapore. ... Ching Cheong (Chinese: 程翔) (born December 22, 1949) is a senior journalist in The Straits Times detained by the Peoples Republic of China for espionage. ...

References

• Thio, HR and the Media in Singapore in HR and the Media, Robert Haas ed, Malaysia: AIDCOM 1996 69 at 72-5.

External links

• The Straits Times
• The Asia News Network
• Stomp
• Selection of free stories at The Straits Times Website