Reasons to fund SMT’s transformation remain valid: Josephine Teo

THE government will continue to provide up to S$180 million annually to support SPH Media Trust’s (SMT) transformation for five years starting from FY2022, said Minister for Communications and Information Josephine Teo in Parliament on Monday (Feb 6).

This is after re-examining the initial analysis of the media landscape which was conducted in early 2021 when the decision was taken to support the restructuring, she said.

Teo noted that the key reasons laid out then still stand. Local news media is at a “watershed” with structural changes, technological advances and the Internet disrupting the media industry. Additionally, preserving local news media serves larger, long-term public interests by giving voice to the Singapore identity and Singaporean perspectives, including those of the country’s multi-racial communities, she said. Further, in a crowded information space, citizens must have sources they can trust which are accurate and objective.

“SMT’s review of circulation numbers reinforced our assessment that the media landscape has become highly unfavourable for news organisations even if they have substantial reach and are trusted by the public,” she said.

“In particular, demand for print and digital subscriptions has weakened because news has become freely available (and) this is why circulation has come under pressure.”

The funding, when disbursed, will be used for technology development such as product development in the digital space, newsroom tools and IT infrastructure. It will also be used for talent development and the preservation of vernacular media.

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“As members can see, in assessing the funding required for SMTs transformation, circulation numbers were not a key consideration. The level of funding previously assessed for the purposes of investing in technology and capability development remain valid,” said Teo.

To ensure accountability, SMT will be held to account based on “readership and reach” which measure how many people consume the content and not circulation figures which calculate how many print and digital copies are sold or distributed.

Teo added that a variety of conditions and safeguards are in place to ensure that public funding is used in an accountable and responsible manner. These include the key performance indicators (KPIs) covering reach and engagement; progress updates on a half-yearly basis; and satisfactory regular updates on where and how funding has been utilised.

She added that as yet, the government has not disbursed any funding and as such, “the findings of SMT’s internal review of circulation data from September 2020 to March 2022 have no bearing on public funds”.

In response to a question raised by Member of Parliament Jessica Tan (East Coast GRC) on when the first tranche of funding is to be released, Teo said the funding agreement is “close to being concluded”.

“Once we’re satisfied that the KPIs have been properly set, as well as the safeguards have been properly included in the arrangement, we will release the funding.”