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The Media Programme Asia, along with 22 editors from the Asia News Network (ANN), met Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong this week at Istana, the government’s official residence. The newspapers’ representatives from 20 different Asian countries had the opportunity to interview Lee on issues concerning ASEAN, the missing MH370, environmental problems, territorial disputes as well as their countries’ bilateral relations with Singapore. Questions on Singapore’s press freedom and its ranking in the Reporters without Borders’ Press Freedom Index were also posed.
The ANN is an alliance of 22 leading English daily newspapers from 20 Asian countries and serves as a news agency. Since its foundation in 1999, it has been partnering with the KAS’ Media Programme Asia. The annual board meeting was held in Singapore this year. Apart from recent developments in the Asian media landscape, the board members also discussed new funding, marketing, as well as cooperation opportunities for the near future. Particularly the cooperation with the German press agency, DPA, was said to be extended soon.
As part of the board meeting, the participants also had the opportunity to visit the coinciding Crowdsourcing Week conference in Singapore. Crowdsourcing is the practice of aligning many individuals to work towards a common goal. It employs collaboration for problem-solving, funding, innovation and efficiency. It is powered by new technologies, social media and web 2.0.