Deep Dive

This year’s National Day Rally brought welcome news for parents. From additional childcare leave and lower childcare centre costs to increased financial support under the new Singapore Child Support Package, the measures signal a push by the Government to provide families with more sustained support. But will these measures be enough to persuade parents who are already juggling full-time jobs and family life to have another child? How can those with no children not feel left behind? In this week’s Deep Dive, Steven Chia and Tiffany Ang speak with Acting Minister for Manpower Jasmin Lau and working parents Rachael Cheong and Yuvaraj Uthaman about their lived realities and whether the new initiatives can truly move the needle when it comes to family planning.

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Two AI-generated local films released over the National Day weekend sparked an uproar, with viewers calling them "AI slop". But in the age of generative AI when music, films and images can be created in minutes, what happens to the creatives who have spent years perfecting their technical skills? Is AI democratising creativity or devaluing the creative craft? Are we hurtling towards a future where the audience expects infinite content made with little creative input from humans? In this week’s episode of Deep Dive, Steven Chia and Tiffany Ang sit down with two people who are on the opposite ends of this creative process for a debate – Playbox Studios founder Basil Yeo who doesn’t use AI in his media agency's works and Matthew Lee, co-creator of Recess Remix, a TikTok account that used AI to remix school songs.

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From getting Healthpoints for donating blood to being paid for reading, Singaporeans are increasingly being incentivised to do what's beneficial for themselves and society. But when the rewards stop, will the good behaviour stop too? And could all these incentives make us a more transactional society? Steven Chia and Tiffany Ang speak with Dr Serene Koh from the Behavioural Insights Team and assistant professor Lawrence Jin from the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy on the intentions of putting incentives at work, when they backfire, and whether rewards produce long-term benefits.

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The recent arrests of three self-radicalised teenagers under the Internal Security Act (ISA) have sent shockwaves through Singapore, with attacks in schools planned in two cases. What makes young people vulnerable to extremist ideologies? And what more can parents, schools and friends do as the online world increasingly shapes their exposure and belief? Steven Chia and Tiffany Ang speak with Professor Kumar Ramakrishna, dean of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, and Dr Mohamed Feisal Hassan, secretary and counsellor at the Religious Rehabilitation Group, to unpack the evolving threat of radicalisation, the warning signs to watch for, and what you should do if you suspect someone may be at risk.

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The government has lowered the minimum age to apply for Community Care Apartments from 65 to 55 and cut the cost of the basic service package to encourage more take-up. But will these changes meet the needs of a fast ageing society that still want their freedom and independence? In this week’s Deep Dive, Tiffany Ang and Steven Chia sit down with associate professor Kelvin Tan from the Singapore University of Social Sciences and Nicholas Mak, chief research officer from MOGUL.sg, to explore who these apartments are really designed for and whether they can sufficiently fill the gap to house an ageing nation.

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The resignation of former Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs Associate Professor Faishal Ibrahim, after Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said his interactions with a woman fell short of standards expected of a political office holder, shocked many Singaporeans. What do these standards look like in Singapore's political system? How do they shape expectations and what impact could this have on attracting the next generation of political leaders? Tiffany Ang speaks with Dr Norshahril Saat, principal fellow at the ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute and Nicholas Fang, managing director of strategic consultancy Black Dot and former nominated member of parliament, on what the resignation reveals about political accountability and public trust.

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The release of Chinese film Dear You has reignited the debate over dialects in Singapore after the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) approved limited screenings of its Teochew original version. Has the time come to rethink Singapore's approach to dialects, or are they destined to fade away in the next generation? In this week's Deep Dive, Steven Chia and Tiffany Ang speak with assistant professor Luke Lu from Nanyang Technological University and Hokkien content creator Ong Yi Ting (@yitinggoyt) to explore whether dialects are worth preserving or are they fast becoming relics of Singapore's past.

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As Singapore becomes a super-aged society, more families are facing the difficult decisions about long-term care. But after two nursing homes had their licences revoked over serious lapses in resident safety and care, how can families know which homes to trust? Beyond regular spot checks and audits, should inspection results be publicised for greater transparency? Tiffany Ang and Steven Chia unpack this issue with Dr Raymond Chua, Deputy Director-General of Health (Health Regulation) at the Ministry of Health, and gerontology expert Professor Andy Ho from NTU.

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Singapore's security is not just built on military spending and might. With the security landscape evolving and the nature of warfare changing, what does it take to strengthen the country's defence? How can the state deter potential threats without unnecessarily raising tensions? In this week’s Deep Dive, Steven Chia and Tiffany Ang speak with Defence Minister Chan Chun Sing in a wide-ranging interview on the role of defence diplomacy behind closed doors, the global arms race in military spending and how the Singapore Army is evolving to prepare soldiers for future conflicts.

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Pritam Singh has been re-elected as leader of the Workers' Party after surviving a resignation call at a special cadres conference and party elections on Sunday. While the results appear to draw a line under years of intense public scrutiny, does it also come with higher expectations of his leadership going forward? And what challenges and opportunities lie ahead for the Workers' Party as it celebrates its 70th year in 2027? In this week’s Deep Dive, Tiffany Ang sits down with Associate Professor Eugene Tan from the Singapore Management University and independent political observer Dr Felix Tan to unpack what the latest developments mean for Mr Singh, the party and the future of opposition politics in Singapore.

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