The innate desire for information and knowledge within a human being is a growing perpetually discontented entity. It is never satisfied, and its voracious appetite, whetted by the pangs of curiosity, inquisitiveness and a quest for knowledge, increases even as it is given more to consume. Now, as the new media order marches on with its banner of globalism and battalion of converging technologies, the floodgates of information are opening and hungry minds are presented with the ambrosia of dazzling arrays of endless resources. Regulation is, suddenly, in this context, seen as the foe which takes away these resources, the enemy who chains the floodgates in restricting the flow of information and ideas. In truth, this is a grave misunderstanding of the meaning, goals and importance of regulation, especially in this age of information technology and an increasingly borderless world.

We shall look at the metaphorical analogy of fire being a good servant but a bad master. Here, fire represents all resources and content made available by all mass media forms, particularly the Internet in this era of global convergence. Following this analogy, fire is indispensable and crucial to life even before civilizations began; and humans have learned to harness and rein in its power for their benefit. Similarly, knowledge and resources when used judiciously and wisely are essential to human beings so that they may enrich themselves continually, and heighten their understanding and awareness of their environment. The utility of fire is greatly enhanced as it is restrained, and can be applied to a great number of constructive purposes --just as the regulation of the media will enhance the diversification and proliferation of mon useful materials. However, fire creates disasters and tragedies when it razes out of control; same for the media if it goes unchecked and wreaks havoc on social and cultural frameworks, dehumanizing and debasing humans and inciting the flames of hatred and discord. This emphasizes the importance of contol and discretion always -- that something is essentially beneficial if regulated and in proper moderation, and that a loss of this control and an unhealthy excess is ultimately deleterious.

The synergistic interaction of the media and regulations can be effectively embodied in an anatomical model of the human circulatory system. The media and its contents are represented by the respiratory fluid blood, which is in itself essential to life. Regulatory channels as represented by the venous, arterial and lymphatic systems. Veins and arteries, like regulation, give direction flow and purpose to media and its content, that is, the blood. Without a specific goal, the situation becomes potentially dangerous and life-threatening, such as in a haemorrhage where blood seeps uncontrolled into bodily regions. Other regulatory agents are represented by valves in veins which further prevent improper flow; and the lymphatic system network which serves to filter pathogens and other dangerous virulent agents from the blood which in this case represent the scourge of pornography and other guises of cybercrime. In its entirety, the system is beneficial to the constitution of the body and furthers its development.

Hence, the importance of regulation in the media environment is once more emphasized -- where regulation is an instrument for positive action to bring about range, diversity and quality in all aspects of media.

In this essay, present media regulations in Singapore will be examined in view of its drive towards becoming a Media Hub in the Asian region as well as the constantly evolving media environment. The essay will also seek to voice opinions on specific improvements which could be made in our existing media regulations to relevant government agencies. Integrated with this will be discussions of the new legal and ethical issues raised by the new media environment, as well as the fundamental guidelines for regulation.

The information technology revolution is reshaping the world and creating new paradigms in the social, cultural, economic and political domains. Media and communications laws and regulation cry out for reform as changed circumstances and technology make established institutions and instruments no longer effective. The evolution of the Internet is creating a new virtual realm of communication, characterized by the peculiarities associated with cyberspace -- the anonymity of its users, the ease with which sensitive information can be accessed, and the complexities involved in creating meaningful regulation.

All these have bred complex new twists to old legal and ethical problems, and these complications seem to defy the parameters of accountability that have traditionally governed print and broadcasting, shrouding the reputation of the Internet at a crucial juncture in its development as a communications medium. The real emerging challenge for these new times are national policies about borderless issues in an increasingly seamless global network in cyberspace.

Online services and the Internet have been facts of life for many years. It was the invention of the World Wide Web in the late 1980's by Tim Berners-Lee and his colleagues at CERN particle-physics laboratory that propelled these services into the view of many. And since the advent of the web, growth in exploitation of online services and the like has exploded, as have the new legal and ethical quandaries induced by interactive media.

The Prime Minister of Singapore, Mr. Goh Chok Tong, has spoken of the sweeping and revolutionary changes that the info-communications industry is undergoing at the present time even as Singapore strives to position herself as a Media Hub in the Asian region.

"Knowledge and skills will be essential in the information era", he said, continuing that Singapore's 'survival and prosperity depend on our ability to adapt to the new world of the 21st century and be of service to it'. The Prime Minister added that 'Singaporeans therefore have to embrace the new technology of the information age actively, and not just welcome it passively.' He said that by the end 1998, all 800,000 households in Singapore aill be able to connect to Singapore ONE -- a network and services constituting a National Information Infrastructure in the form of a multimedia broadband network -- which will handle a wide-ranging stream of multimedia traffic to the workplace, schools and the home. Prime Minister Goh acknowledged that "new balances and markets will have to be established to help define the new values and new realities of life into the information era. We cannot avoid or ignore this reality of radical change."

Singapore is ahead of the rest of the world in that the Singapore Broadcasting Authority regulates the Internet through controlling Singapore's gateways. The framework of their Internet policy emphasizes public education, industry self-regulation, the promotion of positive sites and minimum regulation through a transparent licensing framework which reflects our community values. Its main concern is with the ease of accessing pornography on the Net, especially by children and minors, their regulatory focus being on mass impact websites distributing pornography.

In understanding and conceptualizing how the Internet could be most effectively regulated, one has to have a thorough knowledge of its fundamental and salient characteristics. Firstly. the structure ofthe Internet is acentric or polycentric. Because this network possesses several centres which bypass the "nervous centre", damage to a portion Of the network will not affect what remains. Hence regulatory powers should consider it as a global entity. Even if service providers can prohibit the access of certain of their own sites, they cannot impede individuals to reach litigious services that exist on other parts of the network -- and if one is able to integrate with one part of the Internet, then ultimately one can connect to all of it. The Internet can be compared to the hologramatic principle according to which each part is in the whole, and the whole in each part at the same time, transcending national boundaries and making local censorship almost impossible. Therefore the expression "think globally and an locally" is an appropriate one to understand the characteristics of the Internet.

Secondly, the Internet contains the aesthetic of interactivity, and with this fundamental characteristic, the self-regulation paradigm is the most appropriate in supervising the Internet. Interactivity means that the Internet user can choose the components and and programmes to which the computer allows one to access the global network. Because individuals as well as SYSOP's (System Operators) have great control on information, software and hardware, a self-regulating culture is developing on the Internet. In such a paradigm, the following activity should be enhanced: All parties related to the Internet should be encouraged to use filter softwares such as NetNanny, Cybersitter and Cyberpatrol to control material and messages. These programmes can be sdopted by users and SYSOP's, thus providing protection at the distribution and reception levels.

Furthermore, the global characteristics of the Internet demand promotion of international cooperation to combat offences occurring on the Internet efficiently and effectively. Examples of such include the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development, the OECD, which has issued a consultation paper on the topic of international cooperation concerning content and conduct on the Inernet. It notes that governments are challenged to strike the right balance among the value of free expression and the free exchange of ideas for citizens, the concern for preventing or limiting the use of networks for purposes contrary to public order and security, snd the desirability of economic growth based on emerging network technologies.' The inherently international nature of the network environment and the diversity of cultural norms which exacerbate these issues is also acknowledged.

Several new and promising alternatives for regulation and censorship are available to both individuals and organizations in Singapore and the world. So, what are the concrete steps that can be taken? The good news is that the Internet industry has already taken very significant measures to help -- be it the government, policy makers and individual users.

First, the World Wide Web Consortium, or W3C, has developed a set of open technical standards for creating filtering software and rating systems for Internet content. This is called the Platform for Intemet Content Selection, or PICS. PICS specifies how to create rating labels for Internet content, and these labels indicate specific aspects of content, such as offensiveness of language, explicitness of sex, and degree of violence. PICS do not determine the substance of the labels -- that task is the duty of others which include RSACi (which will be examined in detail later), Safesurf and Cyberpatrol technology.

PICS is the best technological solution to the challenge of protecting young people on the Internet. It is neutral in that it only provides the technical framework for the implementation of rating systems: it is not about censorship, and does not judge content in any way. It enables parents to make judgments about content and to decide for themselves what their children may access. PICS is also flexible: an unlimited number of rating systems, adaptable to any cultural or social values, can be created on the basis of PICS. Furthermore, PICS is family-oriented, empowering parents to perform their parental role in the Internet environment.

How does PICS achieve all this? Firstly, PICS is embedded in Microsoft's Browser, the Internet Explorer 3.0, and is also available from Netscape. Between Netscape and Microroft, virtually 100 per cent of the world Browser market is covered. In brief it is available to anyone who owns a personal computer capable of accessing the Internet.

Secondly, and very importantly, PICS interacts with a rating service to complete the assembly of a very powerful tool in the hands of parents, teachers and guardians. For the time being and unless and until something better comes along, the combination of PICS and RSACi is the best method presently available.

RSAC is an independent, non-profit organization whose mission is to 'empower the public, especially parents, to make informed decisions about electronic media, by means of its open, content advisory system.' Its Internet rating system, known as RSACi is applied to Internet content so as to give it a rating. Setting the RSACi rating to zero would block access to the sites whereas setting it at a level of one or above would permit access to the material.

The advantage of this scheme is that it can be used to great flexibility by users of many cultures. This opens the potential for individual and community policing, where the judgmeats and standards of respected individuals such as grassrods leaders are implemented, easing the burden of the regulatory authority as well as effectively expanding the comprehensiveness of regulation. The most concerned of Internet users could decide that they only wish to receive the lowest rating material, that is, containing virtually no violence, no sex no nudity and no bad language.

PICS and RSACi allow the user to ensure that no unwanted material gains access to the user's PC. This is the most complete and foolproof way by far to ascertain that unsuitable Internet content does not come into one's home.

But to ensure that the vast amount of highly acceptable Internet content out there can get to one's home, the combination of PICS and RSACi needs to become ubiquitous on the Net. The RSACi rating categories of sex, nudity, language and violence are based, unlike all of our national classification schemes for cinema and television, upon objective, definitive definitions of what the Intemet content in question contains. It does not use value-laden terms or symbols that indicate, for example, that the material in question may be suitable to persons ofa particular age. That is a value judgment which would have validity only in the jurisdiction where the judgment was made.

RSACi is open to suggestions for improvement of their system and system definitions, criteria questions are modified regularly. The organization is prepared to open a dialogue with any goverunent or organization of governments that might wish to explore the prospect of promoting higher standards of Internet behaviour by promoting the use of PICS and RSACi. This promotion can enlist the support of Internet Service Providers or ISP's, where organizations of ISP's are destined to be the instrument through which government regulatory policy will be brought into play. Singapore and other Asia-Pacific policy makers should be encouraged to engage with these issues, and as soon as possible, as a regional failure to do so could well leave the Internet with a de facto global Intemet rating scheme that has had very little input from the extraordinarily diverse cultures of the Asia-Pacific.

The previous point naturally introduces another regulatory alternative with latent potential -- that of the public forum and arena. It is almost futile for the regulation and policing of the Web to rely solely in the hands of a few limited regulatory authorities, whose resources and scope are limited. Instead, it would be more feasible and effective to harness the power of the citizens in increasing the outreach and extent of this regulation. The operation of hotline reporting systems for illegal materials should be improved and extended to facilitate reporting from individuals or public groups to relevant authorities. A comprehensive and easily accessible web site should be established such as the one by the European Commission on illegal and detrimental content. This site should contain links to a number of e-mail hotline sites, along with hyperlinks to sites set up by organizations aiming to combat pornography and such and which will act on reports about such material. The community at large should be encouraged to be more forthcoming in terms of what quality programmes it expects and what should be banned. Members of the public should be urged to speak up and voice their opinions in creating a culture of quality which comes not so much from the regulator alone but the man in the street.

Furthermore, to encourage regulation and responsibility by industries especially in this free-market environment, financing the regulation of the Internnet (and other media) would ensure the survival and effectiveness of regulation for the public good. Channeling a portion of the fees for franchising and fines to the regulating group is a reasonable means of doing so -- and for the regulator, if not for those who transgress the codes, this is a happy prospect.

Yet, mechanisms which are non-regulatory in nature exist which may contribute significantly to deterring the erosion of cultural and social values in the face of new media onslaught. The metaphor of cultural erosion (Varan, 1998) potentially draws attention to new remedies -- particularly to the extent that it highlights the problem must be understood in the context of an interaction between a cultural terrain and agent, and that possible solutions must be explored taking both aspects into account. Thus, rather than focussing exclusively on how to limit the presence of foreign media agents, as current approaches tend to do, the cultural erosion metaphorical framework helps draw attention to the existing terrains as well. The framework identifies those facets most vulnerable to erosion and promotes better understanding of the factors that reinforce them. Here, perhaps, the approach can again draw from geological constructs that have long recognized that one of the most effective strategies in preventing erosion is further reinforcing terrain. If one accepts the assertion that contact between cultures will continue to increase, then strategies designed to limit contact will be relatively futile, making it all the more to explore strategies that reinforce cultural terrain. Therefore in Singapore's case, it would do good as well to seek ways of strengthening the unique social fabric of our multi-cultural and religious heritage in tandem with regulatory measures.

Integrated into Singapore's quest of evolving into an Asian media hub is that of becoming an E-Commerce hub. The research firm, Forrester Research Incorporated, has predicted Internet revenue would grow to over US$40 billion in the year 2000, rating Singapore highly in terms of E-Commerce And with the official launch of CommerceNet Singapore recently this year, Singapore is set to establish itself as a "trusted hub in a worldwide network of trusted hubs".

Thus emerges the pressing problem of the threat of cybercrime and how it has to be effectively managed in order to establish a sense of credibility and security for Singapore's E-Commerce network. The issues of cybercrime encompass those of violation of confidentiality and invasion of privacy which looms as an uppermost threat, where personal information of consumers may be divulged and illegally accessed and abused for other purposes such as by system hackers. Information sabotage, as well as transactional and financial fraud can be recklessly engineered, undermining credibility and destabilizing operations.

So what would be a feasible solution to this problem of safeguarding the security of transactions and the privacy of consumers? The answer could possibly lie in the creation and implementation of a strong and highly integrated encryption program on customer databases and transaction processes in order to secure online information. There have been government restrictions on such encryption programs for fear that it would make investigations into crime and fraud by relevant authorities difficult; but there is a solution around this problem. The solution lies in creating an encryption program which is impenetrable under all circumstances, but should thorough investigation be required, can be weakened by specified authorities and personnel so that it can be accessed, working out to be a feasible compromise. An example of such a system is already established in the United States, nicknamed "SESAME." In developing into a Media Hub, Singapore must project itself as a flourishing and dynamic seem for the broadcasting and telecommunications scene to multinational companies and conglomerates, where diversity is given the space, opportunities and resources to bloom in its fullest potential. Hence, perhaps, a certain amount of deregulation and liberalization to further open the markets as well as enhance access and influx of materials is in order, but not so much as to compromise Singapore's national, social and cultural values.

It is now important to emphasize the further impeded by the ever-changing dynamism regulation to be timely, that is, to keep up with technological advances and changes, as well as for it to be completely foolproof and invincible. Sooner or later, and inevitably, its shields will be weakened, and a quest must be made once more for an alternative method. Why then, one might question, does the necessity of regulation still exist although it will eventually prove futile such as in the relative nature of reining in Cyberspace? The answer lies in the fact that it is a symbolic gesture -- giving voice to the spirit of humanity, that in our search for wisdom and horizons, we should not compromise or sacrifice our very essence of being to the demons of wantonness and cruelty. It is our symbolic stand against them, that we will not be crushed or defeated even though the odds seem hopeless. It is an act of courage, of defiance against wrong, of righteousness.
And with new blood running strongly and fiercely through her veins. kept pure and surging with power, Singapore will surely rise like a dragon and soar to the heavens as she reaches out for excellence unparalleled in the realm of media.

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