Homo academicus unfolds: Singapore's media discourse of social scientist's role

Abstract

Media discourse plays a crucial place in portraying the image of social scientists’ roles in society. However, the literature is dominated by science communication examples and models in the western world. Current studies have not fully grasped the cultural account in under-studied Southeast Asian contexts. This thesis analyses the gap between news media and scholars’ portrayals of social scientists’ roles in Singapore’s instrumental Social Science history, constrained media and academic landscapes. This research describes and compares both accounts using media discourse analysis of Singapore’s Select Committee on Deliberate Online Falsehood. I identify social scientists’ roles and characterisations, showing the media’s consistent depiction of the objective-instrumentalist stance. I argue that the news media’s portrayal emphasises the instrumental orientation of social scientists’ roles and avoids academic language and social-political critiques. This research contributes a cultural account of news media’s portrayal of social scientists’ roles in a Southeast Asian context. Keywords: public communication of the social sciences, media representation, social scientist role, media discourse, Singapore