Vasantham Media Analysis
Mediacorp’s Vasantham: A Media Content Analysis
Abstract
Television broadcast catering to the Indian community in Singapore has undergone several changes over the past few decades. From a mere one-hour belt with a shared channel, to becoming Singapore’s standalone Indian channel, Vasantham, Singapore’s first full-fledged Indian channel has propelled itself to become one of the most-watched television channels among the Indian diaspora not only in Singapore, but also in the Malaysian state of Johor Bahru. It has played a significant role in bridging ties for a more close-knit Indian community in Singapore. My paper tracks Vasantham’s chronology to its present state, the programmes that seek to inform and educate its target audience with their …show more content…
On 19 October 2008, Central was restructured. The program belt of Vasantham Central was extended to form the new Vasantham, a full-fledged Indian channel to provide better television programmes to the Indian community of Singapore, as announced in January 2008 when the Parliament of Singapore decided to expand the Tamil language by transforming Vasantham Central into a standalone Tamil language channel. Vasantham took over the frequency of Central. This was done to increase the outreach and cultural understanding of Indian and non-Indian communities. (Pace, 2001/2002, …show more content…
With these two current programmes available only via Toggle, Vasantham seeks to expand its online audience not just locally, but regionally as well.
The successful launch of Toggle prompted other programmes to go digital. Tamil Seithi launched its formal website (http://seithi.mediacorp.sg) and app on Google Play and App Store, apart from its Facebook page. On top of offering highly significant daily news stories and updates, Tamil Seithi had been reconceived with a primary focus on local content to the discerning Indian diaspora. The public is also encouraged to contribute newsworthy stories and feedback via the app and website, thus promoting a digital interaction and engagement within the Indian community.
Abstract
Television broadcast catering to the Indian community in Singapore has undergone several changes over the past few decades. From a mere one-hour belt with a shared channel, to becoming Singapore’s standalone Indian channel, Vasantham, Singapore’s first full-fledged Indian channel has propelled itself to become one of the most-watched television channels among the Indian diaspora not only in Singapore, but also in the Malaysian state of Johor Bahru. It has played a significant role in bridging ties for a more close-knit Indian community in Singapore. My paper tracks Vasantham’s chronology to its present state, the programmes that seek to inform and educate its target audience with their …show more content…
On 19 October 2008, Central was restructured. The program belt of Vasantham Central was extended to form the new Vasantham, a full-fledged Indian channel to provide better television programmes to the Indian community of Singapore, as announced in January 2008 when the Parliament of Singapore decided to expand the Tamil language by transforming Vasantham Central into a standalone Tamil language channel. Vasantham took over the frequency of Central. This was done to increase the outreach and cultural understanding of Indian and non-Indian communities. (Pace, 2001/2002, …show more content…
With these two current programmes available only via Toggle, Vasantham seeks to expand its online audience not just locally, but regionally as well.
The successful launch of Toggle prompted other programmes to go digital. Tamil Seithi launched its formal website (http://seithi.mediacorp.sg) and app on Google Play and App Store, apart from its Facebook page. On top of offering highly significant daily news stories and updates, Tamil Seithi had been reconceived with a primary focus on local content to the discerning Indian diaspora. The public is also encouraged to contribute newsworthy stories and feedback via the app and website, thus promoting a digital interaction and engagement within the Indian community.