#TraceTogether

[imarghenation]

Advertising in the New Normal

One approach for potential customers to use and consume products or even persuade the public to take part in an activity or movement is through advertisements. Companies and organizations ended up having to take advantage of the Covid-19 pandemic as a result of its emergence in order to stay relevant and reach its consumers who were impacted. Because of the severity of the pandemic and the increasing quantity of public concerns about it, organizations and companies need to be careful with how they advertise their products and services. To accomplish that, they have to figure out the most suitable tone and message that will resonate with and not offend their audience. Now, there are two advertisements aired during the pandemic that I would like to introduce even if we most of the time skip these ads.

"A MESSAGE FROM THE FUTURE" - Jollibee

There are advertisements that we often see and the first thing that comes to our mind is to skip it because personally I do that with a reason that the first seconds of it are boring. However, there are also advertisements which are visually captivating and are able to appeal to our curiosity. These kinds of advertisements mostly come with a storyline or a drama-type of commercial. ‘A Message from the Future’ by Jollibee Studios is that type of ad which has a storyline that revolves around a family and reflects the realistic situation that their audience is experiencing at the current moment. The ad started with the voice of a child, stating a phrase that questions what it was back then during the pandemic. It is about a family's situation during the pandemic, such as losing something or maybe someone, and overcoming obstacles during a highly challenging change that affects everyone's lives. 

In the COVID-19 research of National Institutes of Health (2020), stated that even for those who did not get infected with the virus, COVID-19 still holds an impact on our daily life and health that is why the family in the ad resonates with the audience. Out of all those struggles, the family get their strengths from each other that touch the heart of the audiences. Most of the audience of Jollibee, a fast-food chain originated from the Philippines, are the Filipino public that are known for their family-oriented culture. They are advertising the tagline of Jollibee, “Joy of Family” as their fast food brings family together which is the main reason, they mostly focused their ads with the storyline of families in an emotionally appealing way. And in terms of consuming the advertised product, specifically the foods in a fast-food chain, is not necessarily good for the family or individuals if eaten continuously. Fast food is unhealthy as it contains an insane amount of trans-fat that will negatively affect our body when consumed unnecessarily (Stender et al., 2007). Additionally, in forms of media manipulation in this specific advertisement, it utilizes the emotional appeal to the audience or pathos in terms of fear that resonate with the people or targeted audience. As it aired in the midst of the pandemic, they took advantage of it and made a commercial out of the situation that will promote their products and connect with their tagline and the motto they are known for, Joy in togetherness of a family.

References:

Jollibee Studios (2021, May 15). A Message from the Future. [Video File]. Youtube. https://youtu.be/e-N8K0xRaeY

Stender, S., Dyerberg, J., & Astrup, A. (2007). Fast Food: Unfriendly and unhealthy. International Journal of Obesity, 31(6), 887–890. https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ijo.0803616 

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). COVID-19: The ripple effects. National Institutes of Health. https://covid19.nih.gov/news-and-stories/covid19-ripple-effects

"TOGETHER, TOWARDS A NEW NORMAL" - TraceTogether

This second advertisement is from the government of Singapore, as they promote their country adopting the new normal and encourage an action we should take into consideration for our health. The advertisement showcases a lively and catchy jingle that will linger into the audience’s ears. In that way, the audience will be reminded of the action they are promoting as well as bringing positive light to their country for the good handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. They are promoting the contact tracing app of their country which is “TraceTogether”, singing “Let’s test, let’s trace, let’s vaccinate” in a catchy repetitive way. Given the commercial, the app was successful in doing its job as the country took good control and highly effective management of the pandemic (Aaral et al., 2021). Singapore is one of the countries that managed the pandemic well and that was one of the reasons this ad was made. The targeted audience for this ad may be international individuals wanting to visit the country for assurance that they are visiting a safe and organized country and its citizens will not have to worry about the crisis in a very crucial way. The tracing app being commercialized was very helpful not just for its audience but for the whole country as it benefits all those who are able to have it. It was a necessary move for their government to handle the pandemic well. In terms of media manipulation, it did not showcase any as the sources proved the commercial highly effective and for beneficial economic effects of the country. Without being manipulated, the ad managed to capture the audience’s attention by singing their motive and message they wanted to convey in a lively and catchy way. Which is why this shows a good example of a commercial that greatly affects the country and its economy in a positive light.

References:

Araral, E., Thong, G., Ooi, S. P. L., & Muluan, W. A. (2021, June 28). How Singapore managed the COVID-19 pandemic. Lkyspp.nus.edu.sg. https://lkyspp.nus.edu.sg/gia/article/how-singapore-is-handling-the-pandemic 

govsg (2021, Jul. 2). Together, towards a new normal. [Video File]. Youtube. https://youtu.be/yAQ51SJkQPw

[xiaojunsmintchoco]

since christmas is around the corner, i’m gonna gift my moots a fic each <3 just slide into my dms/ask box with the idol of your choice and storyline!

tagging: @bangchan-fairy @moonsclover @dulceamar @neo-shitty @strawberrytaeilie @renjuunsz @hvae @reniqt @tracetogether-ottertaro @0x1lovebot @seungkwan-s @kdyism @nyangjjunie @fluffyydumplings @donkey-hyuck @rmstdio @hcsarchive @odxrilove ok i hope i didn’t forget anyone

[verryntan3]

Platform Urbanism and Smart Cities

Technology can be extremely useful in solving challenges faced in the city, and is adopted by many cities to better the lives of citizens. Smart cities help people to improve their quality of life using “informational and communication technologies (ICTs)  increase operational efficiency, share information with the public and improve both the quality of government service” (Shea & Burns, 2020). 

A key driver of society is the rise of various platforms supporting daily functions and services like food, transportation and shopping. Platforms like Grab provide food and grocery delivery, private hire vehicles for transportation for the convenience of users.Such platforms give rise to platform, which is the integration of digital platforms into the materiality of the city, as stated by Barns (2020). The convenience that these platforms provide allow them to take over certain functions in the city, making platform services crucial to the everyday operation of cities. This was also perpetuated during Covid-19, which brought about urgent needs for technology to facilitate remote interactions to allow a city to continue to function.

While this has the potential for good outcomes such as the creation of more inclusive and sustainable cities through improving accessibility, it also raises important questions like privacy and cybersecurity concerns. 

Singapore is ranked as the top Asian city in the Smart City index, and is making a contentious effort to involve technology in solving the city’s problems through the Smart Nation initiative. During Covid-19, Singapore employed the use of technology for contact tracing purposes using an app called TraceTogether. This app could track if users vaccination statuses and if someone was in close proximity to those who had contracted the disease and would notify users. It was also used for entry into public spaces like malls and shops so as to track each individual’s ‘footsteps’. 

In a chaotic world with a disease that was relatively unknown to mankind, technology like contact tracing can feel like a godsent solution to help a society stay safe and still function as close to normal as possible. The success of this can be seen in the relatively low number of community cases when restrictions were slowly being eased. However, a significant concern to privacy arrived when the police declared that they were using the information from the TraceTogether app to track a criminal’s whereabouts, when the public was previously assured that information collected on the app would strictly be used for contact tracing purposes only. 

Thus, this brings us to the issue of how much autonomy can we exercise when platform services become so ingrained into the way of life that one’s choice will either be to use these platforms or not participate in society.

References

Shea, S., & Burns, E. (2020). smart city. IoT Agenda; TechTarget. https://www.techtarget.com/iotagenda/definition/smart-city#:~:text=A%20smart%20city%20is%20a,government%20services%20and%20citizen%20welfare.

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[southeastasianists]

On Friday evening (8 January), a press release announced that urgent legislation is set to be passed in February to limit the usage of personal data obtained from digital contact tracing solutions TraceTogether and SafeEntry.

The upcoming introduction of the proposed law, according to the Smart Nation and Digital Government Office (SNDGO), is aimed to “formalise” the said assurances and to specify that data in the digital contact tracing solutions “can only be used for the specific purpose of contact tracing”.

SNDGO said that the proposed law will be introduced in the next Parliament sitting in February on a Certificate of Urgency.

The Office noted that Home Affairs and Law Minister K Shanmugam and Minister-in-charge for Smart Nation Vivian Balakrishnan held a public consultation on Friday with members of the press, the legal fraternity, technology experts, and academia on Friday to hear their views on the matter. It is, however, unknown as to who these individuals are.

SNDGO’s statement on the upcoming proposed law came after public outcry against the disclosure regarding how TraceTogether data could be used in police investigations and — as stated by Mr Shanmugam in Parliament — may even be produced in court or used at trial when relevant, contrary to previous assurances that the data will not be utilised beyond COVID-19 contact tracing.

Contrary to what some netizens are claiming the move to introduce such legislation to be, this is not a sign that the People’s Action Party (PAP) administration is being transparent.

Rather, it is simply a frantic attempt to arrest a situation where public trust in the PAP ministers is on a sharp downward spiral due to the misrepresentation made to the public.

[websynergies]

TraceTogether exchanges short-distance Bluetooth signals between phones and detects other participating TraceTogether users in its proximity. Records of these encounters are stored on each user’s phone. After a user is interviewed by the MoH as part of the contact tracing program, the user can consent to send their TraceTogether data to the MoH.

[shbubble]

Scan Please! A SafeEntry Inspired Game for all those residing in Singapore.

[hemanchong]

Last day to catch #AsWeWere, a glimpse into the wonderful collection of @materialitygirl and @michelangelosamson at @helutrans_artmove. Don’t miss this huge, sprawling, meandering journey of works that span across multiple states of mind and space and politics and spirits. Really highly recommended. @lu.lv tried to scan my painting with #TraceTogether and an angry #otter appears!!!! That’s so hilarious! Catch this show today! Last day! Go now! #HemanChong #MikeySamson #LouSamson (at Helu-Trans Singapore) https://www.instagram.com/p/CVHQASIldCx/?utm_medium=tumblr

[caivam]

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Clarence Shin Chee Tan (@clarence_tan63038)

#singapore #shoppingcenter #safeentry #tracetogether #tracetogetherapp #tracetogethertoken #covidー19 (at Jurong Point Shopping Centre) https://www.instagram.com/p/CUPxztIjTG0/?utm_medium=tumblr

[qjawe]

#tracetogether #health (at Ministry of Health, Singapore) https://www.instagram.com/p/CS9NsBbB95P/?utm_medium=tumblr

[yoursfaithfullyharley]

Thank you for having my #tracetogether token #tracetogethertoken changed for a new piece. https://www.instagram.com/p/CNte-JgptBg5Sdp_sdgjWmBtS8KXrXBwiUoYHY0/?igshid=khjvlvt85xqs

[whattheabcxyz]

2023-02-10

Singapore

Toa Payoh HDB resident caught on camera throwing urine out of window - repeat offender; neighbour videod him in the act; authorities were useless in helping resolve this situation

Public encouraged to return now-redundant TraceTogether tokens - we didn’t ask for them in the 1st place, idiots

Rail Corridor walking trail now stretches 21km - reopening of Tanjong Pagar Railway Station after 2026 another Rail Corridor upgrade in the works

Tin Pei Ling moves to new role at Grab after conflict of interest concerns over public affairs post

Analysts say ACS Primary relocation likely to boost demand for Tengah BTO flats & Bukit Batok ECs

Ex-Changi Airport Group chairman’s son, Karl Liew, expected to plead guilty in Parti Liyani case - cane the bastard!!!

Health

Prolonged caloric restriction may be the way to reverse aging

Technology

Men’s Journal health article written by AI contains multiple serious factual errors - now you really can’t believe anything you read anymore

Society

14-year-old girl kills herself after being bullied at school - she was physically assaulted by the bullies & sustained injuries, but the school did nothing

China woman steals $183K worth of luxury goods from best friend's home & replaces them with fakes - it’s China, so none of us are really surprised

Travel

Singapore to lift all COVID-19 border measures from 13 Feb - pre-departure test no longer needed

JAL & ANA cancel dozens of flights as icy weather blankets Japan

Science

Questionable data quality & lack of shared research standards makes studying UFOs difficult - how many so-called sightings are just plain lies?!

Business

5 more Vietnam-Singapore industrial parks to be set up in Vietnam, says Sembcorp

Shopping

Singapore: Pop-up Chatuchak night market flooded by rainwater

Art

^ Lindsay Lohan leaving court in handcuffs & platform Louboutin stilettos, sketched by Mona Edwards

People

Burt Bacharach dead at 94

Ron Jeremy committed to state mental hospital

Gossip

Show Luo has turned to crossdressing to keep himself relevant - “dignity” obviously doesn’t come into play when you’re in Taiwanese showbiz

[hernamewasluna]

What do you think of Govt apps that profess to curb COVID 19 but have weak data protection policies in place? This is the problem with mobilising the police to arrest peaceful protesters, people don’t trust the police and don’t trust the justice system. #tracetogether #sgunited #aimforzerosg #fixschoolsnotstudents https://www.instagram.com/p/CK01RzPLkCO/?igshid=hnf59p84hx38

[jonathandesverneyusanews]

How Far Should S'pore Legalise The Use Of TraceTogether Data?

How Far Should S’pore Legalise The Use Of TraceTogether Data?

Earlier on Monday (Jan 4), the government revealed that TraceTogether data may be used to aid criminal investigations, causing an uproar among Singapore citizens. According to the law, the police can obtain any data under Singapore’s jurisdiction for the purposes of criminal investigations, and this includes TraceTogether data. In response, Singaporeans have cited past remarks by Foreign Minister…

[milkfrost]

We're TraceTogether ready! Are you? . . #andesbyastons #milkfrostatwork🥩 #milkfrostatwork🥩2021 #tracetogether #immoutletmall #andes #astons #igsg #sgig #shotbyiphonexsmax #iphonexsmaxuser #iphonexsmaxpic #iphonexsmax #tracetogetherapp #tracetogethertoken #tracetogetherready #sgunited https://www.instagram.com/p/CJghJVrHZuD/?igshid=b0fr17f4shaj

[limkoksoon76]

05122020 - Holiday 06: (Part1). Collected all these for the family! Hurray! For those of you who have yet to collect, remember to collect all these for you and your family. Remember to bring IC for adults and BC for kids.(Actually photostated copies or photo of kids ic are also acceptable). Thank you to the lady who attended to us. She was extremely patient with us having to scan, type and write all 6 particulars. Kiddos to all the volunteers! #temasekfoundation , #tracetogether , #tracetogethertoken , #supportlocalsg , #safetogether , #alwayswearmask , #alwayswearmask😷 https://www.instagram.com/p/CIZ3ZX_HsE0/?igshid=10gg0j9re9sxr