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Whenever she gets into a taxi, Ms Wun Yun Fang naturally strikes up a conversation with the driver.
While this is in part due to her work as a journalist at Lianhe Zaobao, where she is constantly sniffing out stories and ground sentiments to share with readers, Ms Wun also has a keen interest in the people around her.
“I enjoy hearing about their lives and how they see things differently,” says the 25-year-old SPH Media Journalism scholar who covers the transportation and political beat for Singapore’s Chinese language newspaper.
“What I’ve learnt on this job is that people aren’t just statistics. Every person has a unique story waiting to unfold, no matter how big or small.”
– Ms Wun Yun Fang, recipient of the SPH Media journalism scholarship
Ms Wun finds that taxi and private hire car drivers provide valuable insights into public opinion, as they interact with people from all walks of life. She also appreciates their candour on various issues.
“Since I write about hybrid vehicles, taxi rental rates and fares, talking to the drivers has helped me understand the industry better. Sometimes, with their consent, I have even used them as sources,” she says.
“What I’ve learnt on this job is that people aren’t just statistics. Every person has a unique story waiting to unfold, no matter how big or small,” she says.
“It may also be emotionally difficult for them to share but they still do. So, I put in a lot of heart and sincerity when writing each story to ensure I do not let my interviewees down.”
Ms Wun’s love for stories ignited when she was studying literature at secondary school. She has always been fascinated with the characters’ backstories as they provide context, motivation and depth to their actions and decisions.
This curiosity motivated her to enter the field of journalism, starting with a writing opportunity with the Lianhe Zaobao Student Correspondents’ Club in her third year at Cedar Girls’ Secondary School, and later, during various internships at SPH Media as part of her scholarship when she was pursuing her Bachelor of Communication Studies at Nanyang Technological University (NTU).
She recalls writing a story about two 19-year-old girls when she was a student correspondent for Lianhe Zaobao’s Fukan (lifestyle) page. She followed them around on the streets while they handed out cards to people who were glued to their phones. Their aim was to encourage them to “disconnect to connect” and pay more attention to their loved ones nearby.
“Since there was a lot of talk about phone addiction, with teenage addiction being particularly concerning, it was quite refreshing that these teen girls saw it as a concern and took the initiative to do something about it,” says Ms Wun.
Similarly, during one of her internships, Ms Wun accompanied an employee from a shared bike operator to collect improperly parked or faulty bicycles. She used her insights to produce a video about the challenges of managing shared bicycles in Singapore.
“I believe in being genuine in everything I do, whether explaining the rationale behind the story or trying to understand the interviewees’ perspectives. When others feel your sincerity, they tend to be more willing to trust you and share their stories with you,” says Ms Wun.
Since joining Lianhe Zaobao full-time in July 2021, Ms Wun has also had some memorable moments in her reporting career. This includes her first overseas assignment in June 2022, where she followed a research team from NTU to the Nawalparasi district in Nepal.
There, she learnt about the high levels of naturally occurring arsenic in the underground water, which was being used for drinking without proper treatment. She also visited the clean water facility for children that scientists had helped to construct. Through a translator, she spoke to the locals and produced a video on her own about the situation.
“One of them was a farmer who had his leg amputated, likely due to prolonged exposure to arsenic-polluted water. It was rather emotional for me, especially because his children were drinking the same water and there was not much he could do. It is not every day that we hear such stories first-hand,” says Ms Wun.
In 2023, she had a ringside view of Singapore’s third contested presidential election, having been assigned to report on ground sentiments, conduct doorstop interviews with the candidates and run a live blog on polling day.
“I felt an adrenaline rush as things happened so quickly, like ‘bam-bam-bam’,” she recalls. “Among my interviewees was a 65-year-old who had witnessed the transformation of Singapore over the past few decades.
“The atmosphere was electrifying. We were literally watching another chapter of Singapore’s history unfold,” she recalls.
Ms Wun hopes her stories will impact readers now and in the future, allowing them to learn a piece of the nation’s history.
“To me, journalism is a lot about understanding society. It culminates in the fact that you care about the world you live in and want it to be a better place,” she says.