SPH Media Awards Five Scholarships to Nurture Aspiring Journalists

SPH Media held a scholarship ceremony on July 30 in Singapore to honour five young people who want to become journalists. The company gave out scholarships to help students pay for university and gain real experience in the media industry. The awards were meant to find and support talented young people who care about honest, trustworthy news.

One of the winners is 19-year-old Venkatesan Vidya Laxmi, who received the new Tamil Media Scholarship. She had not planned on becoming a journalist at first, but an internship at Tamil Murasu changed her mind. Her Tamil teacher suggested the internship after she finished her A levels in 2025. Those six months working at the newspaper sparked her love for journalism.

During her internship, Vidya wrote about a female entrepreneur who made fusion dishes mixing traditional and modern Indian flavours. A reader in India later emailed her, saying the story had inspired him to start reading Tamil Murasu. That message had a big effect on Vidya. 'That made me realise what an influential platform it is,' she said.

The Tamil Media Scholarship is supported by the Ministry of Digital Development and Information. It covers full tuition fees, provides a monthly allowance, and includes internship opportunities. The scholarship is designed to support young people who want to help the Tamil language grow and thrive. Even with the scholarship, Vidya plans to study biomedical engineering at the National University of Singapore.

Three students received the SPH Media Journalism Scholarship at the same ceremony. Ma Qian Hui, who interned at Shin Min Daily News, will study psychology and language sciences at University College London. Sakthivel Shivani, a Tamil Murasu intern, will study information systems at Singapore Management University. Trina Lee Yuxuan, who worked at Lianhe Zaobao, will study Chinese language and literature at Peking University.

The fifth winner, 24-year-old Quek Chui Qing, received the SPH Media-Temasek Foundation Scholarship. He is studying data science and economics at the National University of Singapore. Many of his peers chose careers in finance, but Quek picked journalism because he wanted to make a real impact. 'I feel it is meaningful to bring important stories to the public,' he said.

SPH Media chief executive Chan Yeng Kit spoke at the ceremony about why good journalism is so important today. He said the world is full of misinformation, making trustworthy news more valuable than ever. 'Trusted news acts as an anchor — keeping our community informed and giving people confidence in the truth,' he said. He also said the Tamil Media Scholarship would help keep the Tamil language strong for generations to come.

Mr Chan also announced a new 24-month Management Associate Programme for people who have recently graduated. The programme is open to those with less than two years of work experience. Participants will get hands-on training across different parts of the media business and will be guided by experienced professionals. Applications open from August 14 to September 30 via the SPH Media Career Portal and LinkedIn.