Despite growing calls for collaboration, the technological core of content moderation remains largely a black box. While multi-stakeholder partnerships are increasingly invoked in regional policy discourse, external oversight or shared governance of the underlying moderation technologies remain limited.
Category Archives: Long Reads
How TikTok’s Visual Politics Shaped Indonesia’s 2024 Election
Through TikTok, Prabowo Subianto successfully rebranded himself from being a controversial figure to being a relatable leader. TikTok’s emphasis on short-form entertaining content simplifies complex political issues into meme-worthy visuals. While this encourages engagement from younger audiences, it risks trivialising critical political discussions and reducing voters’ decision-making into emotional reactions.
Grooming New Champions: To Lam Prepares for Private Sector-Led Growth in Vietnam
Resolution 68, issued in May 2025 by the Politburo of the Communist Party of Vietnam, marks one of Vietnam’s most dramatic economic policy shifts since Doi Moi. It elevates the private sector from junior partner to the “most important force” of the economy. However, success hinges on overcoming entrenched interests, managing ideological resistance within the CPV, and ensuring disciplined execution of reforms.
The Xin Yimin’s Impact on Malaysia’s Social Anxieties
The presence of new Chinese migrants, known as xin yimin, in Malaysia reflects China’s resurgence as a global economic powerhouse, bringing with it opportunities for Malaysia in terms of trade, investment, and cultural exchange. But there are significant challenges to their ability to integrate with the broader Malaysian society.
The Critical Impact of Extreme Heat on Rice Production in Southeast Asia
Extreme temperature and heat stress poses an increasingly critical threat to rice production and food security in Southeast Asia, with far-reaching consequences for the region’s economy, society, and environment.
Cambodia’s Major Dilemma: Handling Anti-Vietnamese Sentiments
Anti-Vietnamese sentiments in Cambodia are longstanding and run deep. Effectively addressing such sentiments in Cambodia demands a nuanced, multifaceted approach that goes beyond short-term political actions. It requires fostering a narrative of genuine inclusion and shared future aspirations, one that promotes mutual respect, empathy, and understanding.
Global Inequality and Digital Vulnerability: Unpacking Online Scams and Human Trafficking
Online scams and digital-enabled human trafficking have escalated into complex transnational operations. An estimated 220,000 people were coerced into scam compounds in Cambodia and Myanmar in 2023 alone. A holistic, people-centred strategy is urgently needed. Solutions must include economic inclusion, social safety nets, digital literacy, and international cooperation to tackle root vulnerabilities.
Data Centres, Energy Demand and Sustainability: Can Malaysia Strike the Right Balance?
Malaysia’s ambitions to be a digital powerhouse demand urgent consideration of rapidly increasing energy demands. Based on current figures, Malaysia appears to have overcommitted to data centre expansion, especially in Johor, without sufficiently robust sustainability guidelines in place.
Indonesia’s Energy Sector Reforms Under Prabowo: Moving Backwards?
The Prabowo government’s ambitious goal for Indonesia of achieving energy self-sufficiency faces significant challenges due to the country’s heavy reliance on fossil fuels and renewed large-scale biofuel ambitions.
The Elusive Code: Why ASEAN Needs a New Playbook for the South China Sea
The Code of Conduct (COC) negotiations between ASEAN and China have reached an impasse, hindered by legal ambiguities, strategic divergences, and ASEAN’s internal divisions. ASEAN must move away from a binary approach that equates success with legal binds, and instead explore more pragmatic alternatives.