IN FOCUS: ‘Boomer, snowflake, oppie, pappie’ - unpacking the growing social media polarisation in Singapore

CNA Online, 7 Aug - https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/in-focus-social-media-polarisation-singapore-online-discourse-2085511

Speaking to academics, politicians and social media users, CNA investigates the growing social media polarisation in Singapore. “Language, including slang and colloquial terms, add to discrimination and polarising views. But this is neither new nor precisely a social media phenomenon,” observed Assistant Professor Saifuddin Ahmed from NTU’s Wee Kim Wee School of Information and Communication. He added that slang can signal “alienation”, implying one group is more “in the know” than others, which can worsen social relations between groups. What social media does, he noted, is broadcast such language to a broader audience, “aggravating the alienation of out-group members”.