Pop Culture
‘Where I went wrong’ Kuan Yew
Should have allowed stuff like grand prix and MTV, etc, admits mentor.
Apr 17, 2005

Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew has said he made a mistake of under-estimating the power of pop culture and of not building a Formula One course.

He had forgotten 'pop culture' in his bid to turn Singapore into a 'first-world city in a third-world region'. He had seen the need to build a cultured place, with libraries, theatres and museums.

'But I didn't see that the money was in pop culture,' he said.
He personally could not understand the lure of pop singers or MTV programmes, 'but that's not the point'.

“The point is, it attracts millions of young viewers around the world, and there is big business in this.

“So from a business point of view, whether I like it or not, I should be - the Government should be - interested in this,” he said at a dinner conference at the Fullerton Hotel.

He used the occasion to support having a casino here, something he had opposed during his time.
APR 17, 2007