Nathania Ong Interview: Are Politicians Becoming Increasingly Media-Facing?

Prime Minister Lawrence Wong recently sat down with Singaporean musical theatre performer Nathania Ong for a conversation reflecting on her journey from performing on school stages in Singapore to building a career on the global stage. The conversation primarily touched on Singapore's arts scene and the importance of supporting local talent.

Ong, who has made a name for herself in London's West End, spoke about the challenges of breaking into the highly competitive theatre industry and the persistence required to keep going despite rejection.

The conversation reflects Wong's increasingly media-facing approach to public engagement, underscored by his ranking among Singapore's most influential public figures on Instagram and Tik Tok in Meltwater's 2025 rankings.

This was also evident in Wong's "Duet with me" social media post, in which he played the guitar - an instrument he has referenced in other posts highlighting his personal interest in music.

Wong also shared his Spotify Wrapped 2025 results on social media, tapping into a widely popular year-end trend in which users post their listening habits and favourite artists from the past year

By contrast, former PM Lee Hsien Loong does not maintain a TikTok account, and his posts on IG and Facebook have generally centred on nature photography, jalan jalan" updates and occasional behind-the-scenes glimpses, rather than meme-driven or trend-based social media content.

As for President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, his social media presence is generally characterised by a calm, people-centred and issue-focused approach, often highlighting community engagement, social causes and national conversations rather than personal trends or entertainment-driven content.

In Southeast Asia, another prominent example of a politician leveraging relatability on social media is Indonesia's Prabowo Subianto, who incorporated Tik Tok-style choreographed videos, meme-driven content, AI-generated visuals and viral trends into his 2024 presidential campaign.

Despite his controversial reputation, Subianto's use of social media has been credited with helping reshape his public image.

Research in political communication journals suggests that social media enables politicians to build a sense of direct and informal connection with voters, which can improve engagement and shape public perception by making communication more interactive, personalised and relatable.