Ep. 5: An interview with Rice Media’s Grace Yeoh, the accidental feminist | Some Scuffs

What happens when you write a story that ignites a national outcry over misogyny and sexual harassment?

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Eden Ang, the star of local television series Tanglin and a former member of the popular Youtube group Wahbanana, became the central villain in Singapore’s own #MeToo movement when accusations that he had sexually harassed a young employee started circulating on Facebook early this year.

Then, Rice Media published a damning news story that may very well have ended his career. The article revealed that not only had he similarly harassed several other women, but more shockingly, that the 31-year-old Singaporean celebrity had allegedly raped one of his victims. Each of the brave women interviewed shared their encounters with Eden in painful detail.

Within the day, the article went viral. There was an outpouring of sympathy for the girls and loud condemnation of Eden. There were also many detractors who blamed the victims. Other media outlets scrambled to document the aftermath, chiming in with their own sensational exposes and opinion pieces. All across Singapore and in every corner of the internet, debates raged on about whether Eden was truly the predator that the story made him out to be.

And then, there was Grace Yeoh, the journalist behind the piece, who had unwittingly stepped into the line of fire and was now unable to extricate herself. What does it mean for someone used to keeping a low profile to suddenly have a spotlight shone on her?

This week, I had the privilege of hearing Grace’s side of the story.  She shared what it means to speak up about the things you believe in, even when that exposes you to attack from enemies you never knew you had. In light of being lauded as a role model and thought leader for female empowerment, she speaks with honesty and humour about her own insecurities as a writer and how the groundbreaking stories she’s written have shaped her perceptions of herself.

Other articles mentioned in this piece
1. Lee Hsien Loong Will Win Because His Siblings Are Ugly
2. I Spent a Month Investigating the Eden Ang Story
3. Another Woman Comes Forward: She Was 13 When Eden Ang Allegedly Sexually Assaulted Her

Sound design by Lee Zhe Ren. You can find all of Grace’s writing at ricemedia.co.