The Straits Times editor in the thick of the “hero worship” commentary controversy, courtesy of Dr Lee Wei Ling, has finally revealed what occurred behind-the-scenes.

This was two days after LWL, daughter of Lee Kuan Yew, posted yet another update on her Facebook (FB) page that shed light on which part of her commentary ST had wanted to omit.

It is now Ivan Fernandez’s turn -- as Associate Editor of ST and the man who edited LWL’s commentary -- to sail through the fog and clear the air.

In case you find the 1,580-word commentary by Fernandez, to be tl;dr, that was essentially what he said:

1. More than 40 e-mails were exchanged over the week over the commentary.

"Dr Lee sent me her article on what she considered 'hero-worshipping' of her father on March 21. Over the course of that week, there were some 40 e-mails about the column, as we worked to get it ready for publication". Straits Times ("Why ST did not publish Dr Lee Wei Ling's column", April 9)

2. LWL agreed in principle regarding the edited commentary.

"I sent her my edited version for her review on March 23, with the intended date of publication being Sunday, March 27.

She replied on March 23, saying: "Reads well. But I want to wait until the day unfolds completely." Straits Times ("Why ST did not publish Dr Lee Wei Ling's column", April 9)

3. The portions that was edited out? Almost three quarters has been plagiarised. 

Mao Zedong's portion: Obscure website - Chinese posters.net

Winston Churchill's portion: The Guardian

4. LWL insisted that ST run the latest version unedited.

"She added: 'I am going to blog this version or a similar version of this. If there are copyright issues, then I won't sell my copy right to SPH. I thought long and hard about it. I want the version I decide on. I hv my reason for my decision. It does not matter to me whether u agree with me or otherwise.'" Straits Times ("Why ST did not publish Dr Lee Wei Ling's column", April 9)

5. Why Fernandez wanted to share the disclosures

Fernandez emphasised ST's relationship with its readers and chose to prioritise it over its editor's relationship with its contributors.

Therefore, he chose to "make these disclosures about the pains taken to uphold professional standards".

Finally, how do we make sense of these exchanges so far?

Firstly, the exchanges revealed that LWL's commentary was indeed edited by ST.

But it appears that the reasons for the edits (or censorship in LWL's opinion) were valid. Fernandez's points about LWL's plagiarism in her commentary cannot be ignored by LWL.

But one would like to know how exactly the exchanges went.

Did Fernandez propose to just delete all the plagiarised passages or did he offer to rewrite and reword the passages?

From Fernandez commentary, it is likely that he preferred the former.

It is noteworthy that he revealed that he "found (the new additions) distracting at first reading because of repeated references to China".

If the spat continues, Fernandez and ST should consider revealing the full email exchanges between them and LWL.

Secondly, The Straits Times folks grew a pair.

This is LWL after all.

They had to weigh and face the consequences of rejecting LWL's commentary.

They chose to stand firm against the pressure from a prominent personality's ultimatums, so kudos to them.

Thirdly, it reveals that special privileges was in fact accorded to LWL.

ST ran about 40-50 commentaries per week and an editor's role goes beyond just editing commentaries.

It will be a very esteemed Singaporean contributor indeed to be able to exchange over 40 emails with a busy editor in just a week.

Lastly, what will LWL do next? Sue to defend her reputation?

In one of her very first FB posts, LWL concluded with the following message: "If your statement is accurate, fine. If it is slander, l will have to defend my reputation in court."

Is LWL hurt enough by ST's claim of plagiarism to consider legal action?

We await Round 4 of the fight.

Related articles:

Round Two: The salt is very real between Lee Wei Ling and Janadas Devan in latest exchange

Round One: Online spat between Chief of Govt Communications & LKY’s daughter about LKY’s blurb on book

Lee Wei Ling reveals what ST wanted to take out from her ‘hero worship’ commentary

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