February 26, 2018, 11:49 PM 
Popular cooking series MasterChef is coming to Singapore.
News of its arrival has been met with frenzied enthusiasm and also yelps of confused amazement mixed with seething anger.
This is because the show will be shown on Channel 8 in Mandarin.
Language barrier
The dissatisfaction with the show being aired on a Chinese language channel has been most palpable online.
masterchef china?? https://t.co/blRAE4wjl0
— IKHWAN (@ikhwansam98) February 26, 2018
https://twitter.com/shoulderniel/status/968102909157109762
MasterChef 🇨🇳✨✨ https://t.co/1NztuWmDf1
— Sayyid Fadhil (@sydfdl) February 26, 2018
let the skills speak for itself rather than what language we are suppose to use bitches https://t.co/439s71EeYZ
— هيكل (@hicurls93) February 26, 2018
Stupid lah. Then do Masterchef Chinese lah https://t.co/F1LddR3mXC
— Megat Izzu (@MegatIzzu) February 26, 2018
Then this ain’t masterchef Singapore the hell https://t.co/t85dhXT2MY
— 🌹🍒 (@shotgunlouis) February 26, 2018
However, there are also others who do not see it as a racial issue:
Leave it to sgporeans to make this a racial matter LOL pls stop https://t.co/gsy6NlFwPF
— Muzzaffir Shah (@Muzzaffir) February 26, 2018
[related_story]
Originally in English
MasterChef was originally broadcast in English.
Having the show in Chinese is seen as erecting an unnecessary language barrier in a multi-ethnic country.
Moreover, the questionnaire to shortlist contestants for the show had asked for applicants to list the languages they are fluent in, along with the level of Mandarin fluency.
Mediacorp responds
In response to the hullabaloo, a Mediacorp statement said that Channel 8 was chosen to “reach out to the largest audience base in Singapore”.
Contestants did not have to be fluent in speaking Mandarin, as translation services can be provided.
For non-Chinese speaking audiences, the show will have subtitles in English, Mediacorp said.
The series, created in Britain in 1990, has seen several spin-offs including MasterChef Asia, which was broadcast in English in 2015.
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