Good morning.
How do you film a show about vaping when possession of these devices – also known as e-cigarettes – is illegal in Singapore?
This was one of many challenges we faced in putting together a two-part Talking Point special on the trend of teen vaping, which has exploded here over the last two years.
We had to ask the Health Sciences Authority to loan us some confiscated vapes. The array of contraband included innocent-looking devices that would blend into any student’s desk – one even fooled the crew and parents we showed it to!
Next conundrum: How to coax teen vapers to talk about their illegal habit on national TV?
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The solution was to talk to them where they’re most comfortable: In the virtual world!
In part 1 of the special, host Munah Bagharib sat down with three teens in avatar-form in the metaverse, where they candidly revealed some pretty shocking facts about the underground vape market. (Watch the extended version of that chat here.)
The biggest hurdle came during filming for part 2, when we travelled to Malaysia to trace the source of some of the illegal vapes being sold in Singapore.
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The evening before we were due to travel, we received news that the interview we were flying to Kuala Lumpur for – with the founder of Vape Empire, one of Malaysia’s largest vape retail chains – was off.
With (non-refundable) travel arrangements already made, Munah and I set off unsure as to what we would be able to film – a producer’s worst nightmare.
But Munah managed to swing a visit to Vape Empire’s flagship store… and yes – we did get the man behind the business and put some tough questions to him. Is he aware that his products are being smuggled into Singapore for sale? And is the company targeting teens?
Catch our special for his answers, as well as everything you need to know about why teens are vaping, what they’re really inhaling, and how to help them quit the addiction.
Tiffany Fumiko Tay
Producer, Talking Point
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