Today we’ve published:

This is our last issue of the year, before we take our customary two-week break. Thank you for your support throughout, especially during the hectic GE season. There are now about 6,000 of you who receive our free newsletter. We’re still some way from breaking even, but are confident that we can get there.

How can you help? The best way is to join our 2,000 odd paying members. Get a paid membership to Jom today to support independent journalism in SG.

Print magazine issue No. 3 launch. It’ll be from 3-5pm on January 10th at Objectifs. There are limited spaces, so get your tickets now—you can use your SG Culture Pass credits for this. It’s been invigorating seeing how our print launch events have grown over the years. This year’s will be hosted by Corrie Tan, Jom’s arts editor and this print mag’s editor, and will feature two panels: one on what it takes to put together and publish a print magazine; and another featuring three of our writers on their craft.

“Singapore This Week”.

  • What should we make of the dissent towards the LawSoc council election?
  • The oppressive conditions under which delivery workers toil to satisfy your wants
  • Do we really need to cull so many crows?
  • Why are Singaporean businessmen buying European football clubs?
  • Career transitions, featuring a cheesemonger, a baker, and a theatremaker

Note: I mentioned last week that Faris Joraimi, Jom’s history editor, was keen to write a blurb on The Albatross File exhibition in this week’s issue. There’s good and bad news. The good is that he’s expanded it to a longer commentary, after deciding that the limited space in “Singapore This Week” would not do his response justice. The bad is that you’ll have to wait till early next year for it.

Join the over 2,000 paying members now to get access to all our content, starting from just S$10 a month.

Everyday Economics column: “The warm-glow economics of gift giving”, by Serene Koh

Why do we give gifts? In her second column for Jom, Serene explains what behavioural science reveals about the real drivers behind this universal human behaviour. During their fieldwork and research, Jom’s writers sometimes make enormous personal sacrifices in order to understand a topic and inhabit a specific emotional space, none more so than Serene—listening to Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” on repeat.

“Jom recommends: our picks to power through noise”

Many of you have said you’d like to know what we read, listen to, and watch. “Staff picks” is a popular category in many literary publications around the world. We haven’t been very diligent about it at Jom, mostly because of capacity. I worry my colleagues will frown if I add one more thing to their terribly full plates.

So I’m glad this one came together over the past month. We bounced around a few themes, and finally decided on this one. 

BTO piling. Jets thundering above. MRTs thudding and clanking through the tunnels. The cacophony of crowds. We’re inundated by noise every day. How can you power through it all?

Nine of us at Jom have responded with two recommendations each, accompanied by personal responses. They are, in one sense, our humble little gifts to you this season. I hope they keep you company till we chat again on January 9th 2026.

Jom!
Sudhir Vadaketh, editor-in-chief
Jom

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