Standard, colloquial, and strategic: a generic analysis of Singapore English in Healthier SG video campaigns

This paper analyses Singapore English in 25 Healthier SG YouTube videos to promote preventive healthcare, focusing on: (1) video genres and viewership, (2) thematic distribution of Standard Singapore English (SSE) and Colloquial Singapore English (CSE) across these genres, and (3) strategic functions of SSE and CSE in preventive healthcare communication. Using the genre analysis approach, five distinctive video genres are identified. Analysis using various linguistic models reveals that SSE functions as the foundational, authoritative code throughout the campaign, establishing credibility and ensuring clear, globally oriented communication. CSE leverages audience appeal and rapport to portray local cultural authenticity and identity. This reveals a global-local strategy with functional compartmentalisation in which SSE and CSE are deployed in a highly managed genre-driven approach. This study documents how SSE and CSE can be deployed strategically via YouTube videos and offers genre models to foster preventive healthcare within Singapore’s multilingual and multicultural context.