Lee Hsien Loong v Leong Sze Hian [2021] SGHC 66 Reach of the publication 92 In determining the reach of the publication, the relevant evidence includes many of the matters which have been considered in determining if there has been publication and/or republication. The defendant has 5,000 friends and 149 followers on Facebook. These numbers do not seem to point to an exceptionally substantial following, at least in comparison to others on social media, and other types of social media such as YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, or Tiktok. Though not adduced before me, I think I can take judicial notice that follower numbers for various Singaporean personalities can number in the tens of thousands, if not more. 93 Be that as it may, the plaintiff argued that there would have been a wide reach for the defamatory material through the internet. However, there was no direct evidence, whether in the form of view counters or metadata printouts, that the Post and linked Article had a large circulation. Indeed, there was no evidence that the post went viral, ie, accumulating several tens if not hundreds of thousands of reactions, likes, and/or shares. What the plaintiff depended on to establish the reach of the publication was the likelihood or probability of broad circulation, based at least in part on (a) the number of followers and friends of the defendant’s Facebook account, and (b) the number of persons who had expressed their support or reaction to the Post. This turned in large part on the expert provided by the plaintiff’s expert, Dr Phan. 94 Dr Phan’s evidence was that the reach of the Post could be exponential because of the amplification of posts, especially of false news.35 However, Dr Phan was unable to specify exactly how much publication would have occurred 35 Bundle of AEICs (“BA”) Vol 2 at 400 and 401. 51