Editor: Singapore-banned Mag Will Fight

Thailand and China scored highest in the debut survey.

Asked why Singapore earned a top score of 5 in the survey's "openness and tolerance" category, Restall said the indicator doesn't measure freedom of speech but rather "openness to creativity" - or how suitable a country is for academic or scientific research.

Meanwhile, Paul Gigot, editorial page editor of The Wall Street Journal and Restall's superior, said the Review has arranged for its more than 1,000 Singapore subscribers to pick up the magazine outside the country or read it online.

The Review and Wall Street Journal are both published by Dow Jones & Co. Newsweek is published by the Washington Post Co.; Time magazine by Time Warner Inc.; and the International Herald Tribune by the New York Times Co.

Singapore's ruling party leaders have successfully sued several opposition politicians and journalists for defamation over the years, saying they were protecting their reputations.

Domestic and international critics, including the U.S. State Department and London-based Amnesty International, have accused Singapore leaders of using such suits to stifle dissent.

Restall said the review, which switched from a weekly news magazine to a monthly opinion journal in December 2004 due to declining advertising revenue, is now profitable, but its circulation is smaller at about 16,000.