'Hunt for Truth' begins in PUP YCG's 10th RCon

BY ERICKA CASTILLO

AFTER a three-year hiatus, the DZMCYoung Communicator’s Guild (YCG) kicked off its 10th edition of the annual PUP Radio Conference (RCon) at the PUP Theater, College of Communication, Sta. Mesa, on May 5.

This edition themed, “Maniobra: Unveiling the Illusion Behind Public Deception,” tackled the importance of educating the masses to counter the prevalence of misinformation in the posttruth era and emphasized media safety among practitioners.

Three veteran media practitioners were present at the event to share their insights on the role of journalists in society and their experiences in the industry.

Rappler author Mara Cepeda discussed in her pre-recorded talk that protecting democracy and upholding truth is every Filipino’s right.

Cepeda also encouraged the audience to continue aspiring to be media practitioners despite journalistic attacks and challenges in the age of disinformation.

“I know it might be scary, but please know that the worst time to be a journalist is also the best time to be a journalist. We need young people with better understanding of social media."

DZMM reporter Robert Mano took the stage as the first live speaker. He discussed the post-truth era and how radio practitioners should maximize technology to connect with their audience.

“It is very important na nakaka-connect yung audience sa atin. We need to reconnect and be searchable off and online. Kung nasaan yung audience mo dapat nandoon tayo,” Mano said.

Mano also supported Cepeda’s point that Filipino newsrooms must experiment with trends to know how the news will resonate with the masses.

“You need to stand out. Kailangan mo i-reawake yung audience mo, yung branding mo… kailangan baguhin natin nang kaunti para maging believable, modern, and connected ‘yung output natin sa audience.”

He highlighted that maximizing technology is not the only thing media practitioners can do to preserve truth, implementing “solution journalism” will also serve as a key for them.

“That’s the principle, tinuturo natin sa audience kung paano nila ma-overcome yung problem. Hindi lang tayo nag-focus doon sa problem,” he said.

Mano ended his discussion by explaining how journalists should evolve from being watchdogs to guide dogs.

“The challenge to us now as journalists ay hindi na watchdog, dapat din tayo maging guide dogs. Gina-guide na natin ‘yung audience natin sa katotohanan, hindi lang tayo bantay nang bantay sa mga gumagawa ng kalokohan.”

ABS-CBN news reporter Sherrie Ann Torres explained the importance of prioritizing media safety and shared her experiences with political coverage.

“Keeping your balance as a journalist [is important] para hindi ka malaglag sa kamalian ng impormasyon… nandun tayo bilang mga mamamahayag para magcover, hindi tayo spectator lang,” she noted.

Torres also said that media practitioners should continue to reveal the truth about the politicians despite their good treatment of the media during campaigns.

“Hindi tayo manonood lang sa sinasabi o makikinig sa sinasabi ng kandidato, kailangan ‘pag nandoon ka, bukas ang tainga mo, bukas ang mata mo,” she added.

Torres ended his talk that journalists should focus on keeping their sanity and safety while working in the media industry.