THREE Journalism students bagged awards at the annual Asian Journalism Research Conference (AJRC), among competitors hailing from as far as Mindanao, while over 10 more students qualified as finalists.
Joselle Czarina Dela Cruz won second place in the news analysis category while the pair of Ryan Piolo Veluz and Angel Dukha III won third place in the journalism studies category.
Dela Cruz said she did not expect to win, given the tough competition she had to face.
“Maniwala man po kayo at sa hindi, wala po akong kaide–ideya na makukuha ko po ang second place dahil aminado po akong marami po sa mga kalaban ko sa category ko ay magagaling. Isa pa po, hindi ko rin po sigurado kung interesting sa mata ng ibang tao ang study ko,” Dela Cruz told the Flame.
Dela Cruz’s thesis explored the differences between the secular and Catholic media’s coverage of homilies that dealt with issues such as drugs and President Rodrigo Duterte’s tirades on the Church.
Veluz said it was “fulfilling” to win after all the sleepless nights.
“Pumunta kami ng UP (University of the Philippines) na ang nasa isip ko lang, kahit walang distinction, basta [‘wag] lang mag-choke at gisahin ng panelists, okay na ako. Pero [‘yun] nga, we made it, kaya thankful ako sa lahat ng nagtiwala at tumulong [sa amin],” he shared.
Veluz and Dukha’s thesis titled “Digidocumentaries: The Future of Philippine Investigative Documentaries in the Age of New Media,” attempted to predict what the predominant method of producing investigative documentaries will be in the future.
Over 10 more journalism students also qualified as finalists to the conference.
Richa Allyssa Noriega and Giselle Ombay represented the University in the journalism studies category with their thesis, “Journalists Versus Their Pro-Duterte Families: The Clash of Political Ideologies Under Duterte Administration.”
The team of Shana Angela Cervania, Elmer Coldora, Katrina Isabel Gonzales, Julie Euszel Jerusalem, Beatriz Avegayle Timbang, Ryan Piolo Veluz, and Danea Vilog were finalists in the journalism projects category for their work, “D(i)PO nila Alam, D(i)PA nila Naiintindihan.”
The team of Eloisa Mae Ortillo, Jhainna Chris La Rosa, Dominique Nathanielle Muli, Johnrick Lander Dungca, Jasmine Joy Salanga, and Kathrina Mariel Pelaez were finalists in the investigative journalism category for their work titled, “On the administration’s impunity, targeting the unprivileged: An investigative report.”
The research conference themed “Journalism in Crisis, Crisis in Journalism” was held at UP Diliman and hosted by the Journalism Department of the UP College of Mass Communication in cooperation with the Universiti Sains Malaysia and the University of Santo Tomas journalism program. F CRIS EUGENE T. GIANAN
