Rethinking campus journalism

The better way to teach journalism in campus is to train them to write for life.

Perhaps, that’s a motherhood phrase.

What I really wanted to say is to go beyond competition mode.

The holding of competitions to test the skills of school children on campus journalism might have worked to a certain point.

But making the students practice campus journalism more might do miracles and fish more youth to the craft of factual reporting.

Inihanay sa:Access to Information, Blogging and Bukidnon, Bukidnon, Education, Freedom, Life in the Plateau, Malaybalay City, Mindanao, Mindanao's communities, People Power, Philippines

The never ending story of war —right in our backyard

Waking up to a broadcaster howling against the Moro Islamic Liberation Front one morning, I was tempted to turn the radio off.

 

The grain of his voice has pestered me in my space in that corner of the house.

 

“Maayo ng girahon sila kay gusto man diay nila og Independence!” Gusto pa gyod nila iapil ang tibuok Bukidnon aron mohimo sila og regional government!” (It’s good to go to war with them since they wanted independence. They also like to cover the whole Bukidnon in a bid to form a regional government!).

 

I was really forced to get on my feet even if I only had three hours of sleep yet and dialed the radio station.

Inihanay sa:Access to Information, Art and Culture in Mindanao, Business, Economy, Education, Every Day Mindanao, Governance, Human Rights, Indifgenous Peoples, Justice, Local Governance, Malaybalay City, Mindanao, Mindanao Media, Mindanao's communities, Peace Process, People Power, Philippines, Politics, Safety, Security

Being present at the Fourth Mindanao Media Summit

Participants take time to smile and relax for a date with posterity (Photo by Skippy Lumawag courtesy of Mindanews)

The formal sessions of the 4th Mindanao Media Summit just concluded early afternoon today, 09 August 2008.

The theme: “Mindanao 2020: The vision begins with us”, is placed in an imposing tarp at the back draft. It was a reminder to me as a member of the group who took on “drafting” the vision from the participants. “Where are the other members of the styling committee?” I asked myself.

I ate a late breakfast today as I stayed late for my recent attempt to write a narrative report. So when I entered the summit hall, I have to do some catching up on who did what the night before.

I caught up on the secretariat who were busy calling the rest of the group for the picture taking.

Meanwhile, I picked the shiniest plate on the buffet table and proceeded to feast on hotel breakfast. In my peripheral vision and hearing I could hear Jocan talking me to drop the breakfast for a moment and smile it out in the photographic firing squad.

I managed some sips of brewed coffee and few scoops of the one-serving steamed rice and the hard-boiled egg and beef curry sud-an. I have to or I couldn’t move a muscle to say “cheese”. Oh, I went there seconds later as I have to squeeze in my summit shirt. I went there to see if the pool was really tempting enough for some laps of swimming, to regret I didn’t plunge when I could last night.

The last day of the three-day gathering of Mindanao media’s “decision-makers” started with quaint picture taking by the poolside of the Waterfront Insular Hotel in Lanang, Davao City.

It was supposed to capture for the future the faces of the news professionals who participated in the summit in a step to improve capacity as stakeholder to peace and development in Mindanao.

Inihanay sa:ARMM, Access to Information, Blogging and Mindanao, Bukidnon, Davao, Education, Elections 2007, Elections in Mindanao, Freedom, Governance, Malaybalay City, Mindanao, Mindanao Media, Mindanao's communities, The World from Davao

Mindanao Week of Peace starts today

For the ninth time this year, the Bishops-Ulama Conference has held on to the ground by leading the celebrations for the Mindanao Week of Peace (MWOP).

The BUC adopted Zamboanga City’s Peace Week and made it Mindanao-wide in 1999.

For almost a decade, the peace weeks have been opportunities for “peace weavers” to reflect on the need for peace in Mindanao, every stakeholder’s role and what has been done to attain lasting peace.

Inihanay sa:Business, Education, Environment, Governance, Human Rights, Investments in Mindanao, Local Governance, Lumads and Mindanao, Mindanao, Mindanao's communities, Peace Process, Philippines, Reflections, Religious

Muslim-Christian interfaith dialogue could be a lesson in school

Leaders and educators in Mindanao of the world’s two leading faiths should not stop educating their followers on interfaith understanding “to remove the clutters of misconception” from even among their followers.

“The effort should be vice versa, on both sides,” Aleem Jamal Munib, an official of the Davao City Madrasah Development Program, told MindaNews.

“This is very important. If we don’t talk, misconceptions would prevail, causing distrust on each other,” he said.

Among the key issues splitting mixed communities, Munib said discrimination remained on top. Read the rest of the report on MindaNews.com.

Inihanay sa:ARMM, Crime, Davao, Education, Freedom, Governance, Malaybalay City, Mindanao, Peace Process

US software expert in town for free workshop

A world renowned US programmer would be in town next week for a free workshop on Java Script, an important program on developing website and accessing objects embedded in other Internet applications.

Thom Parker, touted as one of the top three world experts on JavaScript, would offer a free workshop at Felis Seminar Resort on Friday November 16 at 3:00 pm.

His talk would cover many areas of JavaScript programming and he would show examples of results one can achieve using JavaScript, according to a press release. The Davao Acrobat and Adobe User Group and Felis Seminar Resort have sponsored the workshop “as part of a series to help boost the so-called Silicon Gulf Coast of Davao”. Read the rest of the report on MindaNews.com.

Inihanay sa:Business, Davao, Education, Investments in Mindanao, Jobs in Mindanao, Local Governance, Mindanao, Technology, The World from Davao

Grade schooler’s suicide draws attention to urban poverty

A mixture of her difficulty in coping with poverty, emotional problems, and her youthful innocence killed the 12-year-old grade schooler, a social worker said.

Grade 6 pupil Marianeth Amper, who committed suicide in the afternoon of All Souls’ Day in a room of their house in the sloping hills in Maa, has caught the national limelight as she was reportedly pushed to kill herself because of her family’s hunger and poverty.

Dalmin Faith Igaña, of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) who interviewed the family on Nov. 7, said Marianeth had reached a stage when she could no longer cope with the poverty around her. This was further exacerbated, the social worker noted, by the fact that the girl had nobody to whom she can express her feelings. Read the rest of the report on MindaNews.com.

Inihanay sa:Davao, Education, Food/Health Related, Governance, Health, Jobs in Mindanao, Justice, Local Governance, Mindanao, Social Security

(My Views) Reforms in selection process urged for Comelec

The Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting threw in their take on the recent noise at the Commission on Elections.

PPCRV saw something fishy in the alleged lack of transparency in the selection process with President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s appointment of Iligan City judge Moslemen Macarambon, Sr. Read the MindaNews story here.

The poll watchdog making noise even from the start, say, in the appointment of commissioners is commendable. This is good rather than just deal with the problem only on election day.

I think the public clamor is more particular on the need to reform the selection process, instead of being so inhuman to dwell on the personal.

Inihanay sa:Davao, Education, Elections 2007, Elections in Mindanao, Governance, Human Rights in Mindanao, Mindanao, Philippines, Politics

I’m Signing the MBS1 Declaration of Commitment

 

In principle, I believe the commitments sought here as proposed on Saturday are OK. There could be other matters to be discussed but maybe its wise to raise them later.

I believe that the first response to the challenge of Paring Bert Alejo’s propositions in his presentation could be to pen down our signature. I believe some already signed?

Alejo raised several calls such as Mindanao bloggers are ought to be pro-active; culturally, socially and historically relevant; sensitive and also vigilant. High and tall orders, indeed. But it matters.

I think signing this document makes it an unpretentious, comprehensive and concrete achievement of the summit.

Inihanay sa:Blogging and Mindanao, Education, Mindanao, Philippines

Mindanao bloggers urged to promote peace and understanding

Online journal writers or bloggers from Mindanao were urged to go beyond writing about personal matters and instead use their internet platform to help promote peace and understanding in Mindanao.

Speaking to at least 60 bloggers at the opening ceremonies of the 1st Mindanao Bloggers’ Summit, organizers and resource speakers took turns in urging bloggers to publish entries that contribute to understanding

Oliver Robillo, head of the organizers said blogging, if done collectively, could help influence society.

“As bloggers, we are in possession of a potentially influential medium, and it is that ability that we can harness in order to impress upon the world that Mindanao is in fact a beautiful place. We know that ourselves. We know that we are of diverse, and yet somehow harmonious, cultures. We have in our midst different but fascinating traditions,” he said.

Robillo said bloggers could tell the rest of the world the real situation in Mindanao. Read the full report on MindaNews.com. Also this one by Carolyn O. Arguillas.

Inihanay sa:Blogging and Bukidnon, Blogging and Mindanao, Crime, Davao, Economy, Education, Governance, Indifgenous Peoples, Local Governance, Mindanao, Mindanao's communities, Peace Process, Philippines

(Trying) to understand Mindanao

(A Personal Essay)

It’s still a world of instant coffee.

A friend from academia dropped a message in my inbox to ask for an online chat via Yahoo Messenger or Google Chat. I was surprised since the last contact we made was two years ago in a UP e-group.

He said as a journalist I could give him a quick explanation about Mindanao, its indigenous peoples, the issue of ancestral domain, the Mindanao conflict, why some IPs oppose mining, and also the peace process. He was trying to prepare a primer on Mindanao.

I knew it was an overview paper. It was an ambitious overview paper. It is doable I’m sure. I find preparing a primer on Mindanao, however, out of synch and possibly a waste of time. Such primer could be for anyone rushing. But I think one shouldn’t rush any attempt to understand Mindanao.

Inihanay sa:Blogging and Bukidnon, Blogging and Mindanao, Education, Freedom, Mindanao, Peace Process, Philippines, Reflections

One Dabawenyo sports guru

DELAYED BLOGCAST: Last Monday I had a very long lunch with two friends, MC of the Business Mirror and blogosphere’s Mr. Clean Slate, Mo, who also writes for Manila Standard Today.

Time with Mo is time to update about sports. He breathes sporting fire in the city. Not that he is the only one I know. But Mo is a reporter, an advocate and a public servant. In his passion for sports you could see his desire to push for “sports governance”.

Inihanay sa:Davao, Education, Food/Health Related, Fun, Governance, Health, Local Governance, Mindanao, Mindanao Sports