Haven't had breakfast nor lunch yet and considering I came from Katipunan (which entails commuting from there to Cubao, taking the MRT to Annapolis, and finally making a half-hour walk home) but since I'm yearning to write this, here I am.
Today's entry is supposed to be "Geeks (yes, I know I'm one), Bribery, and 9-11". It started when I arrived at school. Elbert was there, waiting for our Feature writing class to start. Soon, Carlos joins us and tells us how geeky Antonio is, Antonio being Leo's carbon copy minus the FHM and Hentai videos.
Apparently, Carlos's teacher, Ricky Lee, was making a lecture on the spiral element of film. Antonio then starts mentioning Eva. Apparently, this "geeked" Carlos out. Which is strange considering Carlos has done something similar in the past, despite his own protests.
And true to Antonio being Leo's carbon copy, our teacher was making a lecture about how this girl still loves this guy (it's in the papers but since I don't read newspapers, I forgot their names) despite the fact that he beats her. And then Leo suddenly starts talking about the anime Jin-Roh and how it's a sad tragedy of love. Never mind the fact that it's totally unrelated to the discussion and the fact that he didn't bother asking our teacher if she's watched the film, considering it's an anime flick.
During feature writing class, we discussed the elements of the feature story, as well as distinguishing it from news, editorial, columns, and interprative news (which I'm totally unfamiliar with and if I've probably read one, I didn't now it). Somehow, that drifted to the current newspaper industry and how bribery is prevalent.
The basic element of bribery in the Philippine broadsheet industry is getting paychecks in envelops. That's the obvious ones. Right now, it could be as easy as giving your account number to the PR people and the briber will just deposit it in your bank account. It's hard to trace since there's no paperwork involved and banks can't divulge information for security and privacy reasons.
Gray areas revolve around the "gifts" you get during Christmas. As a policy by some, if they couldn't have bought the gift with their own paycheck, they return or decline the gift.
Even more subtle techniques involve treating reporters and journalists out to dinner, or being their "best friend". One thing not mentioned is that after press conferences, there's a lunch or dinner involved, so this in a way may sway the opinions of a writer towards a certain person. This is subtle since it's not a direct bribery but instead makes you think the person is kind or not that bad. As for being their "best friend", people are willing to help out journalists and writers. Of course, they don't ask for anything in return directly but as the recipient of help, you can't help but feel indebted to that person, especially in our country where utang ng loob is prevalent. And I know all about this since people I give gifts expect that there's some ulterior motive behind it or can't receive a gift at face value, feeling indebted to me in some way. I mean that's not my intention, but the fact that some people are expecting it from me is just an example of how such a practice is malignant in Philippine culture.
Then there's 9-11. We were given four articles to read on, each taking a different angle at the event which confounded a lot of Americans. One was on how in declaring war against "terrorism", the US was actually giving up a lot of their freedom for the sake of security (and actually helping the insurance agencies). Another was how New York is considered Ground Zero not just because of what happened in 9-11 but of its past. Another was a peace rally and the last was a sarcastic column on how one mayor in his lows suddenly got a boom in his career via unreputable means.
And before I end, our teacher did point out that one of the most controversial (read: most liable to be sued) columnists are the ones widely read. And since I'm not exactly popular...
Carlos told me that he'd be dropping me off at EDSA but since his class ended earlier than ours, I guess he didn't bother to wait. Dropped by the FBR building to see what's new in CCHQ and I couldn't see much of the anime event that was going on since black sheets were covering it. I did see Vincent and company (the yaoi dudes, if I'm not mistaken). I know Krizelle is joining in the cosplay but she wasn't there yet when I came. Not wanting to spend the next few hours waiting for people I know to arrive, I went home, hungry and eager to write this. =)
Today's entry is supposed to be "Geeks (yes, I know I'm one), Bribery, and 9-11". It started when I arrived at school. Elbert was there, waiting for our Feature writing class to start. Soon, Carlos joins us and tells us how geeky Antonio is, Antonio being Leo's carbon copy minus the FHM and Hentai videos.
Apparently, Carlos's teacher, Ricky Lee, was making a lecture on the spiral element of film. Antonio then starts mentioning Eva. Apparently, this "geeked" Carlos out. Which is strange considering Carlos has done something similar in the past, despite his own protests.
And true to Antonio being Leo's carbon copy, our teacher was making a lecture about how this girl still loves this guy (it's in the papers but since I don't read newspapers, I forgot their names) despite the fact that he beats her. And then Leo suddenly starts talking about the anime Jin-Roh and how it's a sad tragedy of love. Never mind the fact that it's totally unrelated to the discussion and the fact that he didn't bother asking our teacher if she's watched the film, considering it's an anime flick.
During feature writing class, we discussed the elements of the feature story, as well as distinguishing it from news, editorial, columns, and interprative news (which I'm totally unfamiliar with and if I've probably read one, I didn't now it). Somehow, that drifted to the current newspaper industry and how bribery is prevalent.
The basic element of bribery in the Philippine broadsheet industry is getting paychecks in envelops. That's the obvious ones. Right now, it could be as easy as giving your account number to the PR people and the briber will just deposit it in your bank account. It's hard to trace since there's no paperwork involved and banks can't divulge information for security and privacy reasons.
Gray areas revolve around the "gifts" you get during Christmas. As a policy by some, if they couldn't have bought the gift with their own paycheck, they return or decline the gift.
Even more subtle techniques involve treating reporters and journalists out to dinner, or being their "best friend". One thing not mentioned is that after press conferences, there's a lunch or dinner involved, so this in a way may sway the opinions of a writer towards a certain person. This is subtle since it's not a direct bribery but instead makes you think the person is kind or not that bad. As for being their "best friend", people are willing to help out journalists and writers. Of course, they don't ask for anything in return directly but as the recipient of help, you can't help but feel indebted to that person, especially in our country where utang ng loob is prevalent. And I know all about this since people I give gifts expect that there's some ulterior motive behind it or can't receive a gift at face value, feeling indebted to me in some way. I mean that's not my intention, but the fact that some people are expecting it from me is just an example of how such a practice is malignant in Philippine culture.
Then there's 9-11. We were given four articles to read on, each taking a different angle at the event which confounded a lot of Americans. One was on how in declaring war against "terrorism", the US was actually giving up a lot of their freedom for the sake of security (and actually helping the insurance agencies). Another was how New York is considered Ground Zero not just because of what happened in 9-11 but of its past. Another was a peace rally and the last was a sarcastic column on how one mayor in his lows suddenly got a boom in his career via unreputable means.
And before I end, our teacher did point out that one of the most controversial (read: most liable to be sued) columnists are the ones widely read. And since I'm not exactly popular...
Carlos told me that he'd be dropping me off at EDSA but since his class ended earlier than ours, I guess he didn't bother to wait. Dropped by the FBR building to see what's new in CCHQ and I couldn't see much of the anime event that was going on since black sheets were covering it. I did see Vincent and company (the yaoi dudes, if I'm not mistaken). I know Krizelle is joining in the cosplay but she wasn't there yet when I came. Not wanting to spend the next few hours waiting for people I know to arrive, I went home, hungry and eager to write this. =)
posted by Charles at 9:54 PM
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