SUMMARY
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MANILA, Philippines – It was a sad week in the Philippines, as typhoon Pablo hit Visayas, Mindanao, and parts of Luzon.
As of posting, nearly 500 are dead and more than 500 are missing due to the typhoon.
This week’s social media wRap takes on a more somber note as we list down the stories that made us remember how fragile life can be.
In the midst of all the sadness though, a post or two inspired and reminded us that there is hope.
#PabloPH: tragedy, painful lessons, and hope
MoodMeter: Sad
As it made its way through different cities and provinces, Pablo toppled trees, uprooted crops, destroyed homes and tore families apart. Rappler stands in solidarity with the victims of Pablo as they begin the difficult task of rebuilding their lives.
Social media to the rescue
MoodMeter: Inspired
When “the storm with no name” hit parts of Luzon, heroes came forward through a very unlikely medium — social media. The hashtags #rescuePH and #reliefPH took on important roles as Pablo inflicted damage in the country, giving much-needed aid to those in need.
Twitter also set up a special page for all Pablo-related tweets, making it much easier for people online to monitor the typhoon.
Photo of a man about to die makes it to paper’s front page
MoodMeter: Angry
There are a lot of gray areas in journalism. Rappler’s editor-at-large Marites Vitug talks about these in her latest Thought Leaders piece.
One example, the New York Post’s decision to use a photo of a man waiting — literally — for the kiss of death after he was pushed onto a New York subway track.
The man, Ki Suk Han, later died after sustaining critical injuries. The online world was outraged by the photo. Why didn’t the photographer help the guy before taking the picture?
But the bigger question here is: why did the New York Post run it at all? And why did they use it on the front page? Join the discussion over at Gawker here.
Royal bun in the oven
MoodMeter: Happy
Here’s something that gave us reprieve from the images of devastation and suffering — the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge announced this week that they are (finally) expecting a baby!
Will and Kate, as they are colloquially known, announced the good news on Monday, ending months of Royal baby bump watching.
The announcement also influenced social media — there are several parody accounts for the couple’s unborn baby.
Pablo and the RH Bill
MoodMeter: Annoyed
On Thursday, just as typhoon Pablo was exiting the Philippine Area of Responsibility, one Catholic Bishop pointed out a rather interesting “coincidence:” whenever the controversial Reproductive Health Bill would be tackled in Congress, a tragedy would strike.
“Ewan ko lang kung yan ay coincidence lang o dahil nga may pinapasabi ang Diyos sa atin na kapag iyan ay pinag-uusapan ng matindi ay parang may mensahe na nangyayari na maraming kahirapan na nagaganap sa atin,” said Manila Auxillary Bishop Broderick Pabillo, according to a report on ABS-CBN’s website.
(I’m not sure if it’s just a coincidence or God is trying to tell us something — that if the (RH) bill is being dicussed, a lot of suffering will happen.)
While Pabillo didn’t directly link the Pablo death toll to the bill, his statement leaves a bad taste in the mouth.
Who’s the real boss of the White House?
MoodMeter: Amused
Turns out US President Obama isn’t *the* boss of the White House. In this amusing video posted by the White House’s official YouTube channel, we find the US’ “first dog” Bo inspecting the mansion’s Christmas decorations.
I think he approves, don’t you?
Post-#PacquiaoKO maturity on Twitter
MoodMeter: Don’t Care
We get why a lot of Manny Pacquiao’s Filipino (and non-Filipino) fans are distraught over his surprise knockout loss to Mexico’s Juan Manuel Marquez.
What we don’t get is why people would want this hashtag trend on Twitter:
Another hashtag related to Pacquiao-Marquez fight also trended on Twitter:
We encourage everyone to calm down and handle all the post-fight ~feels~ with as much maturity and respect as one can muster.
Did we miss out on anything? Leave us a comment below or send us a tweet! – Bea Cupin, Rappler.com
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