Rambo Talabong

Rambo Talabong covers the House of Representatives and local governments for Rappler. Prior to this, he covered security and crime. In 2019, he became one of the youngest Filipino journalists to be chosen as a Jaime V. Ongpin Fellow for his reporting on President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs. In 2021, he was selected as a journalism fellow by the Fellowships at Auschwitz for the Study of Professional Ethics.

Even before completing his communication degree at the Ateneo de Manila University in 2017, he researched for Rappler’s multi-awarded “Impunity” series, which uncovered police abuses in the enforcement of the Duterte administration’s anti-drug campaign in Metro Manila’s poorest communities.

He was part of the Rappler team, led by Patricia Evangelista, that won two Society of Publishers in Asia excellence awards and the Global Shining Light Award of the Global Investigative Journalism Network for the 7-part “Murder in Manila” series.

Before reporting for Rappler, Rambo wrote for The GUIDON (English) and Matanglawin (Filipino) student publications of the Ateneo. After completing an exchange program in Spain, he interned for Rappler in the aftermath of the 2016 elections. He later served as editor in chief of Matanglawin.

Outside reporting, Rambo writes about his travels and the queer experience in the Philippines.

He finds calm in reading secondhand books, practicing the violin, and running.

Follow him on Twitter at @ramboreports.

Got a message or story tip for him? Shoot him an email at rambo.talabong@rappler.com.