Social media education pushed at #Connected2015 summit

MANILA, Philippines – Around 600 students gathered in Quezon for the 2^nd nationwide convention of the Metropolitan Alliance of Communication Students (MACS) on Sunday, September 27.

 

Entitled #CONNECTED2015, the convention aimed to promote media education and social awareness.

 

Following the theme “One Nation for Media Education,” speakers from the media, creative and entertainment industries were invited to talk a range of topics: from investigative journalism to hosting.

 

Students from different colleges and universities attended the convention with the majority coming from the University of Santo Tomas and Far Eastern University.

 

Driven by its mission to build ties and unify communication students all over the country, MACS first held #CONNECT last year. This year’s convention hopes to further strengthen the connection shared by its members.

 

MACS was launched at the University of the Philippines in September 2010. It was founded by Sherwin Su, an alumnus of UP who majored in Broadcast Communication. The alliance now has a total of 35 member colleges and universities.

 

Social awareness

 

GMA 7’s Ian Simbulan, executive producer of Reporter’s Notebook, talked about investigative journalism. He discussed the role and vitality of investigative reporting, emphasizing the need to ask questions and pay attention to issues that are often neglected.

 

Simbulan said it’s the journalist’s job to buck the trend and see through the hype. He recalled that even as most media programs focused on the #AlDub phenomenon, his program went ahead and reported on the lesser known Lumad murders in Mindanao.

 

Rappler’s Patricia Evangelista gave a talk on alternative storytelling. Evangelista’s stories are known for diving into the depths of humanity.

 

“I believe in the power of the story,” said Evangelista who played video that left an impact on the audience. “The reason we told this story is because it is very human.”

 

Jing Castaneda of ABS-CBN gave a talk on the “Impact of Social Media on Leadership and Public Service”. She mentioned how, with the help of social media, news and information travels faster than ever before. .

 

Advertising executive Third Domingo entertained the audience by showing different advertisements. He delved into the concept of creativity, asking the audience: “can everyone be creative?” to which his answer was “no.”

 

For the last speaker, actress and singer Nikki Gil talked about effective hosting. Having been a professional host since she was 17, Gil shared her experiences with the audience. She even gave tips for those who plan to pursue hosting as a career.

 

“Remember, you can’t please everyone,” said Nikki. “People will always have something to say.” – Rappler.com

 

Angela Baraceros is a Rappler intern.