The Lance's Refreshing Grand Return with Reficere: Refresh Courses on Journalism

Kumi San Diego, Louise Dominic Arga, Charles Kirby Manuyag, & John Cris Falguera Antor

Last Saturday, November 5, 2022, The Lance held their most anticipated event of the year, a new beginning that reignited the passion that campus journalists once had. Entitled “REFICERE: Reigniting the Spirit of Campus Journalism." The event was broadcasted online through Zoom conference and Facebook Livestream from 8 AM to 4 PM and held onsite in the Colegio in St. Thomas Hall.

Ms. Melody Jade Soriano, the Associate Editor, selflessly shared her experience, passion, and a short story of her inspiration during her opening remarks. According to her, journalism has always been alive and present, but it has lost its noise. Moreover, a journalist must amplify the truth and win the battle against this mal and misinformation. She then concluded her speech with the remarks, “This is a time for us to refresh, a time for us to consider our decisions and look back kung bakit gusto ko bang maging student journalist. And I know times are tough, it will get tougher, but that's why you are here, and more importantly, that's why we exist.”

The Lance invited Ms. Sherrie Ann Torres, a renowned journalist, to be the program's special guest. She holds a bachelor's degree in Mass Communication from Far Eastern University, a master's degree in Journalism from Ateneo de Manila University and works as a senior multi-platform journalist for ABS-CBN, a writer for news stories, and an anchor in DZMM. Ms. Sherrie mentioned that during her younger years, she did not like the news and preferred to watch cartoons, but as the clock struck at 6 PM, her father would change the station and watch the news. She promised herself that when she got older and had her television, she would not watch the news. But she went on to become a journalist. She now talks about how vital information is in people's lives—how people are kept aware and informed through the news.

”Ang isang matatag na fourth estate reflection ng isang strong democracy. And as we always say, we have to defend the truth because by defending the truth, we protect and strengthen democracy.” Ms. Sherrie stated. She added that the media and journalists should now advocate for truth and fight disinformation by checking information that will land in journalists' hands as fake news, trolls, and wrong information spread like wildfire. The report is stressful, but these stories matter—those written with hard work and commitment are the ones that reach everyone to promote truth and change. “Journalism is not for the faint-hearted or those looking for celebrity status. Hindi ito ‘yung portion or career na gusto mong marami kang followers or fans.” Indeed, journalism requires hard work, commitment, consistency, and courage.

Ms. Sherrie left an open-ended question to end her discourse, “Handa ka na ba na yakapin ‘yung propesyon na ito sa gitna ng napakaraming challenges natin ngayon? At kung handa ka, ano ‘yung maiaambag mo para kahit papaano makapagdala ng pagbabago sa klase ng gobyerno at bansa na mayroon tayo ngayon? Anong klase kang journalist a year, two years, three years, or four years from now? Magiging anong klase mamahayag ka ba?”

The program, however, does not end there, as The Lance prepared specific refresher courses for the members of The Lance and the Fourth Estate to attend.

Mr. Kevin Michael Robles, the refresher course speaker for multimedia and design, elaborated on his presentation entitled, “Taking Over the Digital Space,” the ways to “break the norm” and stand out from other brands or organizations. He touched on marketing strategies like relevance and online humor to make brands and organizations unique. He also tackled "Through the Line” marketing, or digital marketing, in which he recommended some applications for photo and video editing, illustrations, grammar-checking, and the like.

On the other hand, Mr. Daniel John Magbanua discussed and emphasized the elements and basics that are essential in capturing a great picture, such as lines, ISO, and the like, during his photography refresher course entitled “What Makes a Great Photograph?”

“Journalists should deliver news not to impress but to inform,” said Mr. Dennis Cortes during his news refresher course. He gave tips and advice on how to write a good article, where he advised using simple words to inform, not impress, and not lead readers to the dictionary. Furthermore, Mr. Norman Lee Benjamin De Leon Reigo, also a speaker for the news refresher course, discussed effective note-taking when it comes to covering an event and advised showing both sides of the story in the news article with correct and accurate information. “Audiences now are critics toward news, so before posting, someone upper should have read the news article.”

“Do not put too much pressure on yourself; just try what you can.” Mr. Norman encouraged as he ended his presentation. This made a clear point about inspiring young, aspiring writers to pursue their dreams and not give up when faced with adversity.

In the feature refresher course, Dr. Joselito De Los Reyes emphasized the importance of the lead in every feature article. The purpose of the lead, or the hook, is to pique the reader's interest enough for them to want to keep reading. He further discussed the tradition of media and how it is now being lost with the rise of social media. Any topic can now be engaging with the help of new media, but not many people have the time to read a whole thousand-word article these days. He then gave his insights on the tactics for writing a full feature article and the ‘don’ts’ for writing a feature. The purpose of a feature article will vary depending on the medium it is meant for. Hence, feature articles should appeal to the particular audience they are targeting.

Nobody can beat a journalist. There may be other social media influencers, but journalists deserve to be honored for serving as society's voice and eye on social issues. Indeed, it is an extreme pleasure to witness The Lance’s grand return with an exciting webinar that will undoubtedly help and shape aspiring writers and student journalists into becoming more knowledgeable and stronger than ever.

• UST Illuminate 2021: Empowering Media Literacy Education

• Letran SHS iVolunteer Club conducts Catalyst: Pioneers of Change in Leadership Training

• Letran DSA and Letran Policvs hold the TAYO NAMAN sa 2022: A Voter’s Education Forum

• Bayanihan for Well-being campaign facilitates Suicide Prevention webinar

• Letran-SHS STEM Area facilitates webinar on Conquering Anxiety in Learning Mathematics