UPLB’S 3rd Paaralang Roger Sese Workshop on Fact-Checking and News and News Features

Kiersten Dane Olivas & Danielle Margareth Piler

SATURDAY, November 13, 2021 - Still with the Paaralang Roger Sese’s weekly journalism trainings, the UPLB Perspective commenced their third round of workshop with the topics: Fact-Checking (2:30 PM), and News and News Features (4:00 PM), held via Zoom Conference and Facebook Live.

Starting with the topic Fact-Checking, the emcees introduced Ms. Julianne Afable, the former Editor-in-Chief of UPLB Perspective and an MS Development Communication Student.

Ms. Julianne kicked off her lecture by defining what fact-checking is all about, wherein she mentioned that the aim of fact-checking is to deliver accurate and unbiased analysis of official remarks in order to rectify public misconceptions and enhance public awareness on critical topics. Additionally, modern fact-checking examines assertions and assigns a true or false rating. By adding context and background information, fact checkers can explain their opinion of a claim.

She then went on to discuss how to locate or identify the proper and reputable sources, especially for news stories — to which Ms. Julianne also presented some examples. As soon as her discussion ended, a Question & Answer portion was held. With the participants’ questions being fulfilled by Ms. Julianne, the emcees then welcomed the second speaker.

Moving on with the second topic, the speaker was none other than Mr. Reuben Martinez, a news editor of UPLB Perspective and BS Development Communication student at the University of the Philippines-Los Baños for the topic News Writing.

Mr. Reuben kicked off his discussion by defining what news is. He stated, “It informs, tells stories, and takes sides”. “Common misconception din kasi that news must be neutral at all times. News must also be able to take sides, but not necessarily na ‘dapat kampihan niyo to’ you’re presenting facts that flesh out the issue, in hopes to let readers know the multiple sides of the story,” Mr. Reuben also added.

Furthermore, he mentioned the different types of news articles, specifically on how it’s used, and when it’s used. He also emphasized proper word choice wherein he stated: “They can be something na people would read pero without the right words, or terms, magkakaroon ng negative indications.”

“An 18-year-old boy with special needs was shot dead by a bullet, yung accountability napunta sa maling object, in this case, sa bullet,” he explained, using one headline from Manila Bulletin as an example. He then discussed the 3 deadly sins of news writing: Editorializing, Weasel wording, and Journalese.

Mr. Reuben gave tips on how to improve one’s article such as using only factual and observable descriptors. “Kunyare, Ex-President Ferdinand Marcos, you can call him a dictator because it is historically proven,” Mr. Reuben added.

“You should also be specific and use “allegedly” and quote marks sparingly. Kasi if you use it too much, then it will give the impression na you’re not so sure about what you’re writing so why should I read it,” he noted.

To end his discussion, he mentioned that being witty is alright but one must be sensitive. He then used a headline by Inquirer as an example, “Guns and hoses: BFP bill with provision arming firefighters awaits Duterte’s signature”. Mr. Reuben reiterated that: “One wrong word, one wrong phrase, your story will be lost in translation, it will lose its impact”.

As soon as his discussion ended, the speaker for News Feature was then introduced. It was none other than Mr. Gabriel Jov Dolot, Features editor of UPLB Perspective and BS Development Communication student at the University of the Philippines-Los Baños.

He started his discussion by defining feature writing as a human-interest story, a comprehensive take on issues and requires in-depth understanding and analysis. Mr. Gabriel defined its categories and how these are written. “What’s nice is in feature writing walang standard template, mas free siya compared to news articles,” Mr. Gabriel stated. Moreover, he mentioned what happens and what one should do during pitching, using his own experience as an example. “Write something you have a genuine interest in kasi if it’s something close to your heart, super dali lang magsulat,” he advised.

He also tackled the different parts of a feature story, writing an introduction, and the ending statement. Mr. Gabriel ended his discussion by saying: “Be mindful of redundancy, editorializing, hifalutin words, motherhood & skeletal statements. Your goal is to help people make decisions based sa sinusulat mo if you’re not considering kung maiintindihan ba nila yon, then maybe you should rethink your writing.”

Afterwards, they were then given the chance to ask both Mr. Reuben and Mr. Gabriel questions regarding their topics, followed by a photo opportunity; hence, the 3rd Workshop for Paaralang Roger Sese has successfully come to an end.

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