Skip to content

Media in Focus on De la Paz & Blogging


(thank you Adrian Jeric for the video)

Continuation…Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5

Media in Focus feature on the Valley Golf Brawl and blogging had guests Carlos Conde, Danilo Araña Arao (Assistant Professor of Journalism in UP), Atty JJ Disini, Councilor JC de los Reyes (Ang Kapatiran Party) and myself.

Questions revolved along bloggers vs journalists, legal issues like libel, blog ethics and Credibility in blogging.

Just some notes on my portion of the interview (View this segment):

In all honesty, I did not realize that I had to disclose editing a word in my entry. (I just found out that one can use the code strikethrough for edits). You can speculate all you want or put malice in my actions. The truth is I edit my blog entry every so often because oftentimes, I don’t like the adjectives or words I choose. I try to be a good writer and continue to improve on my writing skills as I go along.

My last word on Credibility in blogging. I don’t care if I have credibility or not outside my blog’s community. What matters is that my community of readers believe in me. I can stop blogging today and still continue on with my goals in life.

(edit – January 17: I don’t have a problem with credibility per se. The thing is I didn’t think I was important or credible to people outside my community.)

(edit- January 16: added DJB’s comments in his entry
Kudos to the Mom Blogger because he is more articulate than me and says it all.)

I recall the exchange. Noemi was being quite candid about a common experience of many bloggers: they don’t blog to maintain some kind of journalistic stature like ABSCBN or PDI or DZMM. They are in some sense just opinionators, but different even than MSM pundits.

When she said she didn’t care about ““credibility” that was when she was being a ““Mom Blogger” as she said, writing about things she is an expert on: her husband, her children, herself.

Then when she got embroiled in the golf fracas, suddenly all the credibility she had built up as a Mom Blogger was put to to the test in a completely unfamiliar situation. But of course, being a basically honest blogger, she did just ““shoot her mouth off” — but with the normal consciousness that her comment thread and other bloggers would see her published stuff and it would stand as a statement of her opinion or feeling at that point in time.

I think most bloggers–honest bloggers anyway–just assume that if they are speaking their mind with candor and openness so why do they need some editor to watch own for the owners interests in THEIR thoughts?

It really goes back to the fundamental cost of doing business in the MSM vs. blogging. It COSTS a ton of money to publish or broadcast anything, which is part of the reason for the ““vetting” which is sold as journalistic integrity.

What a laugh. The MSM is just as full of it as the Blogosphere, except our B.S. costs the economy and the environment far less. That very low cost of transacting memes is revolutionary. It has silenced the Voice of Omniscience that used to belong exclusively to the MSM.

No more! No more! Ordinary citizens will be heard. We’ll pay for pros to gather the news, but our views can and will stand in competition with any commercial pundit. Any day. Any night. Anywhere.

The Blogosphere is a meritocracy of ideas, an aristocracy of meme-makers

I am not perfect. I make mistakes. I am a work in progress.

Related Entries on Media- Bloggers versus Journalists

Kudos to the Mom Blogger by Dean Jorge Bocobo (Thanks for this affirmation. I needed it.)

When you write, do it rightâ„¢ by Benign0

A Bloggers Wet Dream by Carlos Conde

Yeah Whatever by Jester in Exile

A Brief History of Media by Rom

Why We Blog by Abe N. Margallo

The Disruptive Technology of New Media by Cocoy

The Hoopla Between Journalism and Blogging by Marck

What is Mainstream Media’s Beef with Blogging by Alex Maximo

29 thoughts on “Media in Focus on De la Paz & Blogging”

    1. oops corrected your name and also linked you up. I learned a lot from last night’s topic especially on disclosure of edits. To others it seemed like I changed my opinion when I just thought it was a better word to replace. All the best too!

  1. Pingback: Credibility in Blogging and the Libel Suit Against Blogger, Bambee de la Paz | A Filipina Mom Blogger

  2. Pingback: The Disruptive Technology of New Media | Filipino Voices

  3. Interesting. I haven’t read of any rule which states that we can’t simply delete a word or two which we’d like to change in our posts. In a way perhaps certain people would like to apply the same standards to bloggers which are applied to mainstream media, but I just don’t know if that makes sense. A lot of us are just people talking about our lives and our thoughts, in a way making our regular journals available for the public to comment on or just read. That’s a far cry from the media journalist who is paid to write or speak, and who tends to have the full force of a large media organization backing him up, with its resources.

    1. Precisely. I didn’t know such a disclosure rule existed. Now I know. If my opinion changed, I should disclose that. And true, as a mom blogger I write mostly personal entries. My resources are just a few network of blogger friends who we can verify facts with. And my own social network outside of bloggers.

  4. Have you read the Column of the Manila Standard entitled, Battles worth fighting for by Connie Veneracion

    http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=connieVeneracion_jan15_2009

    Is it true what she says of your blog post?

    I look at the entries of some of the bloggers who were noisiest most about the De la Paz-Pangandaman affair and they are people in their thirties and forties (and at least one in her fifties). Is it too much to expect them to act more responsibly?

    1. Okay, Connie is entitled to her own opinion despite the lateness of it. but let me point out some inaccuracies (Italics are culled from the article)

      1. noisiest most about the De la Paz-Pangandaman affair and they are people in their thirties and forties (and at least one in her fifties)

      I am not the only blogger in her fifities that blogged about this issue. There were at least two other moms and one male blogger.

      2. . Yet, I look at the bloggers who supported Bambee and it bothers me how the immaturity (or, perhaps, the greed for back links and page views)

      I don’t blog for page rank, page views etcetera. I have a combined subscribers’ base of 2800 readers in 3 of my blogs. I do not need link love. I showed other blogs’ links so my readers will read the opinions of other bloggers.

      Connie does not explain about ranking… Let me tell you that the first blog who writes about this usually gets a higher rank in search engine results. I happened to be one of the first bloggers who wrote about the Valley Golf Brawl.

      3. it is nevertheless a fact that some of these bloggers are publicly supporting some members of the Senate including a few running for President in 2010.

      I don’t know who she pertains here. The only blogger I know that endorsed a presidentiable is Patricio Mangubat. Siguro, nakita lang niya yung picture namin ni Mar Roxas but failed to read my entry that “I will have to reserve my judgment on whether Senator Mar Roxas will make a good president or even as a presidentiable until I get the chance to meet the others.”

      4. multitude of bloggers who were so easily willing to fight her battle, it would have been wiser and more mature and prudent to at least try to determine first whether Bambee’s version presents a whole picture or whether it was only a part of the whole before jumping the gun, so to speak.

      uhhh. Connie forgets that not all blogs are made the same. This blog speaks about my feelings and opinions. The two facts I knew that were indisputable was that:

      1. a 14 year old boy was injured

      2. Excessive force was applied to the boy TWICE. Not once but TWICE and by a public servant.

      I blogged about my feelings. What if this happened to you? It was immaterial who started it or not. Feelings are never wrong unless one uses this to act it out in a destructive way. I resolved my feelings by sharing this story and hoped justice would take its course. I also searched for the other side but failed to get it.

      5. Is it too much to expect them to act more responsibly?

      Is it too much for her to check her facts first before assuming bloggers are irresponsible? And even if we were irresponsible, don’t assume that readers are stupid. They are intelligent enough to discern bullshit.

      Enough said.

  5. Pingback: What is mainstream media’s beef with blogging? -- The Construct - Discourse, Society, Language, New Media, and I

      1. A bit off topic but here goes anyway…

        Well, how about.. Jester-in-Exile is a blogging liar? Guess it’s obvious he fabricated lies and still clings to it like a homophobic leech… then again, let the readers decide.

        But of course you can’t blame me, after all, he said that bloggers have the ‘right to reply’ and I’m just exercising mine 🙂

        I’m just curious tita, what’s your view about Jester after what I’ve posted? :~)

        Anyways, Jester is a liar. ’nuff said 🙂

        jepoys last blog post..The Perfect CyberSex Toy for Tim Cumper

        1. I have not read all the entries yet. It looks like there are so many blogs involved and do not really understand the complete picture.

          I don’t want to judge a person’s character because of one entry. For the sake of argument …if the Jester consistently does irresponsible blogging, then that’s his lookout. I don’t also want to be dragged in this because I am not a party to the issues.

          In all likelihood, there is a misunderstanding and miscommunication which both of you can only thresh out.

          Hope this settles this off-topic on my side.

  6. Hi Miss Dado! I am a big fan, and I am also a member of GameOPS. Jepoy manages our site and it just so happened that he was the one who received, processed and weathered the brunt of what transpired. When he tried to contact Jester he asked nicely(I know Jepoy, he never does that) we gave our blessings because GameOPS is not an individual blog but a collective. What did Jepoy get from that? He was described in one of Jesters blog and if you have read what he said it was very very insulting.

    Jepoy was the one who kept GameOPS alive all these years so the group felt that we should back him up on this one. We owe him at least that because as all of those stuff was happening we were just going along with our lives knowing fully what he was going through.

    anonymarks last blog post..Cancer Chooses No Gender, No Class

    1. I understand communication can be frustrating. I should know. It has happened to me all the time that’s why I prefer person-to-person communication which resolves issues most of the time.

      Anyway , instead of focusing on the person just continue to make gameops the best it can ever be. Right now, I don’t see any bad rep happening to you guys. Like you said

      As a group and as one of the oldest websites in the Philippines, we have always maintained high levels of standards in interacting with our fellow webmasters/bloggers.

      Continue to maintain those high level of standards. Bloggers with low level of standards fade, lose readership and just die.

  7. Pingback: Valley Golf Brawl and the Pangandamans: Lessons learned for journalists and bloggers » Radiant View

  8. I got into this site through articles written about the golf brawl and was quite surprised to read “Meg’s” suggestion that Connie Veneracion was referring to your site in her column. I swear I had to re-read it several times to see if she named names and I couldn’t find a single suggestion that she did and that she was talking about you. I wonder if this is just paranoia on Meg’s side or just evil thinking.

    1. The column was directed at bloggers. I am a blogger. I am 51 years old. I was one of the first bloggers who wrote about this. I was one of the noisiest bloggers. Hence, I got invited to talk to Media in Focus because of the controversy on bloggers.

      I spoke for myself. I do not speak for other bloggers but I feel accusing bloggers who blog for page rank etc is unfair. She should give proof of this. or preferably give names.

      I do not know Meg’s reason for asking me that question.

  9. Then Meg’s question is very malicious. I do not even find a hint that Connie was talking about your blog. She was talking about bloggers in general. Unless you happen to be one of them then I see the point why you are so defensive and tried to dissect her article point by point.

    I believe in the saying that “Bato bato sa langit. Ang tamaan mabubukulan.

    Enough said indeed.

    1. Yes she was talking of Bloggers in general. And since Meg asked that “malicious” question, I took the liberty to speak for myself and defend myself for Meg’s “malicious question”

      After all , Meg asked me that question right? and I usually reply to my readers here like I do to you.

      Now go away and surf other blogs about bloggers. Another one is Alex Magno’s “Self Regulation”

      http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?ArticleId=433173&publicationSubCategoryId=64

      His points are valid though (and similar to some points raised by Connie’s column) but at least Alex does not accuse bloggers of blogging for greedy reasons. (the greed for back links and page views)

    2. How was I malicious? Baka you think wala akong basehan. Process of elimination naman.

      Take a look again.

      I look at the entries of some of the bloggers who were noisiest most about the De la Paz-Pangandaman affair and they are people in their thirties and forties (and at least one in her fifties). Is it too much to expect them to act more responsibly?

      1. At least one in her fifites
      2. noisiest

      Eh di I did a search typing this – mayor nasser pangandaman or nasser pangandaman and checked for a female blogger in her fifties kasi sabi niya “in her fifties”. di babae yun.

      Nakita ko pa that she got interviewed in Media in Focus and Cheche said that her blog is popular. So in “her fifities” and noisiest, parang itong blog . I check this blog if it is true.

      Saan diyan ang malicious?

      1. Meg, thanks for the inputs. I didn’t think you were malicious but good you spoke up. Baycas, another commenter pointed out that “Obliterated….” via a comment in my other post. He said he googled for the words in that Obliterated entry.

        I am actually tired of this “they said , she said,…”.. Bloggers watch out for each other. Bloggers check each other. There is the check and balance in comments. There is a collective voice in blogging.

  10. Reprinted with permission from Ricardo Taylor, California.

    Note: I had sent an alert about this MEDIA IN FOCUS segment to my Fil-Am media friends… Here is one comment:

    Jan. 21, 2009

    Hi Lorna ,

    My take on the Media in Focus discussion is that it reflected the usual failing of Philippine TV. The moderator was an absolute idiot — repeating her question over and over again. This is because all Filipino TV interviewers DO NOT listen to the answers of the interviewees. She just kept asking Noemi and the other two panel guests the same question for half an hour .

    At no time during the entire program period was a backgrounder given on the controversy that occurred at the Valley Golf Club. What happened ? Why did it happen? Who were involved? Who did what to whom? What are the two sides of the story ?

    For gad’s sake, set the stage for the discussion .

    I used to be in the broadcasting industry which makes me particularly sensitive to the lack of professional training by those now in it .

    What the TV show therefore did was make the panel guests all look like puppets manipulated by a narcissistic, idiotic TV host .

    –Dick

    *
    Jan. 22, 2009

    Hi Lorna ,

    Not only may you send my signed comment to Noemi, I hope that with her savvy and IT reach, she could send it to her interviewer and all other Philippine TV hosts from Tina Munoz Palma to Boy Abunda who all think a talk show is a show window for their mannequin cravings .

    Maybe Noemi and I could successfully launch a crusade against idiotic TV hosts .

    –Dick

    * * *

    Well, I asked my Fil-Am media friends to devote a KAPIHAN session to discuss this “traditional journalism vs. blogging: where the twain shall meet” topic.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *