Thread by @rapplerdotcom

36 Years with @beacupin: We survived the last 6 years! What’s next? twitter.com/i/broadcasts/1…

@beacupin The years 2016 to 2022 have been especially taxing for Filipino journalists under the administration of one Rodrigo Duterte.

But his exit has brought about a new challenge: a new administration headed by Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

#36Years:

@beacupin We talk to National Union of Journalists of the Philippines chairperson Jonathan de Santos about the state of the media today, the privilege and burden of journalism, and how he views the changing media landscape.

#36Years:

@beacupin .@desamting says media survived through “sheer willpower, gumption”: It’s easy to say noong past administration, they like to say the press is free, but we know that a lot of time, iniisip natin what our reports mean, what it would lead to.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: We have learned to work within those restrictions, pero hindi dahil pinayagan tayo. We did it despite all those threats. We have survived because the Philippine press is very resilient.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: We have grown from the experience, especially the veterans from previous administrations, and how they dealt with the government then.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: Napaka-brazen ng panggigipit sa media ng previous administration…very openly hostile ang past administration compared to previous ones.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: Itong mga nangyaring attacks sa Rappler, ABS-CBN, and other newsrooms, the idea for a lot was to toe the line, magbigay ng space to be more fair to avoid the same fate.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: Our hearts were in the right place.... baka in a way we were a bit snarky, but I feel that was the mood of the time...it might have not worked, if you look at social media, maraming galit sa atin. That’s one problem we have to deal with now.

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: When we see each other, we do a lot of soul searching, minsan self-flagellation, what we could have done. May tendency to navel gaze, and not look at what we could do now.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: We tend to say ‘we’re working in such restrictive environments, what more can we do?’ pero I hope ‘yung ganitong conversations would lead to decisions on what we could actually do moving forward.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting On journalists becoming influencers:

.@desamting: Sharing our thoughts with the world, it makes us more human. We live in a society and affected tayo by things we report on.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: It’s also better na alam ng audience ‘yung ‘biases’ natin. Kung bias mo ay due process and you stress that in your social media posts, at least they know why this report was written this way.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: May narrative na things like human rights and democracy ay part ng propaganda of the West, but putting weight on things like this, obligation ito ng Pilipinas that we entered into in 1946. Very Filipino values ito.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: In 2012, we were just like kids having fun, screaming into the void, then suddenly part na ito ng job and KPI to maintain a social media [presence].

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: Whether we like it or not, brand na tayo. And I’m not super comfortable in a sense, but we shouldn't pretend that we are transcriptionists or robots na walang nararamdaman sa buhay.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: Kung kukuda tayo on social media, kailangan ‘yung principles natin will be the same, you can’t make stuff up. If you’re sharing your opinion on an issue, may grounding siya on facts and some sort of principle, hindi lang dahil 'clouty' siya.

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: We have to look at congruence, if you are saying a certain thing, sana naman that’s really what you feel, may ganoon kang grounding na ‘ito ang paniniwala ko.’

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: We have to also acknowledge that mainstream media has had its own missteps, but there has been a concerted effort to discredit us, or hype up these purveyors of secret knowledge, these alternative facts.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: ‘Yung Marcos propaganda has been seeded online since 2010, medyo matagal na ‘yung set-up nito, so we’re here now, where we’re fighting for attention or fighting for trust with people.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: For the most part marami namang vloggers who are earnest about what they’re doing, but mayroon naman na part ng propaganda to push disinformation.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: Hindi na tayo ang the only source, but I don’t think that means we could let our guard down. We still have to maintain that gatekeeping function.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: We do the gatekeeping, not 100% perfect all the time, but we are trained to do that and it’s part of the job. We have to evaluate if this is newsworthy, and what info is worth sharing.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: Caloy Conde posted a while back that it’s good in a way na may kalaban tayo so we have to up the game talaga.... May competition, so we have to do better, give better context. Hindi na tayo ang only source of information, but we have to be the most reliable.

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: I feel ganito ang pakiramdam ng mga tao back when online news was new.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: That's the challenge now, how do we adapt to these new forms of giving news while still being news. Ito ‘yung hindi pa natin nasasagot, and we’re working on it.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting @desamting: PhilStar is basically the younger sibling of The Star. We won’t reach that level of seriousness, diyaryo ‘yun eh, legacy. Sasabay ba tayo sa quest to be taken seriously, or gagawa tayo ng sarili natin na may info, but also reflects who we are?

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: If we’re going to do things the way that legacy media does it, hindi namin kakayanin, wala kaming resources, pero we’re having fun with it.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting On the discussion of press freedom and its limitations:

.@desamting: We have a tendency to focus on bigger companies. There’s also a tendency to focus on political repression and moves to silence us.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: We tend to forget na ‘yung pain ng journalists is much a press freedom issue as itong mga libel cases.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: ‘Yung rates ng freelancers are pretty much the same as noong nag-freelance ako noong 2005. Mas madaling mahulog sa mga ethical traps. We have to talk about that. Hopefully, we get more into the labor, economic aspect of press freedom.

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: Madaling sabihin na ‘mapapakain ba ako niyan?’ and truthfully, often ang sagot ay hindi, and there should be a movement there to improve ‘yung pay ng journalists, getting hazard, holiday, overtime pay.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: The fact that we can discuss journalism sa inuman, that’s privilege, kaya mahirap i-communicate ng medyo abstract things like press freedom.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: May sinabi si Vergel Santos dati, if you can’t stand for press freedom, then get out of journalism, at matagal kong dinamdam iyon. Pero I realized it was not directed at us. It was directed more to owners, it’s their burden to make sure their people are taken care of

@beacupin @desamting On making sense of Marcos' victory:

.@desamting: There are a lot of forces that pushed towards that victory, nabanggit na ‘yung disinformation networks, I think just as important ‘yung alliances of political families and parties that contributed to this win.

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: We did our best, we wrote to remind people of Martial Law, pero baka insurmountable na ang alliance and disinfo networks. Ayokong isipin na to most Filipinos, Martial Law didn’t really matter.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: I think it was the machinery at work. People may have voted for a specific candidate, pero hindi natin alam if the quality of the information they were basing their vote on kung saan galing ‘yun.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: We can’t get trapped in the self-flagellation, na we failed. We have to keep doing the job and do it better.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: May process and protocols tayo in doing a story, we can provide context. Pero sa personal na ‘why is this happening’ sige we will explain this as much as we can. The idea is to help the reader make sense of this event.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: Pero kailangan din natin as media to step back a bit, get the bigger picture, and some space to wonder ‘anong nangyayari’ because sometimes, we don’t know din naman.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: I’m thankful that I have groups, organizations, na pwede kaming mag-usap. I’ve been talking about self-flagellation for a while because I have the tendency of doom scrolling but in life, and it helps na may makakausap ka.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: Although we are part of a bigger community, ‘yung journalism community is also its own thing, and very helpful ‘yung interaction among colleagues.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting On how people can support journalists:

.@desamting: Read and share our stories. When journalists are under attack, it really helps to show our support, kahit sa social media lang. Every now and then, may call for donations for legal defense funds for journalists.

@beacupin @desamting .@desamting: On a spiritual or psychological level, it really helps na people share our stories. If you can, magpadala kayo ng comments, most of the time, we appreciate that.

#36Years:

@beacupin @desamting And that's a wRap! Watch #36Years here: