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Pinoy Media Congress 2018: Converging Traditional and Digital Content for the Modern Filipino



I have spent so much time in my life watching shows that the television giant ABS-CBN has been producing. Whether it may be teleseryes or news programs, this TV network has influenced my life to the extent that I could not imagine. It played a vital role in molding the person that I am right now. It pushed me beyond my boundaries as I convinced myself to take a communication course to follow the steps of Atom Araullo and Karen Davila.
Now that I am currently serving my community as an educator, I realized how television networks influence our mindsets. I am just so glad that my colleague invited me, together with my school's student journalists, to attend the 12th edition of Pinoy Media Congress. It gathers communication students, educators, and practitioners all around the country as ABS-CBN and the Philippine Association of Communication Educators has prepared some talks that discuss the current status of media and its practice today.

As a communication graduate, I am always fond of attending these kinds of events. Now that I work as an educator, I have become more interested in learning the issues being faced by the media profession. This event has kept me up-to-date on the what-nots of today's industry, especially the consumers of media have become more proactive in demanding quality content from these media outlets.

The hosts during the event

To be honest, I am not really fond of ABS-CBN as a news outlet. I believe that they have some issues when it comes to how they present the problems of today. What astounded me is their presentation on the convergence of traditional and digital media. I am really amazed how they pioneered digitalization of content in Philippine TV. They did not have a hard time embracing this phenomenon.
Their executives shared their secret called the cross-platform content. They were able to produce content that is fit for television and online media. The best thing about this is that they provided unique content in each platform, making the story's universe bigger and more inclusive to the consumers. They were also able to create interactive websites for their viewers, making them feel that they belong in the story. It is a challenging task, but they were able to produce positive results. Case in point is the La Luna Sangre universe. They were able to provide content specific only to their website, the moonchasers website, yet it did not break the story's premise. This set-up is also now being  applied in their new show Bagani. In fact, they also created a Pottermore-inspired Bagani website for the viewers to play with and digest new and unique content from the series. In the Philippine setting, ABS-CBN proved that they can do better, and they did. Kudos to them!

My students and I

One of the most memorable talks during the event was Bianca Gonzales-Intal's discussion on social media for social good. As I advise the student publication of our school, I ponder on the most striking words that she said: it's not about the number of likes. The social media strategist in me was so confused during that time. After spending some hours creating digital viral content, I always think about engagement when dealing with online media. She made me realize that the change of behavior, attitude, and practice of these offline personas of these online personalities is the thing that should matter, and not the number of likes. It encouraged me to hone my craft and push my students to their limits in providing not just quality content, but also content that matter and moves.

PMC 2018 Program of Activities

As a communication major and a teacher, it really pays to be critical. During this time when false information proliferates and always ready to influence the minds of its clueless consumers, Pinoy Media Congress 2018 broadened my mind as it strengthens my role today not just to my students but to my fellow Filipinos as well. Pinoy Media Congress has encouraged me to be a better version of me. Thank you, #PMC12.

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