Media Matters with Ja Ellao

Award-winning journalist Inday Espina Varona shares pointers on how we, as journalists, can continue to exact accountability from the Duterte administration on its last months in office.

Government officials, civil society groups, academics, private individuals - journalists deal with them on a daily basis in our attempt to bring the best obtainable truth to the public. And it isn't an easy job. How can we call out lies? And what can we do when our news sources are under attack?

On World Press Freedom Day, Ezra Acayan, chairperson of the Photojournalists' Center of the Philippines, opens up on the threats and challenges facing the profession, and why it is all worth it.

Activist and journalist Michael Beltran shares how community pantries are debunking systemic biases against the urban poor, and why perpetuating these false assumptions is a disservice to journalists' role in speaking truth to power.

As journalists for the alternative media, we are often asked how we are able to practice ethical journalism. How do our advocacies influence our reporting and framing of news? Are we objective? Bulatlat's managing editor and newly-elected NUJP secretary-general Ronalyn Olea tells us how, and most importantly, why.

Allow me to introduce to you, the newly-elected chairman of the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines Jonathan de Santos, and his MEMAs on why journalists should not hesitate on taking a stand on issues that concern our rights.

I talked with recently-freed journalist Lady Ann Salem, or Icy, and she gave her insights from the inside.

This week, award-winning journalist and mother-of-three Zeng Umil shares her MEMA on how media and social media influencers distort our sense of self-love, sex, and marriage.

It's Feb-ibig! AlterMidya's Marjohara Tucay shares his MEMA on how love is portrayed in the media.

In this week's MEMA, let's revisit the political economy of media and how this communication theory can help us understand how it works and how it covers and reports.

What does it really mean to be fair as a journalist?

Media criticism is very much part of our love and our struggle for a free press.

New year ushers in another opportunity to work towards genuine change. Looking back at how our 2020 fared, the journalist in me tells me one thing: this year is the year we demand for good journalism.

Join this week's MEMA as we look back on this year's highlights and why we should be optimistic that we can make 2021 happen for us.

As women's rights advocates hold the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence, we focus on how media portrays domestic violence and how women are more vulnerable now with mobility restrictions in place due to the pandemic. Joining us this week is a good friend, journalism lecturer, and a women's rights advocate, Edz dela Cruz.

As journalists, it is important to understand what humanitarian principles are and how it can help us frame our reports. Do we stop at saying thank you? Or do we hold the duty bearers to account for gross neglect?

Correct, timely, and verified information is very much important whenever disaster strikes. Journalist must think on their feet to point out the obvious, to not parrot lies and false narratives, and to amplify the voices of the marginalized. And while understanding the science behind a natural hazard is definitely a plus point – that's not everything about disaster reporting.

The biggest scam that many journalists fell victims to? No, it's not disinformation. It's the long-running myth that there is "no math in journalism." In this episode, our former intern and math-loving journalist Dawn Peña shares her love for numbers, and gives practical Math-tinik for journalists.

One of Bulatlat's cartoonists and Pinoy Weekly's Bida sa Balita Renan Ortiz shares his MEMA on editorial cartooning and truthtelling.

Described as the “biggest mover” in this year's report on journalist safety and impunity index by an international media watchdog, is the Philippines really a safer place now for journalists?

It takes more than snapping good photos to be a photojournalist. Listen to New York Times photojournalist Jes Aznar as he shares his MEMA on our role as truthtellers. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app

Film is a powerful tool in awakening us in the social and political realities we live in. But it is also so powerful that it can mislead people and sow false narratives, whether explicitly or implicitly. This week, we revisit the role of cinema in documenting the truth and its role in fighting disinformation and negative historical revisionism. Listen to our special guest Seymour Sanchez, filmmaker and writer, and what his MEMA is all about.

Did you know that October is considered by Filipino progressives as peasant month? During this time of the year, journalists from the alternative media tradition exert all their efforts and energy in drum beating the issues of farmers, farm workers, and the fisherfolk. But it can't be just us, right?

Let's revisit the role of literature in documenting and upholding our historical truth as a people and in slaying false narratives.

Let's revisit why press freedom belongs to the people and why dictators and wannabes are afraid of it.

Journalists rely on their sources for information. But who are our sources? Allow me to introduce you to at least 10 of them.

Amid intensifying political repression, journalists can't afford to play safe. This week, let's look back on how the Marcos dictatorship brought out the best and the worst of the Philippine media.

I've always been interested in history and this is something I hold true to this day. Providing history in our reports is not just for the spirit of context. It is also a form of justice to the victims of inequalities and human rights abuses.

Can't we just go on our own and look for data we need? It's a question asked too many times not by the people who hunger for the truth but, apparently, those who want to suppress it. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app

We cover human rights not just because we deem it as newsworthy. But also because journalism itself - to be able to broadcast or write a story and tell it as is - is a right that people collectively fought for. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app

The gruesome murder of peace advocate Randall Echanis brought home a reminder for journalists. We need to provide context in our reports. Else, we will find ourselves parroting false narratives that are being fed to us. Amid the rising political repression, we need to be on our toes as truthtellers. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app

Let's discuss why you need to diversify your media content. And how this can make you a better person. No, this is not a drill. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app

This week, colleagues in the alternative media filed a complaint before the government's rights body on the mounting cases of threats, red-tagging, attacks against them. Teka? What is alternative media? At bakit ba ito pinupuntirya? --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app

We need to know the past to understand the crucial role the media play today. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app

Let's talk about what objectivity really means for journalists. And why it's not our job to make public officials look good. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app