The Communication Department of Adamson University conducted their annual media summit webinar to create awareness of how the media has the power to influence people— via Zoom on May 7.
The event themed “COMMprehend: Understanding Media's Role in Building National Consciousness through Public Discourse” was exclusive to communications students.
In an online interview, Beverly Pedregosa, the vice president for internal affairs from the Creative Communicators Society of Adamson University and the head of the event, said that the media summit aimed to impart knowledge of how media influences every user.
“Media has a crucial role in building our societal awareness and national consciousness. My vision for this event when I was planning it was to develop a sense of societal consciousness through Media Literacy,” she said.
She added that she ensured the preparations that started last year focused on every detail until she decided on the theme.
“I wanted it to be purposeful, meaningful, and remarkable. Not for me to leave a legacy, but for my fellow communicators to equip them with knowledge and skills they can use for their future,” she stated.
To communicate the knowledge they wanted to provide to the attendees, they had University of the Philippines Professor Sarah Raymundo and Broadcast Journalist Howie Severino as the two main speakers.
Raymundo discussed how people could use the media despite the proliferation of misinformation and disinformation.
“Media is also not a monolithic entity that can only be influenced by those who are in power, but it can also be an entity for the promotion of democracy by challenging any truth; or by disposing and imposing human rights violation; by challenging dictatorship, and so on and so forth,” she shared.
Severino focused his talk on the historical context of misinformation, from the dark ages, up to the age of enlightenment.
He also explained the founding values of Jose Rizal and looked over how Filipinos practice them today.
“We still have many of these values; many of them have been compromised, many of them are being attacked,” he said.
Despite the thorough planning of the organizers, Pedregosa mentioned that they encountered multiple problems; one was regarding the date of the event as it clashed with the miting de avance of Leni-Kiko, which many communications students have attended.
“From that day up until Saturday, I had panic attacks, and I am very anxious since I worry that there will be no participants. I planned and prepared this event a couple of months ago, but there I am, still anxious up until the day of the event,” Pedregosa shared.
Attendees’ Feedback
Some communications student attendees shared their thoughts and learnings after their experience of the Media Summit 2022.
Frances Leynes of the block section AMC 101 admitted that she signed up for the grade incentive but ended the event with another profit: new knowledge.
“To be honest, I attended the event for the sake of incentives for our major subject, but upon listening to the whole program, it made me feel enlightened and aware of my own national identity,” she stated.
Additionally, Leynes also noted the function of the media before the elections took off.
“The media has their role to not just inform the people but enlighten them with facts, to allow us to be well-informed and knowledgeable enough to criticize the current issues which also define the hierarchy in our society,” she said.
As for Mariana Atazan of AMC 201, she commended the overall flow of the program as it was effective for learning.
“The time allotted for every speaker was sufficient, [with] that being said, I was not bored throughout the media summit, and I was also able to absorb the information shared with us,” she shared.
Moreover, Ferlina Gasmido of AMC 401, who found the webinar timely, was relieved to learn that she shares the same values with the first Filipino— Rizal.
“I was also kind of glad in a way: knowing that I am fighting for what is right and disinformation that is prevalent nowadays,” Gasmido stated.
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