OFFICE FOR EXTENSION AND EXTERNAL RELATIONS

College of Mass Communication

I.          Brief Profile

The Office of Extension and External Relations (OEER) seeks to fulfill the CMC’s mission “to develop and strengthen linkages with different sectors and institutions for information and media literacy, and people empowerment;” and “to provide the critical voice that promotes and safeguards the freedom, independence and responsibility of media.”

The realization of this mission rests on the attainment of identified goals, like the establishment of linkages outside academe through outreach and other activities focusing on communication- and media-related issues in Philippine society as well as programs that promote the media ideals of the college. The OEER is hereby organized to establish, maintain, and upgrade these and related programs.

II.        Objectives

The objectives and goals of the OEER are the following:

·         To design and implement a media education campaign with the end view of increasing media literacy and awareness among identified target audiences (e.g., basic education teachers).

·         To lead the College in taking a stand on media-related issues and concerns in order to help shape public opinion.

·         To recognize and promote outstanding achievements in media work which embody the CMC’s VMG.

III.       Main Projects

1.      OEER shall oversee the program for media literacy education: This program includes seminars and workshops for basic education teachers, community workers and NGOs, and other groups.  The CMC faculty will be encouraged to develop several modules for different age categories and different groups and conduct the seminar/workshops.  The cooperation of existing media education groups, like the Philippine Association for Media Education (PAME), will be sought.

2.      The OEER shall take care of making and sending out statements on important media-related issues. In this way, OEER will make public the ideals for which the College stands, which are expressed in the statement of the College Vision, Mission and Goals.  Statements about current issues will be released through the mainstream media, particularly at times when said ideals are violated, e.g., assaults on press freedom.  Under the direction of the Dean, this office will devise a mechanism for quickly generating such statements to be issued to the press through the existing media networks and, when necessary, through special press conferences. While a common stand on issues is ideal, varying or even conflicting views and stands will be respected.

3.      The OEER shall establish and manage the annual Gawad Plaridel. One way to make public the ideals for which the College stands is the recognition of media workers whose integrity and excellence in their work provide models for other media workers and students to emulate. 

III.       The U.P. Gawad Plaridel

The U.P. Gawad Plaridel is the sole award in the University of the Philippines (U.P.) system given to outstanding media practitioners. It bestows honor on Filipino media practitioners who have excelled in any of the media (print, film, radio, television, and new media) and performed with the highest level of professional integrity in the interest of public service.  The recognition, which comes with a Napoleon Abueva trophy, is given to one practitioner in one medium for each year.  The awardee is expected to deliver the Plaridel Lecture which addresses important media issues. 

The award is named after Marcelo H. del Pilar, the selfless propagandist whose stewardship of the reformist newspaper La Solidaridad from 1889 to 1895 helped crystallize nationalist sentiments and ignite libertarian ideas, mainly through his 150 essays and 66 editorials published under the nom de plume Plaridel. A crusading journalist, this native of Bulacan served as editor of the vernacular section of the Diariong Tagalog (Tagalog Newspaper), the first Philippine bilingual newspaper, in 1882. Among his major publications were Dasalan at Tocsohan (Prayerbook and Teasing Game), Pasyong Dapat Ipag-alab nang Puso nang Tauong Babasa (Passion That Should Inflame the Heart of the Reader), and La Soberania Monacal en Filipinas (Monastic Sovereignty in the Philippines), all published in 1889.

From 1890 to around 1895, he edited and published La Solidaridad almost on his own because funds for the support of the fortnightly had become more and more difficult to raise in the Philippines.  Del Pilar slowly lost hope in reforms and began to entertain the possibility of the Philippines separating from Mother Spain. 

Pining for his mother country and suffering from tuberculosis, Del Pilar died in Barcelona, Spain on July 4, 1896 at the age of 45.

Like Plaridel, the recipient of this award must believe in the vision of a Philippine society that is egalitarian, participative, and progressive, and in media that are socially responsible, critical and vigilant, liberative and transformative, and free and independent.

            The U.P. Gawad Plaridel 2004

The U.P. Gawad Plaridel was formally launched on January 22, 2004. The first award was given to a print media practitioner. By the March 22, 2004 deadline for nominations, the U.P. College of Mass Communication (CMC) had received 15 nominations from various media organizations and academic institutions.

The first round of deliberations happened on April 21, 2004. The screening committee -- composed of eight faculty members representing the CMC’s three departments and the U.P. Film Institute and three members of the U.P. CMC Alumni Association -- rated the nominees according to criteria of excellence which considered the nominee’s body of works and achievements; organizational work and community service; and awards and recognitions. The committee then unanimously agreed to submit the names of the top three nominees for the final judging. The latter was held on May 21, 2004. The Board of Judges was composed of Prof. Randolph David (U.P. Department of Sociology), Ms. Cecilia Lazaro (Probe Productions, Inc.), and Ms. Yvonne Chua (Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism).

The three judges unanimously voted for Ms. Eugenia Duran-Apostol to receive the first U.P. Gawad Plaridel in recognition of her  groundbreaking efforts in the publication of the Mr. and Ms. Special Edition, the Philippine Daily Inquirer and the Pinoy Times which were cited as important contributions to print journalism, the women’s movement and Philippine democracy. Similarly, her founding of and active participation in civic-oriented organizations as well as her awards and achievements in the local and international scene contributed to the decision of the Screening Committee and the Board of Judges to unanimously choose her as the 2005 awardee.

The awarding was held at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Manila on July 4, 2004, the 108th death anniversary of Del Pilar. Apostol’s Plaridel Lecture titled “Huwag Magpakatuta! (Journalism Ethics in the Philippines)” was delivered on November 22, 2004 at the U.P. Film Institute’s Cine Adarna. The full text of the lecture and excerpts of the open forum are published in the February 2005 issue (Volume 2, Number 1) of Plaridel, A Journal of Philippine Communication, Media, and Society, the U.P. CMC’s refereed biannual journal.

The U.P. Gawad Plaridel 2005

For 2005, the award was given to an outstanding film practitioner.   The U.P. CMC received nine nominations from various media organizations and academic institutions on April 8, 2005, the deadline for nominations.

The first round of deliberations was held on April 19, 2005. The screening committee was composed of nine faculty members from the U.P. Institute. This committee recommended three nominees as finalists for the awards. The second screening took place on May 11, 2005. The screening body, known as the U.P. CMC Gawad Plaridel Faculty Committee, was headed by Dean Nicanor G. Tiongson as chair, with the College Secretary, two faculty representatives from each of the three U.P. CMC Department, the U.P. Film Institute and the Chair of the Graduate Studies Department as members.

After deliberating on the credentials of the three finalists, the committee chose Ms. Rosa Vilma Santos as the recipient of the U.P. Gawad Plaridel for 2005.  She was chosen for her consummate artistry in crafting and creating her varied cinematic roles; her courage in choosing roles which bring to the public attention an astounding range of female experiences whose stories have the effect of raising or transforming  the consciousness of women; her commitment to truth in playing maverick characters which dared to speak the truth in a period of intense  political repression and reprisal; and  for her brilliant career which saw her grow from popular icon to professional actor through self-discipline and tireless honing of her craft, thereby becoming a role model for fellow actors in the industry.

Ms. Santos received the U.P. Gawad Plaridel trophy and delivered the Second Plaridel Lecture titled “Kinakaharap at Hinaharap ng Industriya ng Pelikulang Pilipino” on July 4, 2005 at the Cine Adarna of the U.P. Film Institute.  The full text of the lecture is published in the February 2006 issue (Volume 3, Number 1) of the Plaridel Journal.

The U.P. Gawad Plaridel 2006

For the year 2006, the award was given to an outstanding radio practitioner.  U.P. CMC received eight nominations from various media organizations, academic institutions, and government and private institutions.  The first round of deliberations was held on April 5, 2006 during the department meeting of the Department of Broadcast Communication.  Five faculty members of the department deliberated on the credentials of each nominee and recommended three finalists for the awards. The final judging was held last April 12, 2006.  The 2006 U.P. Gawad Plaridel Faculty Committee was chaired by Dr. Grace J. Alfonso, then the Officer-in-Charge of the CMC Dean’s Office. 

After deliberating on the merits of each finalist, the committee chose Ms. Fidela “Tiya Dely” Magpayo as the 2006 awardee of the U.P. Gawad Plaridel.  She received the Gawad Plaridel trophy and delivered the Plaridel Lecture in front of an SRO crowd last July 4, 2006 at the Cine Adarna of the U.P. Film Institute.

The U.P. Gawad Plaridel 2007

For its fourth year, the U.P. Gawad Plaridel was given to an outstanding media practitioner on television.  The U.P. CMC received six nominations from seven institutions.  The first round of deliberations was held on April 3, 2007 at the Department of Broadcast Communication.  Five faculty members of the department assessed the merits of each nominee before identifying the three finalists.

The final judging was held on April 13, 2007.  The 2007 U.P. Gawad Plaridel Faculty Committee was chaired by Dr. Lourdes M. Portus, then the Officer-in-Charge of the CMC Dean’s Office.  The members of the committee were:

 
•     Prof. Fernando A. Austria, Jr. (Assistant Professor and Chair, Department of Broadcast Communication)

•     Prof. Anne Marie G. de Guzman (Assistant Professor and Director, U.P. Film Institute)

•     Prof. Rachel E. Khan (Assistant Professor and Chair, Department of Journalism)

•     Dr. Fernando d.C. Paragas (Associate Professor and Chair, Department of Communication Research)

•     Prof. Ma. Cristina I. Rara (Assistant Professor, Department of Journalism)

•     Prof. Arminda V. Santiago (Associate Professor and Chair, Department of Graduate Studies)

•     Dr. Nicanor G. Tiongson (Professor, U.P. Film Institute)

•     Prof. Violeda A. Umali (Assistant Professor and Chair, Department of Communication Research)

•     Prof. Jane O. Vinculado (Assistant Professor, Department of Broadcast Communication)

            The committee unanimously chose Ms. Cecilia “Cheche” L. Lazaro for her outstanding contributions to the local television industry, for her excellence and versatility in the field of television broadcasting as a broadcast journalist, producer, and media educator, and for producing critical and uncompromising programs that set the standards of Philippine broadcast journalism.