Finding purpose in platforms
As the House of Representatives continues its hearings on fake news and social media—with an eclectic cast of vloggers, tech company reps, and public personalities—it’s clear we’re not just witnessing policy debates. We’re looking into a mirror.
For those of us whose lives revolve around communication, this moment forces reflection. Beyond the noise and regulation, we’re asked: What kind of communicators have we become? What kind of stories are we telling—and what kind of truth are we standing for?
As a journalist, broadcaster, and multimedia producer, I’ve come to realize that I am accountable. Not just for what I say on air or online, but for what I choose to amplify, what I stand up for, and what I allow to be silenced. This Lenten season reminded me that platforms—whether vast or intimate—must be used for something greater than just reach or ratings. They must be used for good. For truth. For purpose.
And so, this Holy Week, with its silence and solemnity, offered a timely pause. It invited me to reflect – not just on faith – but on the vocation of communication. Over the years, my relationship with media has shifted. I used to chase headlines and airtime. Today, I find myself waiting to find meaning, connection, and lasting impact. Platforms, I’ve learned, are not stages for self-promotion – they’re bridges to something bigger.
For the next generation of aspiring communicators and broadcasters, let me share five things I’ve learned – and continue to learn – as a communicator walking between broadcast and blessing.
1. Platforms are not stages, but bridges.
Early in my career, the platform felt like a pedestal. But over time, I learned that platforms are not meant for personal elevation. They are meant to connect, serve, or bridge the gap between what people need to know, and what the world often chooses to hide.
My advocacy for cancer awareness began when I anchored our ABS-CBN award-winning health show, Salamat Dok, with Bernadette Sembrano and Alvin Elchico What started simply as ‘part of the job’ quickly turned into a personal mission, especially when I eventually headed the ABS-CBN Foundation’s Bantay Bata 163 (the go-to organization for child welfare, protection and health). Suddenly, my shows and social media pages weren’t just about information – they were lifelines. Families reached out asking where to get screened. Parents and patients messaged me for help navigating PhilHealth or PCSO support. People just needed someone to listen and guide.
2. Real impact begins with listening.
So much of what we do in media involves talking: reporting, anchoring, producing, narrating. But some of the most important moments I’ve had in my career came when I stopped talking and simply listened.
I think about the mothers I’ve spoken with in evacuation centers after typhoons. The student leaders from state universities who spoke passionately about public education. The public-school teachers who shared how they spend their own salaries just to provide classroom materials. These are not stories we always get to air. But they shape how we tell other stories. They ground us.
In our self-produced shows, Pamilya Talk and Okay, Doc, in our weekly column for The Philippine STAR, and in our radio shows on DWPM Radyo 630, we speak to hundreds of people from all walks of life. Not all of them go on air. But all of them inform our lens. Listening doesn’t just improve storytelling, it transforms it. Because when you understand people’s lived realities, your message becomes more than information. It becomes empathy in motion.
3. Consistency matters more than virality.
Let’s face it. Today’s digital world rewards the outrageous. The louder, the better. The algorithm doesn’t always favor the truth, it favors the controversial. But if we’re serious about building something lasting, we need to think long-term. In my work with our content team at Big Angel Solutions, we’ve made a conscious choice to prioritize values-driven, consistent content. We build programs that might not always go viral—but always add value.
Whether it's a regular health update, a deep dive into public policy, or a quick feature on youth leaders, these are seeds. And when you plant enough seeds, the garden grows. Quietly and faithfully. Virality is fleeting, but values last.
4. Our toughest days are often the most meaningful.
Just recently, after I posted a reflection on Facebook asking whether certain claims made by a vlogger during the congressional hearings would meet journalistic standards, I was met with a tidal wave of trolling. It felt coordinated, robotic even – like a virtual swarm had been deployed to drown out my voice.
At first, it shook me. I knew I had struck a nerve. These aren’t just online jabs. They’re attacks meant to erode trust in journalism itself. And that is dangerous. Because when journalists are discredited, the public loses its defenders. When disinformation wins, the truth becomes collateral damage. And when people are too afraid to speak, democracy suffers in silence.
During one of those hard days, I remembered something that Cardinal Tagle once told me: “The greater the good you seek to achieve, the stronger the forces that will rise to stop it.”
It made me realize this is not the time to shrink. This is the time to stand firm.
5. Everyone is now a communicator. Use it well.
We live in a time when everyone has a platform. You don’t need a mic or a media ID to make an impact. This unprecedented privilege must come with introspection. Every caption, every comment, every share is a decision. Are we spreading kindness or cruelty? Are we sowing division or hope? In a world so saturated with content, credibility is currency. And even small gestures – a post correcting misinformation, a comment offering compassion, a story told with dignity – can spark change.
So, this Holy Week, I ask you: How are we using our voices? Are we adding to the noise, or creating light? In approaching the days ahead and as recent events unfolded, I realized: communication is service. Not spectacle.
Because as Pope Francis reminds us, true communication is not just about speaking. It’s about listening with empathy. It’s about sharing with love. And it’s about standing up for truth even when it’s hard.
When we do that, our platforms stop being just a means of promotion. They become a form of prayer, a promise, a blessing.
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