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Friday, January 28, 2011

Big Bad Mass Communications Graduates-They are starting early?

Dear insansapinas,
I am not a bit surprised when a son of Christopher de Leon and Sandy Andolong decided to join showbiz. He is graduating from College of St. Benilde with a degree in Photography. These days, you do not have to be good in photography to get the business that will tide you over for the whole year--being able to win in the bid for the yearbook.


A blogger who enrolled himself in special classes to learn Photography and earn a sideline complained the same issue with regards the yearbook contract of schools. He won in photography contests.



 But when he offered his services to one private school, ang suhulan daw ay kotse at maraming perks.Anong laban mo doon kung nagsisimula ka pa lang.


Then I read this: 
According to Jojo Robles: 
Some students belonging to this year’s graduating class of the University of the Philippines’ College of Mass Communications have hit upon a novel idea to make some money, get free stuff and subsidize their numerous parties. The students in charge of the yearbook (which will be paid for by the college’s graduating class) discovered that some photography and printing suppliers will do almost anything to get their business—and that’s where their entrepreneurial instincts kicked in.
The students in charge of the yearbook decided to “bid out” the production and printing deal to potential suppliers. But it’s only a bidding in the rigged sense of that word, because the students weren’t really looking for the lowest and best bid, as people who bid out contracts are supposed to do.
These MassComm students were more interested in awarding the deal to the supplier who could promise them the best “under the table” deals, who would wine them and dine them and who would take all the “test shots” of their faces that they wanted. In the end, one losing bidder told us, they ended up awarding the contract to someone who reportedly promised them a car, apart from what all the other bidders gave them—free booze, food and endless studio pictures of themselves in various poses.


Traditionally, the yearbooks put out by the various UP colleges are purely student productions that do not involve the university’s faculty or administrators. The students who get involved in such projects are basically left to their own devices, in the belief that they are old enough and principled enough to do what is right for themselves, by themselves.
Had some of their elders been around to supervise these MassComm students, they would have probably been advised that what they did was certainly not how proper biddings are conducted. In the real world, bidders are evaluated solely on the merits of their proposals and any contact between the people deciding who gets a contract and the people who want it awarded to them is strictly prohibited.
The irony of this farce of a bidding lies not only in the fact that it was pulled off by supposedly idealistic young people who haven’t even left school yet. When you consider that these students will soon become print and broadcast journalists, you have to wonder what else they learned in school apart from soliciting favors from bidders.
Kung ito ay totoo, magiging big bad media journalists sila.

 Nasaan ba yong aking magic wand?

Pinaysaamerika

3 comments:

F. J. de la Fuente said...

This is the official statement of GradCom 2011 on the matter: http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=161573830561948&id=100001376989761

Thank you very much for understanding.

cathy said...

sorry, i have no facebook account.
sana share mo dito.

F. J. de la Fuente said...

Official Statement of the University of the Philippines College of Mass Communication Graduation Committee 2011 (UP CMC GradCom 2011) on the Manila Standard Today column “Convincing Noynoy” by Jojo A. Robles (Jan. 28, 2011)

31 January 2011

To All Concerned:

This official statement is in response to the Manila Standard Today column of Jojo A. Robles entitled “Convincing Noynoy” (http://bit.ly/fpqbZ6) published last Friday, Jan. 28, which the Committee believes to be a defamation of the College of Mass Communication, its students, and its Graduation Committee for 2011. We demand that the Manila Standard Today publish this statement in its entirety.

No actual bidding process, in the strictest sense of the word, took place for the batch’s yearbook photo studio selection. The graduating batch selected its yearbook photo studio of choice between two candidate studios. This number was determined through Committee meet-ups, as well as reasonable and meritorious consideration of objective feedback from the studios’ own clients, previous and current. The Committee declined certain studios because of their failure to meet certain deadlines and standards (professionalism: deliveries, deadlines, accessibility, quality of output) that were set to ensure efficient Committee operations.

As an ad hoc committee organized for the duration of a single academic year, the Committee reserves the right to implement its own guidelines, in this case by presenting prospective studios to the graduating batch for all students to vote upon. Although the Committee considered these studios’ packages, it was primarily negative feedback from their clients that drove the Committee to decline them. The Committee feels these are reasonable and fair standards grounded in the fundamental goal of achieving what is best for the graduating batch in the most transparent and efficient manner possible.

Moreover, the Committee did not engage in such unscrupulous deals similar to the ones it is being accused of. The closest the Committee has gotten to “wining” and “dining” are food and beverage orders that are typical in client-customer meetings and have no bearing whatsoever in the yearbook selection process. “Test shoots” are a necessary privilege, in this case, when one wants to ensure concrete basis of judgment in sealing a yearbook photo studio contract.

The assertion that the Committee excessively abused these test shoots to suit its members’ personal whims and fancies are false. The Committee only participated in three (3) test shoots, necessary to provide the graduating batch ample basis for its choice via a democratic election.

Finally, no studio has promised a car, liquor, food, or any other photo package privileges apart from those stipulated in their respective contracts of agreement that the Committee has vigilantly reviewed.

The Committee is offended by this column and believes it to be a malicious, unwarranted attack on its reputation and integrity. In light of this, the Committee, on behalf of the College of Mass Communication, demands a full published apology and retraction from Mr. Robles, no more, no less.

THE UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES COLLEGE OF MASS COMMUNICATION
GRADUATION COMMITTEE 2011


* NOTE: Supporting documents pertaining to relevant Committee transactions are, and have always been available upon request. Kindly approach a Course Representative or any member of the GradCom Execom for queries.