LBTimes EIC Ricarda Villar facilitated the orientation on using the Los Baños Times Facebook page and shared practical tips in managing the online platforms of the community newspaper. (Photo by Catherine Bucu-Flores)
On January 30 at 7pm, members of the Los Baños Times (LBTimes) editorial board conducted the initial orientation session on the use of LBTimes online platforms for junior BS Development Communication (BSDC) students of the College of Development Communication (CDC) at the University of the Philippines Los Baños.
The orientation-workshop is the first in a series of activities planned for the second semester of AY 2017-2018 for BSDC students taking up DEVC 136. Multi-media Materials Production and Management. DEVC 136 is a three-unit course offered every second semester that discusses the “principles, techniques, and steps in the production and management of various communication media and materials in the context of development.” One of the key requirements for the course is to manage the online platforms of LBTimes including the Facebook page and the newspaper website.
The January 30 orientation was attended by ten student representatives from DEVC 136 sections C-1L and C-2L, the first pair of laboratory sections to manage the online platform this February. During the orientation, LBTimes EIC Ricarda Villar and Associate Editor Catherine Bucu-Flores discussed the current state of the online platforms, possible sources of community news, and guidelines for writing and posting stories online.
Together with the faculty members in charge of the DEVC 136 C-1L and C-2L laboratory classes aProf. Aletheia Araneta and aProf. Ricarda Villar, the participants drafted the tasks and work schedule within and among the laboratory sections assigned to cover the month of February.
According to Veejay Dayandayan, associate editor for DEVC 136 C-1L, they learned the importance of establishing contact and coordinating with key persons in the Los Baños community to keep themselves updated on the community activities and programs.
For Joshua Perolina, a contributor from DEVC 136 C-1L, the session helped the participants learned the value of providing the contact details of agencies/offices involved in organizing or implementing the activity to facilitate engagement between the readers and the concerned agencies/offices.
Nel Benjamin Magdaleno, feature editor of DEVC 136 C-2L, shared that the orientation deepened his understanding on the trends and techniques in increasing online readers’ interest and engagement in their published content.
From February to May 2017, around 130 junior BSDC students divided into three lecture sections (C, CD, and E) and eight laboratory sections will take turns managing the LBTimes Facebook page and website, as well as produce an issue of Los Baños Times Libre! as part of DEVC 136.
The series of orientation and workshop sessions is part of the efforts of CDC’s Department of Development Journalism, the publisher of LBTimes, to better prepare BSDC students in managing the LBTimes platforms, as well as in the production of printed LBTimes Libre!