P.S: Sorry for the lack of quality photos! I felt sort of bad taking pictures of the staffers, who were all concentrating intently on their work so I tried to be discreet as possible.  

Kristin Alcantara, current managing editor of Spot.ph :)

When we think of Summit Media publishing company, we automatically think of their print newspaper publications like Candy, Preview, Cosmopolitan or Men’s Health. We see a vertical integration of their industrial media commodities since it focuses on publishing works, ranging from entertainment to housekeeping magazines. This can be a local example of homogenization of products, since it caters to a variety of interests, from preppy pre-teen girls to fashionistas to techie addicts! If you want to see their multitude of different products, look at their products they currently offer.

What many of us don’t realize is that Summit is able to adapt the emerging trends of digital or online media. Simply said, if you’re company isn’t visible in the cyber world, it might as well don’t exist! This is because we are currently part of the digital generation and the internet has been established as a staple fixture in our lives. The internet can also be regarded as possible modern adaptation of Jürgen Habermas’ public sphere theory, since it it provides an avenue for people to discuss public concerns. While Spot.ph doesn’t normally discuss serious government and social issues, it integrates the concept as a social site where meanings are articulated and distributed.

The internet has become the one-stop source for fast dissemination of information in all corners of the globe. With this, it also permits to new forms of interactions and one of them is reader/user-interactivity. For example, before we relied on reviews by writers in printed magazines and possibly word-of-mouth testimonials to be aware of what places are worth to eat or visit, the internet has become a place where readers can also become writers and share their own personal experiences of the places.

To adjust to this, Summit created Spot.ph, a pop culture and city guide that publishes timely and insightful, easy-to-read articles. Before, it heavily relied on user interactivity forums where they are able to post their own reviews of places but they have shifted into publishing their own articles and reviews just recently. I was curious on how they were able to achieve this, since it was generally a major transformation.

I have been a fan of their articles, particularly the top-10 features, and I currently write for an online magazine, it would be killing two birds with one stone. First of all, it was to gain some insights for this class requirement, incorporating concepts and theories learned in the classroom. Second, it would greatly benefit my upcoming panel defence, which is the last leg for Editorial Board requirements in the GUIDON. An aspirant for g, the GUIDON’s online magazine, I figured it would give me more ideas to make the publication more successful next year.

So I sent an email to them last week requesting for an interview, and thankfully they quickly responded. Kristin Alcantara, the current managing editor for Spot.ph, was welcome for an interview.

So this Wednesday, I went to the Summit office, which was by the way, very nice! I love the working environment, which looked rather office-looking with is cubicles but it hd a conducive ambiance for writers. Each publishing magazine had their separate row of staffers, with adequate cubicle. The ambitious side of me imagined going to work there everyday with a cup of Starbucks in one hand and a laptop in the other. Forgive me, the whole Devil Wears Prada thing remains true to the heart for me. 

So we had the interview in the office canteen, which went rather smoothly. It turns out she graduated from Ateneo in 2005, with a degree in Creative Writing. After graduating, she had an internship with Candy Magazine and worked briefly in MEGA magazine before going to the United States to pursue a degree in online magazine journalism. After that, she returned to work here and has been writing for Spot. ph ever since.

She immediately pointed out how internet journalism is definitely on the rise. When asked why she pursued a career in online journalism she responded, “I saw it as a step back to write in a magazine company. In America, major magazine companies are already closing down. Plus, online media is much more interesting!”

Kristin also pointed out the differences between tradition and online journalists vary. While it takes two months for the story process to be done in print (this includes interviewing, writing, editing, revising layouts, etc), it’s definitely takes less time in online. Story conferences often take place, but for the staffers in Spot.ph, it can be frequent as three times a week or even daily! Although shorter, it’s necessary because it strives to be more current to adapting trends that may not be relevant in print.

Although online content are generally smaller, it’s important that being internet-savvy is the key. “You have to keep in mind that this new medium is more demanding and faster paced, particularly when it comes to deadlines. It’s more around the clock, and you have to strive to be more current,” she says.

Currently, the Spot.ph currently consists of 9 people (including the web designers and layout artists) and in every story conference, where they try to come up with 5 story ideas. When it comes to promotions, they utilize social media strategies (Facebook, Twitter), which is an integral component in an online magazine.

Other than that, I asked her whether she often goes out to cover events and visit places but she said it was the responsibility of the writer and lifestyle editor that’s more mobile. She comes in from 9 (“oftentimes, I’m early as 8!” she exclaims) and leaves at 5

While there are differences and possible advantages for journalism in the cyber world, there are downturns as well. “They say that online journalists burnout more easily, since it’s more demanding and round the clock,” she adds.

Nevertheless, the feeling of being current in the culture and lifestyle aspects makes up for it. “It’s part of the package to be in the lookout for the new things, particularly the places and whatnot that everyone’s talking about,” she adds.

Since online journalism is relatively a new thing in the Philippines, Spot.ph still has 

Off the record 

Afterwards, I talked to her about g and the current problems it had when it comes to gaining readership. She gave me advice on how it should be more current and relevant to our primary audience, and how multimedia and reader interactivity is also vital for online magazines. For example, it’s important that photos should be integrated in the articles, since the average reader’s attention span in the internet is relatively shorter.  

Not only did I get some major insights, but Kristin actually offered me an internship position in Summit this summer! Now that’s definitely killing two birds with one stone!

On January 21st, our COM 106 class had our first (and possibly last) field trip outside the classroom. Destination? No other than a tour in the ABS-CBN (short for Alto-Broadcasting System-Chronicle Broadcasting Studio) studio, known to be one of the country’s biggest multi-media conglomerates. 

Studio secrets

It was pretty fun as we walked around and our tour guide, Kuya Robin explained to us in detail about the technicalities in each stop. I  marveled at the fact on how some advanced production techniques can really change the illusion of reality. For example, as we stepped into the studio where they shot Showtime, I couldn’t comprehend on how small the studio really is. I’m not sure what they use exactly, but they sort of stretch the camera shot to make it look wider. That’s why the whole myth of looking 10 pounds heavier on-camera is actually true. 

For the girls, most of us were suppressing our fangirl wishes to see celebrities (Coco Martin, where were you?!?!). Besides that, the studio tour really gave me a few insights on what we learned from class, especially on media production and how the structure of it provides a huge role of influencing their audiences. Like most media in general, they play an integral part of how it can weave an illusion of a new dimension, which sometimes we may perceive as reality. 

One of the ‘secrets’ that Kuya Robin told us was about the audience in game shows like Wowowee and Showtime. When we watch it, the audience members always has the role of hyping up the excitement level - shouting and dancing their hearts out like there’s no tomorrow. In reality, it’s not exactly 100% genuine - these are the people lucky to get seat after lining up in the wee hours of the morning. Before the tapings, the audience is briefed to become momentary actors - the producers tell them to look happy and excited. Since these shows are not live tapings and often filmed in advance (more than a couple of episodes in one day!), they hope to save effort by switching of seats and wardrobes.  

The fact that being audience viewers can be another means to  extra cash goes to show how ABS-CBN can create a perceptive reality. And till this day, it still works!

Ever since it’s founding back in 1962, it has grown to be not only a TV studio that regularly airs news programs and Kapamilya series, but also in radio, movie production, online news service. In fact, these are just some of the media sectors that ABS-CBN currently owns. 

A weave of controls

With that being said, it’s important to factor in the economic and political constraints that come with the immense influence that ABS-CBN possesses. Sadly, there are multiple complexities that surround the media business - sadly as a Com junior, my comprehension of this ever-changing media world remains vast. It’s one of those things that you simply cannot comprehend in the classroom but rather, exposure to it. 

If you put yourself in the shoes of the current chairman officer Eugenio Lopez, you are automatically entitled to a lot of power. Being the owner of probably the biggest media conglomerate, the issue of pure objectivity particularly in news can be questioned here. 

In the past lecture, it is said that advertising can be the lifeblood and the very constraint of the news media. Simply said, advertising provides the money and without that, the news media won’t survive. Maybe it can be contradicting sometimes when the news media company is profit-driven, but it’s something that most will take anyway to survive in the tough media world. 

Media also holds the key to influencing the political world as well. The people behind it choose the beats, the stories that will but sometimes you have to wonder the news reflection may reflect something more than the purpose for the audience to ‘know’ - is it based on their assumptions to gain notoriety or on their own personal interest? 

Back when the national elections were being held, the political constraints that ABS-CBN  was heavily questioned here. I’m not too familiar with the story behind it, but I remember some of my friends were talking about how ABS-CBN was too biased with the Noynoy administration. In the newspapers especially, they would publish articles that are pro-Noynoy and wouldn’t have that much coverage with the other presidential candidates then. 

So much for objectivity of news information then. 

As critical audience viewers, we have to remember the idea that it may exclude certain ideas in favor of others. We have to remember that a significant portion of the Filipino population (even in a global scale) chooses ABS-CBN as a source of reliable and dependable information. Again, media plays an integral role in shaping our influences - we must take into consideration whether the information we absorb is truly objective and whether it reflects the tendencies of the conglomerate owners. 

Honestly, I wasn’t very familar how the ownership of media was before the lecture and studio tour, but it definitely changed my perspective. The lectures broadenedWith my own prospects of pursuing a career in media, it’s important to consider the structure and media ownership, because let’s face it - today, media will always be one of the influential products of the way we live. 

Yet, after what I found out about media criticisms in the national coverage elections, it was definitely an eye-opener. Even if they claim that they will continue to provide neutrality and objectivity of information, the question behind those definitions remains to be answered.

Photo urls:

Logo - http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_RpkFEaWkb1o/TNz8lc2yLmI/AAAAAAAAAik/i9jLe2u2Kws/s1600/abscbn.gif

Building - http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTlgFaHC8GZTuGP5zGk2Ad_pD3e8kHUfF4FBT2isMJksrAtZT8_

Sources: 

Croteau and Haynes, (Chapter 4) Media Organizations and Professionals 

It all started when Andie (Molly Ringwald) was worrying about her life’s woes out loud in her brother room. All of a sudden, a young Asian man suddenly pops out of nowhere, peers down from the top bed bunk and says, ‘What’s up, hot stuff?’. With the mischievous wiggle of eyebrows and a sly grin, he soon became one of the most remembered (and probably one of the most hated) characters of the 80s.

There goes the beginning of the Asian man phenomenon, embodied by a character that all John Hughes fan must know - Long Duk Dong.

Even the name itself may spark a giggle for some us, due to its peculiarity and oddness.

Who exactly is Long Duk Dong? In John Hughes’ Sixteen Candles, the grandparents of Andie (the protagonist) accept a foreign-exchange student from Asia (country was not specified, but he is of Oriental descent) who stays in their house for her sister’s wedding. Being in the country for only a few days, he is often shown bewildered and timid. When he attends a house party though, he suddenly changes from a shy to an almost sex-crazed (thanks to alcohol).

Although he gets a girl in the end, she doesn’t look anything like Molly Ringwald or Caroline Mulford (the beauty queen). Possibly for more laughs, the writers and producers decided his love interest, a giant girl who is too small for size is also someone perceived as unconventional as well. 

Although a supporting character, the character has been a staple example of Asian stereotypes in Hollywood films. Society always has a place for stereotypes. From school to races, we all face stereotypes one way or another. Yet, the media often plays an immense factor when it comes to influencing and creating powerful mindsets of judgments when it comes to stereotyping. With Sixteen Candles, a well-known teen hit in pop culture, it pokes fun at the Asian man stereotype as eccentric, bizarre and different from the way Caucasians act.

Richard Dyer’s three explanations of stereotypes is something to consider when we discuss the role of Asian men stereotypes in Hollywood movies. First, he defines a stereotype as, “to get hold of the few ‘simple, vivid, memorable, easily grasped and widely recognized’ characteristics about a person, reduce everything about the person to those traits, exaggerate and simply them, and fix them without change or development to eternity.

 In other words, stereotyping reduces, essentializes, naturalizes and fixes ‘difference’. Whatever that is perceived as different from the usual, we stereotype people them to explain their unusual behaviour.

‘Hey Howard, there’s your Chinaman!’

This is usually something that people of Asian descent have often encountered in America. They often mistake Koreans, Japanese and Chinese as the same race. Just because they have similar physical characteristics, they often assume that they are Chinese. So when that quote was uttered, it implied that ‘Oh, just because he has black hair and yellow skin, he must be Chinese’.

Small trivia – Gedde Watanabe, the actor who played Long Duk Dong, is actually Korean.

Why do people stereotype? Stereotyping deploys a strategy of ‘splitting’. There is always that boundary between the people who belong and those who are considered different or unusual. There is always something that differentiates, that classifies humans into categories – from gender, sexual orientation, class, age and race.

Looking at Long Duk Dong from an audience’s point of view, he is the character that brings comic relief, which solely lies on his ‘differences’ from the other characters, who are predominantly white. The comedic effect simply wouldn’t work if a Caucasian or African-American played a character, so it was intended to be someone of Asian descent.

In terms of the Spectacle of the Other handout, is it obvious that Long Duk Dong is considered the ‘other’. Everything from his Oriental features to his distinctive accent and limited English knowledge bears the foundation of differentiating his own culture with American culture. Every time he appears onscreen, there is even a sound effect of a gong, which further signifies his distinction as an Asian.

Another point that Richard Dryer points out is that stereotyping tends to occur where there are gross inequalities of power. Power is often possessed by the majority is used towards the minority. While watching the movie, there were two scenes which indicated that the predominant Caucasian cast definitely had the authority and used it to their advantage to look down upon Long Duk Dong.

The first scene was when her parents suggested Andie to take him to the high school dance, she expressed a look of disgust. People can say that it was high school, where you think everyone else criticized you for the slightest misdoing. In teen movies, it signified the high school cliques and the belligerent message that ‘If you don’t fit in, you’re an outcast’. 

The thing is, she made an appalled face when he was in the room. She didn’t even bother to consider whether Long Duk Dong would get affected by her obvious discord to bring a foreign exchange student with her in a school dance. Still, the fact is that Andie has only met Long Duk Dong for an hour or so and already has a presupposed bias he would destroy her ‘social’ status.

“No more yanky my wanky, The Donger needs food!”

Another scene to point out is when the grandparents ultimately find Long Duk Dong passed out in someone else’s garden.  As they rush to his side, they turn him over and Grandpa starts clapping his hands to wake him up. It would be something that you would do to get a dog your attention, right?

As Dong wakes up still intoxicated, they share a few lines of conversation where they laugh at him (‘He’s wearing canine cologne!’, “He’s drunk as a skunk!”). Suddenly, Grandpa asks him where his automobile is, without even asking if he was alright or not. Even his top priority was his car!

Eventually in the end, Dong’s constant high-pitched laughter causes Grandma kicks him in the testicular area.

Watch the scene here

As I researched for this article, I came across several articles written by male Asian-Americans that expressed their anger and frustration. One even commented that back in high school, his classmates would have called him Long Duk Dong as well, after the trend Miyagi (the trainer in Karate Kid, mind you) or Bruce Lee had died down.

Again with Dyer’s first explanation of stereotyping, if Caucasians and African-Americans look at an Asian, they find someone they know (often in Hollywood and pop culture) and immediately assume that they are practically the same.

Source: Representation: Cultural Representations and Signifying Practices, pg. 135-138

 As I researched for this article, I came across several articles written by male Asian-Americans that expressed their anger and frustration. One even commented that back in high school, his classmates would have called him Long Duk Dong as well, after the trend Miyagi (the trainer in Karate Kid, mind you) or Bruce Lee had died down.

Again with Dyer’s first explanation of stereotyping, if Caucasians and African-Americans look at an Asian, they find someone they know (often in Hollywood and pop culture) and immediately assume that they are practically the same.

Here’s a comic poking fun at Asian American’s perspective on the Donger