For our 2012 PBA MVP, straight from my heart

I have four huge exams this coming week, two radio scripts to write and produce, and three news articles to write... but that didn't stop me from folding all my handouts and re-capping all my highlighters for the 2012 PBA Leo Awards. 

Bahala na. Basta papanoorin ko ito.

After you won the Best Player of the Conference award four nights ago, I knew deep inside me that an MVP award is coming right at you.

Finally. The freakin' MVP award will be handed to you.

That's how positive I am for you, my dear Mark Caguioa, because championship or no championship, I believe that this year is the perfect year for you to bag that most-coveted award. I have been a Ginebra fan half of my life and although I didn't get a chance to cheer for you on your rookie year, that doesn't make me love and trust you any less.

I have seen you in all different hair styles and hair colors, in practice and in live games, in jerseys and in casual outfits, but never did I see you not giving your all. Every time you step in the court, that's you from hairdo to rubber shoes. That's you, hundred percent passionate, dedicated, and eager to win.

I actually did a lot of thinking after you were crowned as the 2012 Governors' Cup BPC, and I asked myself why will you not be the 2012 PBA MVP. Because Ginebra failed to enter the finals in all three conferences. Wow. Could that really spoil your moment? Our moment? I don't know. All I know is that I am expecting you to win. Ginebra fans are expecting you to win. Pambawi daw sa hindi pagpasok ng Ginebra sa finals.

Ginebra fans. Either others love us or hate us. There's no in between. I have been with my fellow Ginebra fans on Twitter through the @barangayginebra fan account and I've got to say that Ginebra fans really wanted you to win the MVP. It was not just an assumption coming from a spectator. We really did want you to win. I could go on and on and on about what the fans have to say. They even campaigned really hard to keep you on top of the MVP poll in pba.ph. Where else can you find a more passionate fan base than us? Only with Ginebra. *wink*

And then the moment of truth arrived. Sunday, July 29. Every Ginebra fan is anxious - on Twitter and on Facebook. #MC47forMVP tweets were all over my timeline and everybody is praying for a Ginebra victory tonight, even if our team is not even in the on-going PBA Finals.

The 2012 PBA Most Valuable Player was finally announced. Lots of words are running through my mind. But as I listen to your name being called, I wasn't able to say a word. Instead, I unknowingly closed my right hand and brought my right fist close to my heart. I can't believe it took you eleven years to get a hold of that MVP trophy. Maybe there really is no standard mathematical formula in getting the MVP. You just gotta have the talent, the passion and the drive, and then be in the best winning situation at the right time, together with the awesome-est fans who got your back.

And it took one talented Mark Caguioa and the Ginebra fans eleven years to get it all right.

If only I could stop the clock while you receive the award, just so we could savor and enjoy the euphoric feeling, I already did.

http://www.interaksyon.com/interaktv/photo-mark-the-spark-is-mvp

So raise that MVP trophy really high, our dear Mark. We may have wanted it more than you, but you deserve it more than anybody else.Your message to us Ginebra fans is very humbling and inspiring, and I can't help but shed a tear as you caught me in your smile while delivering your message.

I have four huge exams this coming week, two radio scripts to write and produce, and three news articles to write... and I am pretty sure that I will have no other choice but to cram (that's what I do best, by the way). However, I will never regret that I spent my Sunday night of July 29 watching the 2012 PBA Leo Awards at home while tweeting,

Finally! It's official! Mark Caguioa is your 2012 PBA Most Valuable Player!
— Barangay Ginebra (@barangayginebra) July 29, 2012

PS.

I asked the Ginebra fans on Twitter if anyone managed to have a reaction video while you receive your very first MVP Trophy, and check out what @keltwinks got for us.



   

Ito ang Lahing Ginebra.
 Thank you for being with Ginebra, Mark Caguioa.

A call for action

A reaction to Luis V. Teodoro's Journalism and Advocacy 101

I can't help but agree when the article said that "...no journalist can claim without lying that he/she is unconcerned with the issues that confront his/her community..."  I think that this is especially true with the mainstream journalism and media. Every time we read the newspapers or listen to the radio or even watch the television, we can see angles. Vested interests. Biases. This could be one of the very reasons why our country needs more development journalists. Development Communication graduates are trained to look not only the two sides of the story but also the sides of the people affected, implicitly or explicitly, by the issue. Journalism has to be much deeper than just writing a story. It has to be more than that.

It is also essential that journalists must not only lay down the problems but also have a call for action. The readers must be compelled to act with the issue at hand. Responsible journalism does not only focus on facts and figures but also on the solution to the problem. A good article for me is one that discusses the problem and that calls the attention of the readers to do something about it. Readers should not just read the news; they must participate in it.

"Knowledge is what separates bias from advocacy." I just want to emphasize this line for the article because this doesn't apply in journalism alone. We cannot advocate something if we do not know anything about it. For now, I advocate for a more intensive sports development program that could give more support to our young athletes that could be potential players under the Philippine flag. I put my faith in this belief because I trust that we have very capable athletes who needs financial support, morale boost and recognition.  

PS. The article is a must-read, whether you are a journalist or not. Read it here.

#TributeToJaworski

 

07.08.2012

I WAS PART OF THE HISTORY.