Discovering Christian Bautista, Rediscovering Jose Mari Chan

I first became aware of Christian Bautista when he joined the Star in a Million singing contest at ABS-CBN in 2003. He came across as a Josh Groban wannabe because the songs he sang. The said contest was eventually won by Eric Santos with Sheryn Regis as First Runner-up. Personally, I thought Sheryn should have won because I felt goosebumps while watching her perform in the finals (but that's for another blogpost). Later, I would remember reading about Christian starring as Tony in the local production of the stage musical West Side Story.

Christian signed  up as a recording artist with Warner Philippines which promptly promoted his albums in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore where he earned kudos as a singer and as Asia's Prince of Pop.  

Early this year, I saw his latest CD, Romance Revisited - The Love Songs of Jose Mari Chan at the Odyssey Stall in Robinsons Place Gensan. That got my undivided attention instantly, being a Jose Mari Chan fan ever since I heard his Refrain on the radio. The CD contains 19 well-loved and relatively under-appreciated Chan songs: Tell Me Your Name, I Remember the Girl, I Have Fallen in Love (with the Same Woman Three Times), Stay My Love, Afterglow, Refrain, Constant Change, among others.

Listening to Christian's CD at home made a convert of me! I was  surprised by the freshness of the arrangements and how the songs and Christian's voice are a perfect fit. And at the same time, I was in awe of the musical gift of Jose Mari and the time-unbound quality of the songs.

While relishing Christian's versions of Chan's compositions, I remember the first Jose Mari's concert I attended here.

Flashback: In the late 80s, Kimball's Christmas promo featured a free ticket to Jose Mari Chan's concert at the Dadiangas Parish Center for a certain amount of purchase at their grocery section. During the concert, Jose Mari Chan regaled his adoring audience with songs he had composed which ran the gamut from A to Z. I also spotted a svelte Avel Manansala , together with his brother Orman, at the ringside flashing a cartolina on which was written his song request to be sung by Jose Mari Chan. When he finally sung Avel's request, the latter couldn't stop himself from clapping with glee. In the audience too were young sweethearts Jinky and Arnel Borela.

As I'm writing this blogpost, I can already visualize myself with Avel and fellow bloggers clapping with glee as we watch Christian's Constant Change concert on April 23 at the Lagao Gym, Gensan. I can already hear the Manansala brothers and I - us three being of a certain age -  singing along the songs close to our hearts. I can already see the bloggers rushing to and from the front of the stage for photo ops. I can already see Jinky and Arnel reminiscing their good old days of courting and romance. I can already feel the thrill of having to pose with Christian backstage after the concert and having him autograph my copy of his Romance Revisited CD. I can already hear myself humming the tunes on my way home after the concert. Already, I know it's going to be a night of discovery and rediscovery.

This blogpost was written in consonance with GenSan News Online Mag and Christian Bautista’s Constant Change GenSan Concert blog contest. The concert's co-presentors and major sponsors Drumbeat Ventures, Starbright Office Depot, Vertical Builders, DGO Depot and the Office of the City Mayor of GenSan.

Adventure in Journalism 7: Karen Davila plagiarized Stuart Santiago's work? (Repost)

(Another case of lazy journalism where author Angela Stuart Santiago, who wrote Himagsikan sa EDSA Walang Himala! accuses Karen Davila of plagiarizing several portions of her book for the ABS-CBN documentary Laban ni Cory.)

plagiarism and, uh, karen davila? is that you?!

August 11th, 2009

while it was great that upon cory’s death pinoy tv was swamped with docus that revisited her exalted place in philippine history, one docu, Laban ni Cory, produced and aired many times by ABS-CBN 2 from august 2 onward, raised my ire and my eyebrows.

my ire because some of karen davila’s narrative spiels covering the period of the snap elections through to EDSA sounded oh so familiar, so very close to, if not my very own words in, Himagsikan sa EDSA — Walang Himala! and yet there was no attribution, as though karen davila herself researched and wrote the stuff (wow ang galing), something that took me all of twelve years, lol.

I
KAREN DAVILA:

(010) Sa paniniwalang sila ang tunay na nanalo sa eleksiyon, isang victory rally ang inilunsad sa Luneta nina Cory at Doy, na dinumog naman ng mahigit isang milyong tao.

(013) At bilang tugon sa malawakang dayaan sa eleksiyon, inilunsd nina Cory Aquino at Doy Laurel ang civil disobedience campaign, Himinok ang taong bayan na huwag magbayad ng koryente, tubig, at iboykot ang media, bangko at iba pang kompanyang pagaari ng mga tuta ni Marcos. Marami ang sumangayon at sumunod sa panawagang ito. Wala pang isang linggo mula nang unang manawagan ng boycott si Cory nameligro ang ekonomiya ng bansa at nataranta ang mga negosyante.

HIMAGSIKAN SA EDSA–Walang Himala! page 40 last paragraph

Ika-16 ng Pebrero, sa isang “victory rally” sa Luneta na dinumog ng mahigit isang milyong tao, inilunsad nina Cory Aquino at Doy Laurel ang kanilang civil disobedience campaign. Nagpilit si Cory na siya ang nagwagi sa eleksiyon at nangakong pupuwersahin niya si Marcos na magbitiw, sabay hinimok ang taong-bayan na sabayan siya sa pagsuway sa mga utos ng diktador — huwag magbayad ng koryente at tubig, iboykot ang crony media at crony banks, gayon din ang Rustan’s Department Store, San Miguel Corporation, at iba pang kompanyang pag-aari ng mga tuta at katoto ni Marcos.

page 42 paragraph 2

Wala pang isang linggo mula nang unang manawagan ng boykot si Cory…

page 41 paragraph 1

Nataranta ang malalaking negosyante, gayon din ang multinationals …

II

DAVILA:

(022) Kakaiba na noon ang ihip ng hangin. Palaban na ang taong bayan, sabik sa pagbabago at may natatanaw nang pagasa, salamat sa biyuda ng isang tao …

HIMAGSIKAN page 42 last paragraph

Salamat sa biyuda ni Ninoy, kakaiba na noon ang ihip ng hangin. Mapanghimagsik na ang timpla ng taong-bayan, punong-puno bigla ng pag-asa, sabik sa mga naamoy na pagbabago, noong bisperas ng EDSA.

III

DAVILA

(063) Naghudyat si Ver ng all out attack sa riot police, sa marine artillery, sa mga helicopter gunship, at mga jet bomber.

(067) Naririnig din si Marcos sa radyo. Isinusumpang lilipulin ang mga rebelde.

HIMAGSIKAN page 135 paragraph 2

Sa Fort Bonifacio, naghudyat sina Ver at Ramas ng all-out attack sa riot police, sa Marine artillery, sa mga helicopter gunship, at sa mga jet bomber. Naririnig si Marcos sa radyo, isinusumpang lilipulin ang mga rebelde.

IV

DAVILA

(070) Pumosisyon ang mga sundalo at nagkasahan ng mga baril. Subalit walang atakeng nangyari. Lumapag ang mga chopper sa Crame. Isa-isang lumabas ang mga pilot, may hawak na mga puting bandila at naglalaban sign.

HIMAGSIKAN page 138 paragraph 4

Napakagat ng labi ang mga sundalo, nagkasahan ng mga baril, pumosisyon.

page 139 from last paragraph page 138

Isa-isang lumalabas ang mga piloto, may hawak na mga puting bandila at nagla-Laban sign.

V

DAVILA

(076) Ala singko ng hapon, sa kabila ng banta sa kanyang seguridad sumaglit sa EDSA si Cory …

(081) Sa main entrance ng Philippine Overseas Amployment agency o POEA building nagbigay siya ng maikling talumpati sa mga taong nagtipon sa kantong iyon ng Ortigas at EDSA. Pinuri ni Cory ang mapayapang pagkilos ng mga tao…

HIMAGSIKAN page 165 paragraph 1

Bandang 5:00 ng hapon, nagpakita sa wakas sa EDSA/Ortigas si Cory Aquino, na Sabado pa ay hinahanap na ng mga Coryista. Sa main entrance ng Philippine Overseas Employment Agency (POEA) building, sa kanto ng EDSA at Ortigas, siya dumaan kasama ang kanyang pamilya at mga tagapagtaguyod.

paragraph 5

Sa kanyang talumpati sa mga taong nagtipon sa kantong iyon ng Ortigas at EDSA, pinuri ni Cory ang mapayapang pagkilos ng mga tao …

the docu’s closing credits list the writers and researchers. i expect the researchers cited their sources of info, it’s part of the job, and if so, who decided not to mention na lang these sources, the writers or the hosts? na okay lang naman as long as magaling sila and they can write the material in their own words. but even then, dapat ay mayroon pa ring acknowledgement sa dulo ang sources of information na hindi pa common knowledge.

kung hindi pala sila ganoong kagaling, dapat ay inamin nila by writing-in “ayon kay… sa librong so-and-so….” or maybe it was karen davila who couldn’t be bothered with “ayon sa’s”, akala niya ay makakalusot? whatever, whoever, wittingly or un-, she committed plagiarism by lifting and appropriating my words for her own use without a by-your-leave or a thank-you, how unprofessional, how dishonest, how disgraceful.

nakakataas ng kilay kasi it doesn’t take much time and effort to cite and acknowledge sources. unless of course the idea is to give the impression that hosts and writers of ABS-CBN News & Current Affairs productions are all-knowing and sufficient unto themselves?

so, okay, now that i’ve vented, what next? what do i expect? well. iniisip ko nga. an apology? too easy to shed crocodile tears. credits on the docu? rather too late, unless of course they have plans of selling dvds, in which case, okay, credits, and a share in the profits?

suggests a writer friend: like a lawyer can be disbarred, a beauty queen forced to abdicate, ask for the head of the plagiarist in the form of dismissal or suspension. or how about punishing the culprit by having her write a million times in longhand a very long mea culpa — the equivalent of 20 years of keyboarding chores or tendonitis. oscar lopez could also buy the next edition of your book to give away to all libraries nationwide.

sounds good, all of the above ;)

Adventure in Journalism 5: Lazy Journalism and Lazy Reading (Repost)

Lazy Journalism and Lazy Reading

August 11th, 2009 at 12:50 pm by caffeine_sparks

Yesterday on twitter I was alerted to the supposed receipt of GMA’s New York dinner. The graphic looked familiar and true enough I’d seen it on another blog and knew the breakdown was THEORETICAL, the purpose behind this exercise being to illustrate how X amount of people having dinner in a restaurant with a menu at X prices could’ve racked up $20,000.

The purpose of the THEORETICAL exercise was to see whether it was possible for 27-30 people to consume such an amount in one sitting. And true enough, at the prices food and wine were selling at Le Cirque, it was possible.

Yesterday and today news articles came out in the Inquirer, the Star and even ABS-CBN news taking the THEORETICAL break-down as factual. I am now wondering whether these journalists were alerted to the receipt in the same manner as I was – through social networking media. And in their rush to publish news in real time, they neglected to do something which makes them professionals – fact check their report.

I understand that the terrain of journalism is changing and perhaps many journalists are pressured to deliver news at a faster pace. I do not know whether this is because traditional media organizations feel they are competing against the internet and the ease with which people online, networked through sites like Facebook, Plurk and Twitter, may share information. Blogs are blogs. In Filipino Voices we do commentary. For news – we still rely on journalists – pros. So please, Mainstream Media – do not succumb to lazy journalism.

And to denizens of the internets, please do some critical thinking and a little fact-checking on your own. Follow the url links, verify the sources of forwarded information before you forward said info yourself.

Come on people. Let’s not be lazy shall we?

Adventures in Journalism 3: News writer apologizes for "killing" Pres. Arroyo (Repost)

(Note: On July 31, I blogged about my unpleasant experience to have the spelling of Sarangani rectified. Instead of thanking me for pointing out the error, the news writer rejected my comment for being a "personal attack against persons and institutions." In contrast, in this blogpost, Lala Rimando, the erring news writer apologizes for her oversight with grace and humility.)

I’m guilty. I killed our president.

I wrote an online story about the passing of a former president but inadvertently referred to the current one who’s still very much alive in portions of the story. Instead of Mrs. Aquino, some sentences had "Mrs. Arroyo" in them.

Aside from both presidents having a last name that starts with letter "A," the two have other similarities: both are lady presidents, thrust into power by bloodless people power, and belong to a political family. But the differences are stark: Mrs. Corazon Aquino was herself not corrupt, was uncomfortable with the trappings of power, and stepped down as soon as her term was over in 1992. President Gloria Arroyo, however, has been dragged in almost all political scandals during the past 8 years, and has tried, through her allies in Congress, to amend the Constitution to possibly extend her stay in power beyond her term in 2010.

In typical online fashion, the comments to the online story were immediate. Some were horrified (‘How dare you dishonor the memory of Cory’). Some were naughty (Facebook comment: ‘Was that wishful thinking?’). Some even called me names (dullwhite in plurk.com: ‘Lala Rimando you're an idiot. It's MRS. AQUINO who died, not MRS. ARROYO, doh!’).

I was sinking in my seat as I read those comments. While I immediately made the corrections on the abs-cbnNEWS.com and www.newsbreak.com.ph sites, and added an erratum, the story with the wrong names on it stayed in Yahoo Philippines’ news page for at least 2 days.

I self-flagellated. Why did I not name-check before I published the story and went to do a couple more? Why did I put my name and fruitful 9-year journalism career on the line for a simple explanatory story that’s not likely to change national policies as did my award-winning ones? It was a story that simply explained the implications and contrasts of the Aquino family’s decision to hold a private instead of a state funeral.

Then I rationalized. I was processing many information and had limited time to spend on each story that day. Mrs. Aquino’s death was announced and stories were pouring from all over. We wanted to cover as many as we could. Too, days before that I was writing and editing stories related to the State of the Nation Address delivered that same week. There was constant reference to only one president: Mrs. Arroyo.

After Mrs. Aquino’s only son Senator Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III announced in a late Saturday morning press conference that there won’t be a state funeral, I merely wanted to explain what a state funeral is and what it is not. It was a story on protocols and symbolisms that could help readers better appreciate what Mrs. Aquino's supporters and her family members are possibly missing out on.

Then I laughed. I heard broadcasters make the same mistake. “Palabas na po sa La Salle ang convoy para sa labi ni Mrs. A-a-a-aquino,” a radio commentator stuttered. “Military honors para kay Ginang Arroyo, inihahanda na,“ a TV news show flashed on its screen. The slip ups occured countless times that I sheepishly thought, "Good, I wasn't the only one who "killed" our president."

I became a statistic. On top of the minute-by-minute account of their own 'Cory watch,' the bloggers and those in social networks included in their regular status updates how other media, big and small, committed similar slip ups. "That was fast!" said a Tweeter account holder about story of a national publication's online arm with "Arroyo" on the story's large-font title. The Tweet, however, had a screenshot of the story with the wrong title, before it was corrected to "Aquino."

A Facebook "friend" said in his status page, a "network reported that President Aquino will attend the funeral of President Arroyo." Not only did they "kill" President Arroyo, they also "resurrected" Mrs. Aquino! Worse, the "foreign network" ran this phrase for about an hour in their ticker.

Hilarious they may sound, these slip ups may be causing doubts on who really died. And for contributing to that confusion, I apologize.

It is our mantra as journalists that we exhaust all means to confirm that the facts of our stories are verified or documented, that we get all sides, that we put our stories in perspective, that we stand brave when harassed by libel or intimidation tactics for saying the truth, and that we humbly apologize when we commit mistakes.

How fitting that I practice the latter as we continue to cover the wake and funeral of the late President Cory Aquino. After all, humility to her was not just an accessory. She lived it.

Adventures in Journalism 2: They come to bury her, not to praise her

In the flurry of photo opportunities and exclusive coverages of the Cory wake and funeral, the following are just three of the bloopers reporting the death of Pres. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo instead of former Pres. Corazon Aquino:

Philippine Star news item featured in Yahoo.com

ABS-CBN live coverage

Manila Bulletin August 6, 2009 issue

(Photos courtesy of Gibbs Cadiz and Frank Cimatu)