It did not surprise when lawyer-vlogger Trixie Cruz Angeles was appointed communications chief & press secretary by the president-elect. Much less did it perturb when she announced that her priority is to push for the accreditation of vloggers so they can cover presidential briefings and events along with mainstream media.
Malinaw naman na malaki ang kontribusyon ng vloggers tulad nina Mocha Uson, Atty. Trixie, Thinking Pinoy, at Sass [For the Motherland], to name a few, hindi lang sa pag-defend sa Duterte admin in the last 6 years, gayon din ang naging papel nila (minus Uson) sa pagkapanalo ni Marcos Jr. nung May 9 – halos walang patid ang kanilang pagtugon, pag-dispute, sa mga paratang na ill-gotten wealth, unpaid taxes, atbp. na ibinato sa mga Marcos noong kampanya.
And to be clear – since mainstream media peeps don’t seem to realize this – vlogging is not at all like blogging or journalism. Blogging and journalism entail the writing of a text, whether commentary or reportage, feature article or gossip column.
Vlogging is live (long ī) commentary in front of a video camera, usually accessible on Facebook or YouTube, the vlogger addressing directly his/her viewers | followers, as in a conversation, explaining issues, responding to questions, in easy informal Tagalog, if not Taglish.
Vlogging is very different from what broadcast journalists Alvin Elchico and Doris Bigornia, halimbawa, do on SRO | DZMM nightly (except weekends) where they call on resource persons and viewers to articulate the different sides of an issue—as in, pa-objective, putting forward opinions other than their own.
The vlogger, in contrast, quotes | cites only data and viewpoints that support his/her take on a matter—as in, very subective, putting forward only his/her own feelings | opinions, purely in support | defense of the actions and policies of his/her principal/s.
Propaganda, indeed, but then, kung tutuosin, mainstream media | accredited journalists have their biases and sacred cows, too. These days, the anti-Marcos among them serve mostly the Establishment that seeks only to preserve the status quo, i.e., the existing state of affairs (before RRD and BBM), sorry na lang ang mga poor na parami nang parami ang bilang at pahirap nang pahirap ang buhay (even back in GMA’s and PNoy’s terms, correct me if I’m wrong).
Pero more immediately, ang totoong hamon sa mga anti-Marcos in mainstream media is to stop whining about the influence and reach of pro-Marcos vloggers and to start vlogging, too: Level up, do live commentary, some focusing on disputing the lies and distortions re martial law and EDSA with documented data, others on offering alternative opinions | takes re the new President’s pronouncements and policies, again, based on data.
Samantala, I love it that Mareng Winnie Monsod, after her Get Real column was “discontinued” by Inquirer, has started blogging @marengwinniemonsod.ph. Check out her take on Marcos Jr.’s inaugural speech: False Claims, Inaccurate Statements, and Exaggerations.
She could take it a step further and also start vlogging — much like what she was doing in Bawal ang Pasaway kay Mareng Winnie for GMA TV in pre-pandemic times. A vlog where she interviews Sec Trixie on why | how she changed her mind about the Marcoses would be a blockbuster for sure!