INQUIRER.net COO Imee Alcantara holds one of the four recognition awards plaques given by the National Defense College of the Philippines during a ceremony last Tuesday (May 7). Beside her is Sen. Francis Tolentino (center), main guest at the ceremony, and her brother Alexander Alcantara (left). PHOTO BY IMEE ALCANTARA
MANILA, Philippines—INQUIRER.net‘s Chief Operating Officer on Tuesday (May 7) received the Award of Special Recognition given to three INQUIRER.net staffers and one Philippine Daily Inquirer reporter by the National Defense College of the Philippines Alumni Association Inc. (NDCPAAI) for exceptional reporting on the West Philippine Sea.
Imee Alcantara, COO of INQUIRER.net, attended the Awards and Recognition Program held at the Philippine Navy Officers Country Club in Bonifacio Naval Station, Taguig City, to receive the awards on behalf of Kurt dela Peña, content researcher and writer for INQFocus; John Eric Mendoza, INQUIRER.net’s defense beat reporter; Adrian Parungao, INQUIRER.net reporter; and Frances Mangosing, Philippine Daily Inquirer reporter.
Composite image of the INQUIRER.net and Philippine Daily Inquirer reporters who received the Award of Special Recognition for their exceptional reporting on the geopolitical and security developments in the West Philippine Sea. Graphic by ED LUSTAN / INQUIRER.net
INQFocus is a team in INQUIRER.net dedicated to research, features, investigative, and special reports.
In her acceptance speech, Alcantara emphasized the responsibility of journalists to provide the public with objective and fearless coverage of the ongoing Chinese aggression in the West Philippine Sea.
“It’s really our public duty to report the events that are happening in the West Philippine Sea in a fair, objective, fearless manner,” she said.
“[It helps] the public understand what’s really at stake—and what’s [at] stake is our sovereignty,” she added.
Alcantara noted that as long as there are courageous journalists who are committed to covering the events in the Philippines’ EEZ, like Dela Peña, Mendoza, Parungao, Mangosing, and the other journalists who were awarded by the NDCPAAI, the media will continue its crucial role of informing the public and help in fulfilling every Filipino’s role in protecting “what’s really ours.”
The four plaques of recognition given to INQUIRER.net and INQUIRER reporters for their coverage of West Philippine Sea. PHOTO BY IMEE ALCANTARA
In a letter addressed to the INQUIRER.net and Inquirer reporters, NDCPAAI Secretary General, Aldrin C. Cuña, commended their “untiring efforts in bringing to light the measures taken by [the] government and the actions of other state actors who lay claim to the West Philippine Sea.”
The NCDPPAI bestowed on them the Award of Special Recognition for extensive coverage of the complexities and security issues amid ongoing Chinese aggression in the West Philippine Sea.
The organization acknowledged the awardees for their coverage of the West Philippine Sea, stating that the awardees not only vividly captured events as they happened but also provided context, resulting in stories that “combined snapshots of the moment with the bigger picture.”
Such journalism, NDCPAAI stressed, deepens public understanding of an issue that impacts the nation.
READ: INQUIRER.net staffers recognized for West PH Sea coverage
Aside from Inquirer.net and the Philippine Daily Inquirer, journalists from GMA, ABS-CBN, TV5, Manila Bulletin, and Philippine Star were also awarded by NDCPAAI.
Dela Peña has written several in-depth reports on the current situation inside the Philippine exclusive economic zone. The reports presented a comprehensive view of the West Philippine Sea situation, encompassing ecological, economic, technological, historical, and societal dimensions.
Mendoza closely covers and provides updates on the current situation in the West Philippine Sea, primarily focusing on China’s illegal actions inside the Philippine EEZ and detailing how the Philippine government is handling these.
Parungao has also written stories on the West Philippine Sea, while Mangosing has written several stories on efforts by Philippine military personnel to stand up to Chinese bullying and harassment.