Cyber Writers Feature in Sunstar Cebu

We were interviewed in a local cebu coffee shop with regards to this article. And this is timely in a way, it is published during the Cebu Press Freedom Week! (I looks so haggard, oh well-beggars can't be choosers :P) If you cannot read the Cyber Writers feature article via the provided image, please see/read it below.

WITH the existence of the Internet, “freedom of speech” has become a whole new different ball game.

Today we step inside the minds of three young people from the Cebu Bloggers Society Inc. (CBSI). “Cyberwriters” you can say; a new breed of reporters of sorts, who bring something new to the table.

Before going deeper into the story, here is a definition of what a “blog” is, according to wikipedia.org.

“A blog (a blend of the term “web log”) is a type of website or part of a website.

Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary,
descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video.”

“I remember I started blogging around March 2008. It was triggered when I read an article in Reader’s Digest about one homeless person who resorted to blogging and her life was saved because of it,” shared lady blogger Mikyu Maglasang.

Mikyu is a self-confessed “frustrated writer,” who admits seeing her blog as an outlet of expression for her passion penning picturesque paragraphs. She is the vice president for content management of CBSI.

CBSI started before as a Yahoo! Group (an online hosting for people with a common interest) last 2007. In 2008, CBSI was formed. “Basically, we are a group of Cebu-based bloggers—with a common denominator and that is to promote Cebu through our
blogs,” shared Mark Monta, co-founder of CBSI.

On February 2010, CBSI became a legit organization registered and recognized by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

CBSI currently has more or less 40 members listed, although CBSI president Vernon Joseph Go plans on “purging” the list, which is a standard procedure for groups that want to strengthen their “operating system.”

“Right now, accepting memberships is ‘on hold.’ We are currently in the process from being a community, to becoming an organization,” shares Vernon.

The CBSI lives by several norms, too, such as having regular activities that not only promote unity “online,” but also “offline.” Also, saying no to “freeloaders” who’d want to join the group for selfish motives.

In the Philippines’ setting, the absence of regulating bodies on top of the social media hierarchy, allows this certain speculation: that one, in his search for answers on the information highway, is bound to bump into unreliable information that sprouts from numerous rumor weeds online.

But for Vernon, the solution is simple, and the key lies with the blogger himself.

“It is the blogger who sets the limitation. It’s up to you if you start to bash, but that might go against you and your reputation. Keeping a blog is like maintaining your own personal brand.”

Like any other business, no one wants a company with a tainted record. Mikyu then adds her piece.

“Personally, I don’t think we’re here to ‘wipe out’ conventional media. I’m not trying to get a share of their market even. In the end, it’s the people’s decision where they choose to get their information.”


Thanks, Luis Quibranza III and Sunstar Cebu for the feature! [Source] Hehehe. :P