Tension's up as countdown begins

This year's Jaime V. Ongpin Awards for Excellence in Journalism (JVOAEJ) looks really exciting. Whoo. I can very much feel the tension in the air nowadays as the D-Day approaches. And not because the journalists attending don't know what to wear.

Hope to see you guys on June 28th. If meeting and and sharing views with some of the country's best print journalists present in the affair doesn't appeal to you, then maybe the sumptuous cocktail food and drinks would. For more information about the JVOAEJ and if you have plans of attending, just leave me a message either in the comments or in my shoutbox.

JVOAEJ Winners to be announced on June 28
Source: Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility

The winners of the Jaime V. Ongpin Awards for Excellence in Journalism (JVOAEJ) for works published in 2006 will be known on June 28 (Thursday) during a program to be held at the AIM Conference Center Manila at Benavidez corner Trasierra Sts., Legaspi Village, Makati City.

The Center for Media Freedom & Responsibility (CMFR) has organized the awards program since 1990. This year, program sponsors include the Royal Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Government of Norway, The Asia Foundation with support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and Ateneo de Manila University.

The awards ceremony will follow the Jaime V. Ongpin Journalism Seminar which starts at 9:30 AM. As has been the practice since 1995, selected finalists participate in a panel discussion about their articles and take questions from the audience of mostly journalism faculty and students.

As in the previous year, reports published by daily newspapers were judged separately from those published by non-dailies. Thus, there are two sets of first, second and third prizes for both investigative and explanatory categories.

In the explanatory category, there are six finalists from the dailies and six from the non-dailies competing for the top prizes, while there are four finalists in each division in the investigative category.

The first-prize winner in each category will receive P70,000.00; the second-prize winner, P40,000.00; and the third, P20,000.00 Finalists will each receive P10,000.00.

The winners of the top prizes and the finalists will also receive a plaque.

This is the 11th year that the Canadian Embassy will award the Marshall McLuhan Prize, a travel study tour of Canada, to a finalist in the investigative journalism category. And for the fifth time, the Australian Embassy will present the Australian Ambassador’s Award, an observation tour of Australia, to the finalist in the explanatory category.

The first JVOAEJ were given in 1990 to honor the late Jaime V. Ongpin, who was secretary of finance during the Aquino administration. A press freedom advocate, Ongpin was involved in the struggle against the Marcos dictatorship and was instrumental in harnessing public support for the restoration of democracy in the Philippines.

FOLLOWING IS THE LIST OF JVOAEJ FINALISTS FOR COMPETITION YEAR 2006 (in no particular order):

Explanatory Reporting Category

Daily Division

Change oil
Dave Llorito
BusinessMirror
April 27, 2006

Doing good in bad times
Daxim L. Lucas and Clarissa S. Batino
Philippine Daily Inquirer
January 8-11, 2006

Traffic: Time to count the costs
Paolo Joseph L. Lising with Iris Cecilia C. Gonzales and Kristine L. Alave
BusinessWorld
April 10-12, 2006

Guimaras oil spill
PDI i-Team
Fernando del Mundo-Chief
Leila B. Salaverria and Tina Arceo-Dumlao with Dona Z. Pazzibugan, Carla P. Gomez, Margaux C. Ortiz, Tetch Torres and Nestor P. Burgos Jr.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
October 23-25, 2006

History is not teacher’s pet
Jonathan M. Hicap
The Manila Times
September 17-18, 2006

RP detergent industry struggles to stay afloat
Mary Ann Ll. Reyes
The Philippine Star
November 8-9, 2006


Non-Daily Division


New Rx needed for generics movement
Alecks P. Pabico
Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism
Published in Malaya on September 27-28, 2006

Seeing red
Carmela Fonbuena
Newsbreak
July 3, 2006

Tempest in a (feeding) bottle
Vinia M. Datinguinoo
Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism
Published in Malaya on September 6-7, 2006

Incentives for the rich harm the poor
Roel Landingin
Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism
Published in The Philippine Star, BusinessMirror, Malaya,
Manila Standard Today and Sun.Star Cebu on August 14-15, 2006

Divorce by religion
Aries Rufo
Newsbreak
August 20, 2006

Preparing for disaster
Vinia M. Datinguinoo
Published in i Report on March-April, May-June 2006

Investigative Reporting Category

Daily Division

CSC reels from GMA prerogative to appoint execs
Jerry E. Esplanada
Philippine Daily Inquirer
March 27-29, 2006

Citrus farmers restive over mining project
Melvin Gascon
Philippine Daily Inquirer
March 15, 2006

Appointments raise questions in land row
Felipe Salvosa II with Maria Eloisa I. Calderon
BusinessWorld
February 7-8, 2006

Untangling the RSBS mess
Fe Zamora
Philippine Daily Inquirer
November 13-16, 2006

Non-Daily Division

The Romualdezes and Equitable Bank
Lala Rimando with research by Evelyn Katigbak
Newsbreak
June 3, July 3, 17 and 31, 2006

Boys Town wards cry sexual, physical abuse
Tess Bacalla
Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism
Published in The Philippine Star, The Manila Times, Malaya
and Sun.Star Cebu on June 12-13, 2006

Leyte sea roils from rape of WW2 ships
Inday Espina-Varona with Yvette Lee and Christine Mangulabnan
Philippine Graphic
October 23 and 30, 2006

Making money from making peace
Aries Rufo
Newsbreak
July 31, 2006