Miranda: Week #3 at Manila Times

List down all the tasks that you performed during this period. Describe each in detail.

1. On April 20 and 21, I reported to the office. I did my proofreading work with great interest. Since I have been here for 25 days already, I am already familiar with the nature of my work. I checked the dates, names, punctuation marks, acronyms used in stories, facts, places, people, grammar, spelling and placement of texts. I consult with my supervisor regularly in case I do not understand what I am reading/proofreading. After my supervisor checks my work, I go to the layout section to have the corrections included. I wait for the hard copies and re-check them. Finally, I have the final sections checked by the editors. Then, if there are no corrections or changes done by the editors, I post the final papers on the board. I usually finish doing my task at 7:30 in the evening. The sections assigned to me are World news, Business news, and Lifestyle.

2. On April 22, it rained cats and dogs. Before I left the house, the skies were quite cloudy. When I was midway to my destination, plump raindrops kept falling on everybody’s heads, including the LRT. To my surprise, when I went down the LRT station, water was everywhere.

I could no longer cross the street to get another ride, this time, a jeepney, without wading into the murky, knee-high water. It was my first time to have a first-hand account of the famous flood in Manila. It was still half-past twelve noon and I still have another thirty minutes before office time. I was debating whether to proceed to the office or just to go back home.

I went home. I could never tell if the rain would not stop and it will keep on flooding till night time. My off duty is at seven to eight o’clock, depending on the volume of work. I did not take the risk of going home in a flooded street at night when taxis and jeepneys are scarce. And so that day, I was absent for work. I just sent e-mail and text messages to my supervisor and editors.


3. April 23, though it still rained, I managed to go to office. I did the same task in the office. Around 5:30 p.m., Mr Dante Ang, the executive editor, tasked me to research and write a timeline of the Subic Rape Case since on that day, “The Court of Appeals. . . acquitted US Lance Cpl. Daniel Smith for raping Suzette Nicolas, more popularly known as “Nicole,” inside the Subic Bay Freeport more than three years ago.” I did the research through the net and archives of different national dailies. I compiled, edited, and submitted the timeline asked. I was able to go home at 8:30 p.m.

4. On April 24, the timeline I researched was published with my first-ever byline. Its title was Sensational case dates back to ’05. It can be accessed through www.manilatimes.net. This day, I did my usual work as a proofreader.

5. April 25 was a day to remember for me. It was the very day when my long-awaited write-up about the food safety and Nikki Coseteng incident was published. Its title was Dining Out May Be Hazardous to One’s Health and it was one of the top stories in the front page. It was actually a special feature for the Manila Times. What surprised me was when I saw an editor’s note at the end of my story. It said: Miss Miranda is a student trainee from the Ateneo de Zamboanga University. I was on cloud nine. I hope I somehow made my parents and school proud of me. On this same day, I just did my usual task in the office.

6. April 26, I reported to the office. I have been enjoying what I am doing. I get used to the routine. Whatever I do, I make sure I give my best to it. I never go home until I finish my work.




Describe new skills you learned, or skills you improved upon as a result of these tasks. Be specific.

Somebody commented on my second published article as a well-researched one. I can say that skills I have improved upon doing my task are researching and interviewing. My story was based on people’s sides. I did a lot of interviews to form it. I made sure I gathered all the parties’ side to make it, as much as possible, a balanced news. I browsed through the internet and back issues of national dailies to get background information related to my story. I did it not just in one sitting. I updated my story how many times through interviewing sources again and again. And as a result, it landed as a special feature in the front page. It even occupied a half page on the second page. I am proud of my work because I love doing it. I invested my time and resources to attain my goals of presenting a newsworthy story and of publishing a story with my byline.

It may not be a skill, but I say, keeping the value of patience is an essential practice especially for a beginner like me. I remain patient yet a bit assertive of my article. Assertive in the sense of following it up with my editors. It worked.



Other thoughts regarding the OJT experience.

This OJT experience is truly a worthwhile moment in my life. I am now on my 25th day of OJT. 49 hours more to go and I will be back to my school. This week has been a getting-to-know-more week with my supervisor, the edit team, layout team and other officemates. During breaktime, they invite me to go to the canteen, eat and have chit-chats with them. They have been very accommodating to me. They treat me as their officemate and not just a student. They even call me by my first name already. I am grateful for this experience. It teaches me to go along well with people especially at work. It teaches me to behave accordingly. Most especially, it prepares me to feel, see, and act professionally with the world of press and media.