The topic on last Wednesday’s (October 12, 2005) Kampus Kapihan is about the benefits and difference between the Print and Broadcast medium.

“My advice to those who want to pursue a career on print is, DON’T,” said Isagani Yambot, publisher of the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

We are very fortunate to have Yambot as our guest, who kept on saying, “if you want to make money, look for other occupation,” and we’ll all laugh at his statement. He added that, “if you don not have the required skills in writing, no nose for news, and you’re just going to make news paper job a stepping stone to a higher career, you should forget all about it because you will only waste the time of publishers like me.”

On the other hand, if you really want to pursue a career on print at the same time earn, Yambot said that you should be very, very good in writing. Competence in writing both in Tagalog and English and commitment is a must to pursue this career.

What is beautiful about this career is you can watch history being made.

According to Yambot, journalism is a noble calling. It is not just a job, occupation or a profession. In journalism, there is a vow of poverty because it does not pay high salaries. There is also obedience because as journalists, they should obey the laws governing media and ethical guidelines of media.

Compensations were also discussed by Yambot. The lowest rank on the news paper job is the cab reporters who earn P206,000 a year. Editorial production assistant and researchers earn the same as the cab reporters. While copy readers, deskmen and best writers earn P434,000 a year. Senior editors earn P854,750 a year. The editors earn 1.5M a year.

There are 37 benefits, as PDI is concern, for its regular employees like Christmas bonuses and others and limited benefits for retired employees.

“Unlike print journalism, which does not have a good paying job and a career that did not hold greater opportunities, broadcast media gets paid better than print,” said Antonio Seva, retired news director of GMA’s News and Public Affairs and is currently the Broadcast ___.

A good example of this is Korina Sanchez who, in the early years, earns 380,000 a month.
Today, the number one medium in the country is the television with a viewership of 29 hours a week. The radio consumption is 27 hours a week; newspaper readership is four hours a week; magazine readership is one hour a week; and Internet consumption is seven hours a week.

Seva said that newly graduates of this year like us are a good market. So he advised us to hone our writing skills both in Tagalog and English language and that it is imperative for us to do so. Since most of the populations of Mass communication students in Angeles University Foundation are ladies, Seva encourages us to pursue a career as videographers since there are no lady videographers in the Philippines.

To pursue career in broadcast, Seva admitted that physical looks and being presentable matter. But if you’re wondering about the case of Mike Enriquez, Seva jokingly said, “I apologize for Mike.”
Seva revealed that if you want to earn your first 1M in a year, then venture into broadcast marketing because that is where the money is.