Montalbo, Khryzia Beatrize P

Digital
vs. Print
on
Student
Publications

COUTH News Magazine

EDSITtaOfRf IAL

Editor-in-Chief Khryzia Montalbo
Layout Artist Khryzia Montalbo
Photographers Khryzia Montalbo
Faculty Adviser
Contributors Mia Montayre
Christian Sangoyo

Allana Aldea
Prof. Gerardo Mariano

Khryzia Montalbo
Nikki Brillantes
Allana Aldea

DLSU Lady Booter Irish W hNaetw’s?
Navaja (right) looks to set
up a shot as she drives Photo by KHRYZIA MONTALBO
past Ateneo's Aina Martin.
Photo by MIA MONTAYRE DLSU loses to UE; 109-102

Culture Shock: DLSU Student In an overtime loss to UE, La Salle led at the
Athletes Adjust to Life in Taft half 52-40 and entering the 4th period, was
still on top, 76-65 but Warriors forced exten-
Student athletes from public schools talk about life in sion 96-all and cleaned up in OT. Thomas
the province and the transitions needed to adapt to Torres shot 20 points, Abu Tratter 19, and
the city life, giving an overview of their experiences Ben Mbala 17. (more photos on page 6)
It is no longer unusual to see stu- they were graduates of public edu-
dent athletes from various provinces cation from the province of Negros along with others knowing that they
around the campus. For years, most, if Occidental. belong in a different cultural back-
not all institutions look to reel in some ground. "I was really shy and I really
fresh and outstanding talents from Upon arriving in the metro, both hesitated to ask questions because I
all over the country, given the tight were driven with feelings of excite- was scared that people might judge
UAAP race to vie for the champion- ment and fear but little did they know me," she admitted. It was likely for her
ship title in the sports department. the experiences and challenges that to think as though there was a wall or
were awaiting them. a gap between her and other people,
In spite of the collective belief of particularly because of differences in
the university that education is the Building of Identity language, in educational attainment,
driving force for reaching heights in When students from lower-class and in clothing - this being mentioned
the socioeconomic ladder, it is be- with huge emphasis. When asked to
lieved that colleges are now divided by families start college, they often strug- describe her experience as she moved
wealth than ever. gle to maintain their identity, with
social isolation and alienation being (continued on page 3)
Out of all the privileged recruits influential factors.
of DLSU, Lady Booters Mary Cris-
tine Duran and Irish Navaja, raised in While Duran initially felt a sense
Talisay and Bacolod City respectively, of enthusiasm as she was exposed to
seem to stand out from the rest, as different people, she vividly recalled
how it was quite difficult for her to get

2 Issue 18 | FEBRUARY 2016

Encore: The Restoration of The www.couthnewsmag.com

Manila Metropolitan Theater

Written by: long. The theater closed in 1996 due This shows
Nikki Brillantes to disputes over its legal ownership. MET's desolate
It once again opened in 2010, but it interior, last used
As I endure my frequent and slug- was only in 2011 that the place held in 2011.
gish commute from Quezon City to a single performance-- the very last Photo by
Taft, I never fail to notice the singular performance inside the MET before it CHRISTIAN
pink, dirty building along Lawton was again shut down, its stage never to SANGOYO
with the word “metropolitan” written light up again.
on the stained glass tiles on its façade. Blackout Many people, most especially the
I was certain that this building used to young adults and children, would not
be something, in a sense that it wasn’t What once was magnificent and even know (or even care to know) the
just any ordinary building. Because of illustrious on the streets of Manila is great significance it holds in the histo-
the unusual architectural design from now a run-down site with nothing ry of Philippine art and culture. How
its faded pink patterned walls to its art but graffiti and rubble. This historical it once shone lights on the brightest
deco style, it surely stood out from the landmark at one time stood in all its stars of the decade. How it elevated
rest. I would spot the unknown struc- glory amongst the hustle and bustle of Philippine art and culture. How it
ture on the street from the FX window the city, and housed many outstanding changed the life of the Filipinos. The
every single time I make my way to performances by distinguished inter- crooked and vandalized building is
school, but I could never guess what it national and local artists. The Manila more than what meets the eye. ●
was, and what events could have taken Metropolitan Theater, marked as a na-
place inside when it was still booming tional treasure, is now an abandoned
with life. Little did I know that this edifice slowly decaying, bringing along
unassuming piece of architecture is with it its tales from history.
one of the most precious historical
landmarks in the Philippines. The Manila Metropolitan Theater
located across Plaza Lawton is a mas-
The MET sive structure, yet somehow it manages
This piece of history is known to to become invisible to the people who
drive by the building every single day.
be the Manila Metropolitan Theater
(also called MET), and it was the pio- The Manila Metropolitan
neer of Filipino theater and arts. It was Theater's condition today.
designed by architect Juan M. Arellano Source: Corteco8
and was inaugurated on December 10,
1931. The theater held different per-
formances such as zarzuelas, bodabil,
and operas before the Second World
War struck. After that, the MET be-
came the place of an ice cream parlor,
a boxing arena, a gay bar, and a lot
more. It was only in 1978 that Imelda
Marcos made a plan to reconstruct the
building. Despite the reconstruction,
the MET was not able to survive for

FEBRUARY 2016 | Issue 18 3

COUTH News Magazine

DLSU Student Athletes Mary Duran that campus.
Adjust to Life in Taft strides to the ball
to run ahead of Choosing between Two Worlds
(continued from page 1) Ateneo's Martie Having the privilege to be given
to the Taft environment, Duran sim- Bautista.
ply stated the phrase 'culture-shocked.' Photo by free college education at DLSU, it is
MIA MONTAYRE inevitable to focus on the brighter side
Additionally, Navaja injected the of things. For most students coming
idea that she, too, seemed "different" sense of belongingness. from both the city and the province,
because of her skin color, clothing, For this reason, the more elite it was a dream entering an institution
and dialect. With this, "you can [in- that brags of its fresh air, polished
stantly] identify the difference between the school, the wider the gap will be. hues, and first class status. Irish, whose
a student who grew up in the province Once those from lower social econom- impression was full of amazement
and a student who came from the ic backgrounds arrive on campus, it upon getting a glimpse of the aes-
city," says Irish. is often the subtler things, the signi- thetic features of the university, felt
fiers of who they are and where they overwhelmed by being in a university
It was revealed that they truly were originate from, that cause the most where to her amazement had one-of-a-
led to adapt to their surroundings. inconvenience, challenging their very kind infrastructures with heights that
There was an instance when they were identity, comfort and right to be on were far from what she was used to.
somehow forced to change their per-
sonal 'probinsya' style with how other Coming off from a place where
Lasallians dressed up so as not to feel everything seems to be limited, the ex-
left out. The transition Navaja went posure to a place where there are great-
through made her decide to carefully er possibilities and resources makes
observe how things work such as the exceling in both sports and academics
proper Tagalog way of conversing, the more worthwhile. However, this may
trends in clothing, and many others. also mean that one has to exchange
Today, this mindset still rests on the his/her old world for a new one - one
assumption that going with the trends that may not seem to value where he/
makes it easier for them to have a she came from.

4 Issue 18 | FEBRUARY 2016

www.couthnewsmag.com

Finding the Right Balance excellent as those who graduated from There are days when it gets the best of
Life as a student athlete is chal- more privileged primary and second- them and even affects their sports and
ary schools. As she was guided by de- academic performances.
lenging and striking a healthy bal- “cisions based on her priorities, which
ance is not always easy to get right. I’m not used to being
As a result, they are advised to take is to have a bright future ahead of her, alone. I’m really used
a maximum of 12 units per term, what once was impossible sparked to
around 4-6 classes a week. While one life.
may find such requirement as stress- to having them behind
free, the demands of the sport and the Making Wiser Decisions my back in all areas
academic aspect are crucial for every Luckily, student athletes like Cris- of my life – may it be
individual. In the worst-case scenario, during my games, in
this may mean failing at the university, tine and Irish need not worry about my academic journey,
at sports, or sometimes both. the weight of tuition fees. Remember,
however, that the costs associated “and others,
Given the cultural evolution that with attending university go beyond
both women had to face, Cristine tuition fees. One must also budget for Irish said with a touch of melancholia
Duran had the greatest struggle in the items such as personal living expenses, to her tone. “Knowing that my family
academic aspect. Before entering the school supplies, and others.
university, they were asked to sign a Cristine tells how she was alarmed is not here with me makes me sad.”
contract with terms and conditions, knowing that the cost of living in Being way from her friends back in
including the termination of the stu- Manila is much more expensive as the province makes her feel less confi-
dent if he/she fails a subject. During compared to that of the province. dent, too.
her 1st year in DLSU, Cristine was at Acknowledging how budgeting was Navaja started comparing her
the verge of failing and was challenged not part of her vocabulary when she peers from the province and her
to sustain her grades and to be con- reached the metro, Duran recalls that friends in the university. She says that
sistent in her academic performance. upon receiving her allowance, her sup- people in DLSU mostly start and end
As she encountered such trouble, she posedly month-long budget was spent the conversation with a simple “how
thought that it was the end of the line within just a week. With the inade- are you” question, generating shallow
for her. To her surprise, she managed quate amount of money provided for conversations. She emphasizes how
to exhibit what was expected of her, them, one factor she mentioned that each individual was focused on his/her
but stressed that the process was defi- led her to spend all that she had was own business, without having similar
nitely not easy. her cluelessness that they had to pay things to talk about. In reality, she
for the electricity and water bills of the says, “Friends come and go here.”
While student athletes are often dormitory on their own. Before leaving for Manila, Duran,
being portrayed as being more focused As days and weeks went by, both on the other hand, tried to ignore
on their sport rather than that of their started to make wiser decisions in the pain of having to leave her family
academic studies, it is often difficult terms of budgeting their money such back in the province. The mere fact
to go against the current. Having been as knowing which restaurants to eat in of knowing that she’d feel homesick
taught in a public institution, Irish (those with cheaper prices, of course). prompted her to block her emotions
broke the stereotype and personified Apart from the spending process, both and to just make herself get used to
what it means to be a student ath- truly learned the importance of saving, the idea that her family will not always
lete when she was commended on especially now that they are in the city. be there to support her physically in
her achievement of being part of the all her endeavors.
Dean’s First Honors List during the Overcoming Reality As a means to overcome such
3rd term of her freshman year. By
comparing herself to the standards After a year and few months in feelings, both women decided to just
of the majority, she asserted that it Manila, it still is a struggle for both focus on the main reason why they
was actually possible for her to be as girls as they constantly pine for home. were recruited in the first place.

FEBRUARY 2016 | Issue 18 5

COUTH News Magazine

help. “Asking is important,” she hints.
So much has changed,
Irish concluded. She highlights

how one has to be determined when-
Adjusting to a New Culture circle of influence.
Despite the difference in culture After all these, Navaja coun-

and environment, both can now read- tered what most people think of elite
ily say that they were able to adjust universities. “De La Salle University
with the aid of their teammates. While
it took Duran and Navaja 2 academ- “is a place where everyone is treated
ic terms to fully adapt to the new
atmosphere, they eventually found a equally. Actually, people here do not
home with their teammates and now discriminate,” which is contrary to her
live comfortably in their dorm at St.
Maximillan. “initial thinking. “In fact, the school
even recognizes our efforts as student ever opportunities would arise, as
Having been brought up in a prov- athletes. The people here care for us by these things have a lasting impact to
ince means a very limited exposure encouraging us to achieve excellence in one’s humanity as a whole.
to the complexities of the city. With our chosen field.” With just hints of the experiences
a background of public education, To help out those who are about that these student athletes from rural
however, this limitation did not hin- to experience the same, Cristine backgrounds went through, univer-
der both women to step out of their suggests for them to not take their sities therefore need to back up their
comfort zones and to be instruments elementary and high school education interest in diversity with support that
who would revolutionize change in the for granted, given that college is no encourages each student to succeed
minds and hearts of those within their easy stage. One has to be willing to and to weather the culture shock of
mingle with others without hesitation, entering a new college environment. ●
especially when it comes to asking for
- Khryzia Montalbo

Kib Ben Mbala Jeron Teng
Montalbo hangs on drives to
shoots a the rim the
3-pointer after his basket on
against UE, dunk over
the UE Red a fast break
coming Warriors. against the
back from Photo by
KHRYZIA Warriors.
an ACL MONTALBO Photo by
injury. KHRYZIA
Photo by MONTALBO
KHRYZIA
MONTALBO

6 Issue 18 | FEBRUARY 2016

www.couthnewsmag.com

The Lasallian tends to social media, both papers have been copies isn’t enough to cover the 17,000
keep at least one copy able to feed students, faculty, and student population in the university.
per issue for archival members of the community with on- Also, copies are only printed once a
purposes. the-minute news right as it happens. month so the digital platforms are able
Photo by ALLANA ALDEA It’s notable that the change wasn’t to relay information as quickly as pos-
drastic. One social media account after sible. “Digital media has been a huge
Do You Copy? the other, The LaSallian (TLS) and tool for us to communicate to people
Written by: Ang Pahayagang Plaridel (APP) were globally. If you look at our stats, we’re
Allana Aldea able to gain a solid following on their able to reach people in Canada and
“Do you copy?” is usually followed respective social media accounts which even Africa. [It] is a powerful way for
when someone asks for confirmation directly reflect their credibility. Aside us to be able to inform the commu-
over telephone or intercom conversa- from their social media platforms like nity and persuade them to think in a
tions. It originates from military and Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, certain way, if needed.”
radio communication when something TLS and APP have their respective
has to be written down to be shown to websites which they update daily. As The Lasallian manually
a superior officer. Copy – being used mentioned by Elijah Rosales, APP circulates their copies
when acknowledging receiving infor- Editor in Chief, they post event-based
mation - is the predecessor to today’s articles on their website while they with the help of their
Read Receipts. With that being said, post only micro updates on their social staffers.
“copy” is slowly becoming ancient. media accounts. With more followers
With such an aging term, how could than their current target audience of Photo by ALLANA ALDEA
its actual manifestations in print cope 17,000 students, I asked how their
and how is it keeping up with the digi- online content differs from the ones in
tal age? print and if there exists a competition
between their print and digital coun-
It’s unbelievable how student-run terparts.
publications The LaSallian and Ang
Pahayagang Plaridel keep going after Marinel Mamac, TLS Editor in
being in print for over 50 years. In Chief, cites the immense importance
those 50 years, their respective teams of their digital content because 3,000
have been able to deliver quality news
with such skilled writers and artists
behind the scenes. But the greatest
challenge then was to deliver fresh
news despite being only able to print
once a month. With the boom of

FEBRUARY 2016 | Issue 18 7

COUTH News Magazine We released a comic online and time to edit, to [perfect articles], and
it hit the administration.” Plaridel to think about word choice.” Both
The Demands of Print and Digital also served as a whistleblower for the publications see the importance of
Contrary to low student demand University Student Government in their web content but Marinel stresses
the Sagun vs. Gonzales, Laurel case on the difference of print and digital
for the paper, both publications claim regarding Sagun’s funds and Gonzales content when it comes to produc-
that students still find the paper rele- and Laurel’s Negligence case. Another tion. “When it comes to web, the
vant. “Definitely,” Marinel answered, issue which Plaridel actively covered is demands of it become more intense
“The sports section is always relevant the #StopLumadKillings campaign. because you’re going to need articles
and the Menagerie has been coming and captions on the day of. But the
up with really strong articles. In terms “You would see how students good thing about technology is that it
of university news, I do think people find the paper relevant because they allows me [as an editor] to be flexi-
really care about it [since] our student would open up issues that you can’t ble with my time and schedule posts
politics is thriving [compared to other talk about basta-basta. Binibigyan accordingly.”
schools].” mo ng kalayaan yung mga estudyante
na mag-decide on their stand on the If you want to be updated, go
“In our experience as Plaridel, issues.” online. If you want to follow with the
natagpuan naming relevant kami issues of the country or the university,
dahil madami kaming issues binangga “The demands of digital are dif- go to print.” ●
na hindi kayang banggain ng kung ferent from print. In print, we have
sinu-sinong student publication. [One
example is] the enlistment issue.

8 Issue 18 | FEBRUARY 2016