For centuries, print media has been a source of credible news and information. Even as new challenges emerged, such as the advent of digitalization and the COVID-19 pandemic, the medium persists through the trust and goodwill it has generated through eons of public service.
“Print media in its traditional form has already been challenged by digitalization even before the COVID-19 crisis,” Jay R. Sarmiento, vice president of the United Print Media Group (UPMG), said at the organization’s first general membership meeting of 2022.
“But print media is resilient. We did not allow ourselves to run out of ink, mainly because print media offer something very valuable and that is credibility. Against the wide sea of fake news, the trust on a reputable source of information becomes all the more important. We are able to maintain our integrity in delivering fair, professional, balanced, and accurate information. No doubt, the power of print in providing high quality and credible information is what sustains us,” Sarmiento, who is also the sales and marketing director of PhilSTAR Media Group, said.
In recognition of the media agencies and advertisers who maintained their faith in the print industry and supported it through challenging times, UPMG held its 2021 HeADliners Awards.
The awards honored the industry’s biggest supporters: the media agencies and advertisers both in the public and private sector that have kept print alive through perhaps the most challenging time of print’s centuries-long history.
The winners for the “HeADliners” of 2021 are as follows:
- Media Agencies are Starcom, Mediavest, Touch XDA, New Directions, and IPG MediaBrands.
- Advertisers – Public Sector are Go Negosyo, Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM), National Grid Corporation of the Philippines, Pag-IBIG Fund, and Lungsod ng Makati.
- Advertisers – Private Sector are Toyota Motors, SM Supermarket, Ortigas Land, PLDT Smart, and Isuzu.
Champions of truth, fairness, and accuracy
In receiving the award, Tricia Camarillo-Quiambao, IPG Mediabrands Philippines CEO, said that her organization will continue to support the print medium as it sees the values it brings to the Filipino public.
“On a personal note, my roots are in journalism, which has a lot to do with print, so I am a believer in its vanguard qualities: trust, credibility, integrity, authority, discipline, truth. These will have a very important place in the future of our industry,” she said.
Thermina Ann Akram, executive director at GO Negosyo, said, “Through the years, print media has been our channel to promote the advocacy of entrepreneurship. And we have utilized print media to provide inspiration to Filipinos through true stories of success, and now the value of vaccination so we can move forward from this pandemic.”
Meanwhile, Elmer Harold Grande, chief of the communications management division at CITEM, said that the print medium helps their organization with its advocacy to promote Filipino entrepreneurs.
“We at CITEM firmly believe that the media serves as our partner and ally, not only in sharing at what we do at CITEM, but more importantly in amplifying our message that the Philippines is a major player and a top-of-mind sourcing destination for top quality products in the home, fashion, lifestyle, and food sectors as well as creative talents and services. With this award, we look forward to a longstanding partnership with our friends from the media, and a rekindled spirit to continue championing the ingenuity, artistry, and excellence of Filipino enterprises,” he said.
Kalin Franco-Garcia, vice- president at Pag-IBIG Fund, shared her history of how she built a relationship with the UPMG’s print media and publication companies.
“You might ask, why was the marching orders from our CEO then to build a relationship with print media? Why print? The answer is that print is powerful. It has plenty of uses and the power lies in its credibility. When you print something in black and white, it is perceived by the public as the unassailable, incontrovertible truth,” she said.
Mila Gonzales, supervision administration officer at Lungsod ng Makati, said, “In this digital age, print media remains highly relevant and reliable as the communication tool. The city always puts a premium on accuracy, fairness, and transparency in public information. Hence, its continuing investment in print advertising.”
Elvin Luciano, assistant VP of marketing services at Toyota Motors Philippines, said that print media has been instrumental in the company’s performance in the Philippines. ”Toyota has been an industry leader in the Philippines for two decades now and that feat would not be possible without the help of our friends from print media, and without the power of the print media, which you have been graciously sharing with us through the years. Especially now in our challenging times when industries and businesses from all over the world are transforming and evolving,” he said.
“As Toyota embarks on our transformation journey, we are also excited to see how the print media will evolve and transform in the coming years, and we will be joining you in that transformation,” he added.
Echoing the sentiment, Robert Carlos, assistant division head for sales at Isuzu, said, “As we diversify our marketing efforts to different channels, we continue to support print media and value the amount of exposure it provides for us to be able to reach our target market.”
Barbie Atienza, UPMG president, said that through a united front, UPMG, together with its partners, can overcome the challenges it is facing and play its part in keeping print media as an established and trusted source of news and information.
“We know for a fact that even before the pandemic itself, we have been facing challenges – both in our business and operations – with different factors involved, with the emergence of new media, with the different outlooks as far as advertising and marketing are concerned. But we remain steady. As they say, when the going gets tough, the tough get going,” Atienza said.
“That’s what we wanted to do with the association and with the industry. We try to keep ourselves afloat by keeping ourselves together, with strengthened unity, by getting everybody together, getting our acts together,” he added.
Atienza further noted that UPMG plans to continue offering learning opportunities for its members and partners so that they could navigate current and future issues better, and establish a Print Congress to pursue its perpetual mission of sustaining the credible nature of the print industry.
“If you want your messages to come across as truthful, credible, and reliable, then you know what channel to go to. As they say, if it’s in print, it must be true. In the midst of fake news and misinformation, this is certainly most important,” Atienza said.