BMPM: Pinoys, Unite! Report on Election Day!

MANILA, Philippines - THE risks reporters in the Philippines face made world headlines in November 2009 when a warlord family in Mindanao allegedly organized a massacre in which 31 journalists were among 57 people killed.

The Ampatuan clan accused of being behind the massacre has, for eight years, been a close ally of Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, ruling the province of Maguindanao as members of her ruling coalition, and has been allowed to have its militia forces.

Nearly every journalist in Maguindanao knew not to report unfavorably on the Ampatuans.

And it is in these situations where traditional journalism fails that a Boto Patroller - a citizen who submits news tips and materials - thrives.

It was a Boto Patroller that gave the world the very first picture from the massacre site in Maguindanao.

Yes, Boto Patrollers also face a certain amount of risks, but if they are smart and remain incognito, their reporting can become valuable and useful.

Television networks and news agencies worldwide now recognize the value of “social media” in its newsgathering operations.

The Associated Press recently created a desk section called “Social Networks and News Engagement” at the AP Nerve Center in New York. The change primarily reflect the general importance of social media for news gathering and news distribution.

Youtube and Flickr have brought multimedia out of distressed countries. Twitter and Facebook updates have spread videos virally. Blogs, Wikipedia and citizen journalism have helped disseminate and filter this information. Most of all though, these tools have helped people take action.

It helps people communicate with each other and with the outside world. It helps the rest of the world communicate with people of countries that may be under strife.

While we can only imagine what it is like to be where the massacre of 57 people in Maguindanao happened, or to lose a loved one there, social media has opened a direct line of accessible information for us.

It may very well prove to be a key factor in the fate of our country itself.

On May 10, 2010, I invite Boto Patrollers, and all those who care about what happens to our country, to cover election day.

Here are eight ideas our Boto Mo, iPatrol Mo: Ako ang Simula (BMPM) team may consider to help Boto Patrollers cover this year’s national elections:

1. VIDEO MO BOTO MO — using camera phones and video to cover any mishap voters encounter on election day.  

In 2004 and 2007, problems plagued the polls in different parts of the country: long lines, eligible voters turned away, voter intimidation, misallocation of voters’ paraphernalia and missing names in voters’ list.

This election, citizen journalists — people like you and me — will document problems as they occur.

2. PROPAGANDA AT LEAFLETS PATROL MO. On the last Sunday before election day, politicians and their supporters go out in force with a last-minute message to stick under people’s windshield wipers, stuff in people’s mailboxes or grocery bags. And mainstream media is too slow, too divided to report on what people are being told. But those “secret messages” won’t be secret if you and I take the time to make them public.

3. BLOG MO BOTO MO. Email or text BMPM and we will instantly transmit questionable incidents at the polls to the Commission on Elections or voter protection organizations like the People’s Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting that will be standing by our studios and newsroom to intervene and give advice.

4. KANDIDATOPEDIA — a collective effort to profile promising candidates who will push for change and may have a decent shot at winning. This will complement the running profiles of incumbent local and national officials.

5. PARANG T.V. Let every Filipino collect and share their voting experience through photo or video. Upload your content to our 12-seconder video website and a minute later it will appear at the PARANG T.V. website where it can be re-blogged anywhere on the web.

6. AUTOMATED BOTOHAN PHOTO-HAN PROJECT — a nationwide experiment in citizen journalism to capture, post and share photographs of democracy in action by documenting the local voting experience.

7. PREDICT MO WINNERS/PREDICT2010 - where the crowd can try to determine who will win tomorrow’s election and why.

8. BAKIT DAPAT BUMOTO. We will launch a user-generated “Get Out and Vote” video campaign. Instead of celebrities saying why people should vote, this campaign will rely on ordinary people to get the message out. A smart way to leverage the idea that voting is the ultimate in “user-generated content”.

ABS-CBN News and Current Affairs will cover the May 10, 2010 elections. But we cannot be everywhere. So we are relying on you, our Boto Patrollers, to get full coverage of this year’s election.

I probably didn’t write here all the ways you, our Boto Patrollers, can help cover this historic elections. If you know of any other way or means, please do not hesitate to leave a comment.

BMPM may be contacted through: Email: [email protected] Text/ SMS: Type IREPORT<name, address, age, gender> to 2366 Voice message: (02)4112676.