By PR | 03:03 PM November 25, 2023
Information Officers (IOs) from various Capitol offices attended a two-day training on news gathering and writing sponsored by the provincial government under Gov. Aris Aumentado.
Held on Nov. 23–24 at Parklane Bohol in Candabong, Anda, 42 IOs confirmed their participation in the workshop aimed at equipping them to disseminate relevant information.
Provincial Information and Media Office (Pimo) consultant and resource speaker, Celso Thomas Fuentes, pointed out that the writer should consider the information the reader wants to know and the data that the writer wants to convey to its audience.
“The four commonly used methods for gathering news are observation, research, conversation, and interviews” said Fuentes, who was a former Inquirer correspondent.
He emphasized the importance of getting accurate, reliable, and valid information.
In the afternoon session, Fuentes presented the guidelines on how to write a good news article, highlighting the importance of alway sticking to the facts.
He emphasized the advantage of encoding gathered data, writing simply, asking readers’ most common questions, minimizing details, and verbally saying what is being written.
“Do not save on direct quotes; always reread, rewrite, and avoid repetitions,” he added.
For output, IOs were tasked to gather facts on their chosen topic, applying the lessons taught in the lecture, and writing them into a full article based on the inverted pyramid outline.
The participants also presented their articles which were reviewed by the resource speaker.
Anda Mayor Angelina Simacio welcomed the participants, acknowledging the importance information and dissemination processes.
She also thanked Pimo for conducting the training to enhance effective communication, which contributes to the seamless flow of public information in her town.
Pimo officer Marc Anthony Pernia gave the statement of purpose of the event, which is aligned with the office’s mandate and the strategic agenda of the Aumentado-Balite administration.
After it was granted approval by the provincial government, the event was managed by Pimo led by Gil Bongato, officer-in-charge. (PIMO/JSS)
