Week 06 (October 18-22) – On gathering data presents the insights, reflections, and/or lessons learnt by our writers from their laboratory exercises on retrieval, interview, as well as how they were able to use observation during the conduct of the exercises.
Ang pangangalap ng impormasyon ay isang mahirap na proseso sapagkat marami kang pagdadaanan bago mo pa maumpisahan ang mismong pangangalap.
Una sa bahagi ng prosesong ito ay ang pag-oobserba.
Sa iyong pagmulat ng mata, pagbubukas ng iyong tainga’t isipan, maoobserbahan mo ang bawat kinikilos sa iyong kapaligiran. Makikita mo ang mga suliranin at maaaring dahilan kung bakit ang mga ito’y umiiral.
Gathering data for a development-oriented news story is a given when you’re a DevCom student. You can’t get away from it.
As a freshie who has no experience writing for news, it’s a difficult task for me. I have hesitations if I can finish this project successfully. Gathering data is the start, and it’s chaotic. It’s the first step in building a news story. Yet, I tried and did my best to complete the first exercise.
First step. Observation.
By using our five senses, we can observe what is happening around us. Observation is the reason why I’m able to come up with my topic. Observing the problems and the people in the community is crucial. You can easily determine what people should know more about and their interests. You can also determine which problems require immediate action and solution, which can help you to choose a development-oriented topic for your straight news story.
Second step. Retrieval.
For me, retrieval is the easiest of the three steps to gather data. There are many sources where you can retrieve information about your news story. Due to the pandemic, we can’t go to public libraries, interview, and crowdsource information and opinions from people in person. So our only hope is the web and social media sites. Our class agreed to crowdsource information and opinions about our topic using Google Forms and posting it on our social media accounts. It made crowdsourcing very easy and less hassle. In finding relevant and reliable information about our news story, there is Google which is one click away. Yet, we have to be smart and critical when finding data on the web. Thanks to our free OpenAthens account. It’s a huge help for us as it functions like a library, where you can find books, articles, news, and journals that are connected and suit your topic.
But during this step, I encountered information overload. Because of the countless information that is present online, some unnecessary information is present in my draft. Thus, I focused on my topic, thoroughly read each article, and chose the information that is important and relevant to my topic to overcome information overload. Secondary information is as important as other sources. Not just because they are secondary information, we will not pay attention to cross-check them. They add a layer of interpretation to the primary sources. They strengthen the relevance and timeliness of your topic. That’s why ensuring the quality of secondary information is important.
Third step. Interview.
Accomplishing this task requires connections. Interviewing the primary source is the toughest part of doing this exercise. Contacting and availability of the interviewee are the factors that I encountered that hindered me to complete the exercise on time. Therefore, patience and understanding are a must when doing interviews. I expected it to happen as our laboratory professor informed us that it is the hardest as it requires and utilizes more time than the other parts of the exercise. I’ve done interviews before, but this interview made me the most nervous and anxious as it’s my first time interviewing an expert. Therefore, I prepared by studying my topic to avoid misunderstandings. Also, internet connectivity issues made the interview process long and made me anxious about the interview outcome. Despite experiencing such hindrances, I still successfully finished the interview part. I’m glad to be more knowledgeable and have a different perspective about the topic. Indeed, there’s more information that we can obtain through interviewing experts that is not present on the web.
A word: If you don't want to cram, start gathering your data as soon as possible. IT.TRULY.REQUIRES.A.LOT.OF.TIME
Gathering data is the most enjoyable part of writing a story. Each part is crucial. Yet, it requires and takes a lot of time and effort. But eventually, it pays off after you finish writing your story.
So go forth and gather information for your news story! May the force be with you!
I have learned that in the life of a development communicator, it is default that he/she knows how to gather data. In every story they make is the exhaustion of information from observation, retrieval, or interview. Even before my high school years, whenever my teachers would ask me to “gather data”, just hearing those words already sounds tiring to me. Perhaps because it requires so much footwork and effort to do.
Retrieval
Comparing the three, I assume, some would say that retrieval is the easiest. Particularly now that information is just one click away. However, this practice is sometimes overlooked by the majority. Not all information on the worldwide web are facts and reliable especially now that everyone can contribute to the system. With that being said, calls a need for judicious analysis.
Observation
Observation, on the other hand, ranks second for me in terms of difficulty. Probably because this needs full attention when gathering data. With this method, we opt to use all our senses to collect information. It is highly reliable when gathered in an unobtrusive way. However, with participant observation becomes an issue as the observer’s judgment could be personal due to the firsthand experience.
Interview
After doing our exercises, I am convinced that the interview is the hardest. It is not just about the talk itself but the whole process before it happens. Prior, is the search for the interviewee. It is usually hard to find an expert as well as to set a schedule with that person. In my case, it took me a month before I got to talk to my interviewee, same goes with my other colleagues. Apart from that, there is a need to study the subject; I am sure that everyone wouldn’t want to come unprepared in his interview. Interviews with the experts are highly reliable because of the credibility they add up to the story. Meanwhile, responses from the man on the street aren’t that ideal to support serious claims but would be enough when establishing the story.
“If you want something, you need to work hard for it”
It has been months since we were assigned a series of exercises in our laboratory class. Which at first I thought that I can’t pull through because the tasks are new for me and it demands a lot of my time. But then, once I looked back on the days that I was conducting those exercises I realized I learned a lot and I grew as a person.
Continue reading “Work Hard and Smart”
Everything doesn’t fall right into place. Gathering data was quite a challenge on my end. It pushed me to change my beat several times, often ending up on a dead end. Nevertheless, I felt that this journey taught me valuable lessons that I can use when the time comes that I encounter this instance again.
My experience on retrieval was by far the most challenging among the three. Even with the chance of living in a city, hopeful to find information on the topic I am pursuing, I still had a hard time. There were Facebook pages for the offices I was looking into, however, not all of them have an active rollout of information that I need. Some materials seemed like noise— posters of who won which contest. Community-related information or posts about what’s going on in the community was hard to come by. Even then, it was a consistent persistence of typing out the right keywords to find what you were looking for across pages.
Interviews wouldn’t be so hard if you know the right people you are looking for and you know the information that you need from them. Oftentimes, people will be willing and accepting to schedule interviews so long as you ask politely and they happen to have an available time for you. It is also important to remain mindful of the words you are using around them, to treat the interviews with the utmost sensitivity. With experience, it would come naturally to have formalities first such as informing them of what is to happen, what questions you want to ask, and ultimately, having them have an informed decision and consent to proceed with the interview. It should be prioritized so that you have a clear reception that they accepted your invitation to interview so that you won’t get in a tangled mess later on.
Eventually, observation comes in handy if you’re in the interview itself. Since everything is done online, being extra observant comes in handy. I, however, had to interview in person since the interviewee isn’t familiar with the technology for meeting online. I later learned that she only manages to meet online with the help of the younger people in the barangay. There are little things that are hardly noticeable when you are only meeting through a screen. I think what helped the most is observing the auditory and visual cues from whom you are interviewing. It can point to larger issues that need to be addressed. Like the use of vernacular language, observation requires sensitivity. Since one could only get so much information through a screen, one has to exert more effort in observing during the interview and data retrieval as well. There are instances where we could pick up slight nuances that may look negative in our context, but serve an entirely different purpose in the other party. It helps to ask questions, with the right intent, so that we may not be misled by what we observe. Since I get to do it in person, I had more access to the observatory cues that were present in the environment.
Lastly, these are some tips that I curated myself which I find the most helpful when gathering information:
Have a brief check on data availability first.
Identify backup topics.
Keep your topic on the top of your head each time you’re working on it.
In a short time, I was refreshed regarding the data gathering methods. From Observation, Retrieval, to Interview, I was able to apply my learnings. The data gathering techniques were useful in looking for credible sources for my Laboratory exercises. Here, I will present you my experiences and insights on conducting the different types of data gathering and how I reflect it on my DEVC11 Laboratory requirements.
Our first exercise in laboratory class involves crowdsourcing where you must ask for the response of your target audience to get their insights regarding your topic. In my case, the topic I chose was the Youth Week 2021 also known in our barangay as “San AntonYouth Week”. At first, I honestly struggled on picking a topic because I was afraid that it might be too broad or common but later on, I realized that this topic fits in the guidelines in choosing a development-oriented news beat. My first-hand experience in participating the Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) project helped me on writing the news story as I personally know how it goes and the benefits it provides.
In this data gathering method, I was able to compile responses of various beneficiaries of the program. I realized how crucial their consent is, how to deal with data privacy act, and more importantly, this technique on gathering data reveal how much I need to broaden my connections.
On looking for credible sources online, I personally had a hard time on choosing which should be used and not. There were various files about my topic, however, they almost present the same idea. This is why it is important to weigh the relation of the gathered sources in the content you wish to generate. I chose the sources which will really be used on my news story because there could be so many works related but you got to pick only those you need.
This data gathering aspect made me nervous the most. I was too anxious from not getting a response from the official I need to interview. It took a follow-up before I was able to set the interview. What is crazier on this experience is that, as soon as I was able to reach SK Chairman Mark Anthony Ramos, he just asked for some minutes and the interview started. Considering the fact that the request for interview was freshly followed up, I thought he will set a meeting days after the confirmation but I was wrong. The lesson I have learned from this experience, you need to be ready anytime because you never know when your chance will come. Thankfully, I was able to execute the interview properly and everything goes well.
In every scholarly and public content that we do, we shall always be on the side of the truth and fact. As a media writer in training, as early as now, I need to practice honesty and show dignity in every work I do. The exercises that challenged me on applying my learnings on data gathering is a great stepping stone for my next tasks. I still need to learn more and I am willing to work hard for it.
“Huuuyy. Check niyo nga ‘yung page ni Mayora baka sinuspend na.”
“Wala pa.”
“Hala mag-se-second subject na! Eh tignan mo Muntinlupa or P-que ‘pag nag-suspend ‘yan tayo na sunod.”
“’Te wait… P-que palang.”
“Oh, ayan feel ko malapit na i-suspend sa atin. Ayaw ko mag-basic cal!”
“Babahain na naman ‘yan sa shortcut. Baka naman libre niyo ‘ko trike. Haha!”
“Tanga buo kamo pera ko.”
“Suspended na guys!”
“Weh? Nag-post na si Mayora? Ay oo nga.”
“Yes! Walang basic cal!”
“Huy Tenten dalian mo para mauna na tayo sa trike!”
Back when classes were held face-to-face, every time it poured, this was how conversations inside our classroom would go. Everybody would be glued to their phones, waiting for a “#WALANGPASOK” post on the Facebook page of Las Piñas Mayor Mel Aguilar, asking each other “feel mo ma-su-suspend?” and complaining about how they do not want to attend the next subject.
After heavy rains, flood-prone areas in Las Piñas are flooded and the floodwater is usually at least ankle-deep. I remember during Bagyong Ulysses, I was at a groupmate’s house to finish our major project in oral communication. I had no choice but to go despite the threat of the typhoon because our other groupmates had unexpectedly ditched us. If I chose not to go, we would not be able to pass the project on time as it really was a project tailored for a 5-man group. Fortunately, my groupmate’s house was within walking distance of ours. Going and leaving were absolute hell, though. Getting soaked was something I expected but I stupidly forgot that I might walk through floodwater since her house was in a lower area.
So, the first thing I did when I arrived at her place was to wash my feet and ask for a change of clothes—which by the way took all the courage I had that day. And the same thing happened to me when I was walking back home; I got soaked again and had to walk through floodwater. Good thing, we managed to wrap up with only a few polishings left so I was not too annoyed. I guess it was worth *chokes* it. This, along with my other baha-related experiences, was the reason why I chose Las Piñas floods as my topic. Also, they were not isolated. I have observed that other Las Piñeros experience them as well, and this is supported by news stories about flooding events in the city.
When my topic got approved, I started to gather data that would help me broaden my knowledge about floods. I thought it was going to be a piece of cake and boy was I wrong. I felt so overwhelmed by the sheer amount of information that I did not just have to digest but also validate. My screen and I had a staring contest for approximately 15 minutes as I was at a loss and did not even know where to begin. Then, I remembered that aside from Google Scholar, I had just recently activated my OpenAthens account. These two cut down the time I spent on retrieval and let users filter the results, which was the most useful feature for me. However, this does not mean that it did not take me long to finish gathering data; if my memory serves me right, I spent a whole week to complete it, and even then, I still felt a bit discontented about my work. If someone solicited my advice when it comes to retrieval, my advice would be: Huwag mo masyadong i-todo sa pagbabasa. How I wish I did this instead of spending hours reading whole research papers! Sayang. I was overly anxious that I would miss any information… and it was really not too worth it.
Anyway, life must go on, so I attended my expert interview. And once again, I found myself in a new hell loop—I guess my life is just a series of hell loops at this point LOL. But really, trying to contact the government was just a different beast. Hence, here is a list of my 13 reasons:
First, the website run by our LGU is outdated so I had to go to our local barangay to get the contact information of LPDRRMO.
Second, the number given to me was either wrong or outdated. It did not work.
Third, due to the previous item, I had no choice but to find someone from LPDRRMO through Facebook.
Fourth, the people I messaged never responded.
Fifth, I tried sending a message to the LPDRRMO Facebook page instead.
Sixth, LPDRRMO never responded.
Seventh, I got inbox zoned when I was finally able to contact them, get their email address, and send them a request letter.
Eighth, I called LPDRRMO to follow up and ask if they received my email, to which they confirmed. Two days later—yup you guessed it—I was still stuck in the inbox zone.
Ninth, I followed up again and they said to wait.
Tenth, yay they finally replied! But they literally just said they have assigned a representative and sent my questions to them.
Eleventh, naturally, I asked for the name of the representative, their availability, and which conferencing platform works best for them. I got inbox zoned again.
Twelfth, I followed up but the person on the other end of the phone said they did not know and told me to call after an hour.
Thirteenth, so I did. They told me that the interview will happen at 3 pm on that same day and to send the Zoom link via email.
Man… I totally did not expect that.
But it had to be done. Fortunately, my interview with the LPDRRMO representative was alright. It was a fun and interesting experience for me. At first, I was quite nervous because obviously, and also, I have not interviewed someone who works for the government. I have heard that many of them act indifferently. But Sir Richard was nothing of the sort. He immediately greeted me energetically, we chit-chatted during the actual interview, and was accommodating; hence, I loosened up quickly, but of course, I still retained my formality. However, I noticed that Sir Richard was not well-prepared even when their Admin Section Chief said that they sent my questions to him. Due to this, there were some questions he was slightly confused about. Nevertheless, the interview was still insightful. Because of it, I was able to understand the concepts in the data I have gathered and most importantly, my goals for the interview were fulfilled as well. If someone solicited my advice when it comes to an interview, my advice would be: Focus sa goal! Literally. Write your goals down and make sure to stick to them.
Overall, the exercise was honestly a challenging experience, but I am certain that it will help me on this new journey I chose to embark on.
sixtyfifty2021 