CMU DevCom students join GMA News 2025 Elections online coverage

Select students from the Bachelor of Science in Development Communication joined the GMA Integrated News Digital Action Center’s coverage of the 2025 Election in Cagayan de Oro City on May 12-13, 2025.

The students were immersed in a professional media environment where they assisted GMA’s election coverage. Their tasks included scouting, verifying, and pitching viral and User-Generated Content (UGC) for various social media platforms. Three of them were able to contribute different-pitched UGC pieces, which were uploaded on GMA Regional TV’s One Mindanao Facebook page.

This initiative offered the students an opportunity to gain practical experience in digital news production and promote responsible journalism, especially during elections.

Ms. Armi Sobremisana, Station Manager of GMA Northern Mindanao, expressed hope that the experience would help the students become responsible UGC providers.

“Hopefully, this experience will help you become responsible up-loaders or UGC providers and will inspire you to achieve your goals,” Ms. Sobremisana said.

The students also shared that despite the challenging tasks, the experience provided them with personal growth and skills essential to their future careers as development communicators.

This challenge was felt by fellow volunteers, strengthening their research skills and sharpening their strategies for verifying digital content. However, the experience fostered both collaboration and personal growth, skills essential to their future careers in development communication.

One of the students, Dexter Cutad, admitted that he felt pressured as the team’s leader.

“I carried a lot of pressure, and it felt like a single mistake from me could severely affect the whole team,” he shared.

Despite this, he used the pressure as motivation in guiding the team toward achieving their goals.

Another volunteer, Justin Rafael Enguito, shared that the unfamiliarity of assigned locations gave him a challenge.

“It was very challenging, especially because we were not familiar with the locations assigned to us,” he admitted.

He also shared the complexity he faced in handling UGC.

“You’re not just looking for UGCs. You also have to verify whether the content falls within your assigned scope and determine how to communicate effectively with the content creator,” Enguito stated.

Moreover, Ms. Renalyn G. Padoginog, Chairperson of the Department of Development Communication, shared that the experience was meaningful to the students and played a significant role in shaping the students as future nation builders.

“It was a meaningful experience for DevCom students to be immersed in the actual work of communication practitioners. These small steps, though modest, contribute significantly to shaping our students as future nation builders,” Ms. Padoginog said.

This partnership between CMU and GMA was facilitated by the Office of Public Relations and Information, following the successful staging of “GMA Masterclass: Dapat Totoo Series” in Bukidnon last January. [Johnica Chantal G. Montero]