ANOTHER milestone has come for Davao Digital Influencers Inc. (DDI), a SEC-registered blogging organization in Davao City, founded by good friend Glen Santillan, owner/blogger of escapemanila.com and ilovedavao.com.
Celebrating its first anniversary on July 29, 2017 at The Pinnacle Hotel and Suites, DDI started with only 14 members during its launch a year ago.
Today, it has grown to be a home for 66 active members in the field of blogging, video blogging and other social media platforms.
Wearing formal, glitzy outfits, the celebration was graced by Davao City Information Officer Jefry Tupas who represented Mayor Inday Sara Duterte and delivered her message; Councilor Joan Bonguyan-Quilos as Chair of ICT Committee; and friends from the media who have been supportive of their goals and journey the whole year round.
In her congratulatory message, Mayor Inday Sara said, “Your voices are the amplifiers of government agencies”, lauding the organization for its success in expanding its horizons within and outside Davao City, further encouraging the group to continue its goals and advocacies.
Councilor Bonguyan-Quilos led the induction of the new members and officers led by its President, Glen Santillan. After one year of fruitful existence, DDI has partnered with various government agencies and private corporations for social media affairs. DDI is the official social media partner for Kadayawan Festival 2017 this August.
My younger sister Karen, a government employee, was welcomed as a lifestyle blogger in the group. While she is a newbie in this field, it has been a long journey for an “old school blogger” like me since the early internet years in Davao (I had an ancient 64 kbps link via dialup in the 90s). Through the years, I have experienced the transformation of cyber technology in the emergence of the Information Age. I used to post online news of SunStar diligently two decades ago, a tedious labor of love before my paper officially established an online network. I received my first plaque of recognition from Mayor Inday Sara in 2011 as a social media influencer for Davao and it was a sweet achievement borne out of love for the city. I used my years of experience as anecdotes in my workshops on blogging ethics and photojournalism to show transitions in the Davao scene.
My colleagues from the traditional print media are now embracing the advantages of a paperless society, in which all media are produced and consumed on computers. There will always be pros and cons, however, where untrained bloggers and online news sites will abuse claims as legit journalists, to the ire of those who have diligently earned their journalism degrees. Today, everyone has an access to blog and be heard on the net, which is not really a good thing.
In my projects and events in Mindanao and the country, I invite fellow bloggers and give them opportunities to share and express their creativity through positive social media ethics and interactions. It is my hope that they will forego the lure of quick fame and fortune but help in disseminating accurate and positive information, sharing advocacies and warm stories of humanity, and put a tight rein against cyber bullying.
For the officers and members of DDI, I pray that you will continue to proudly uphold principles on safe and responsible online communication towards a more positive image of the city and its residents.
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(Jojie Alcantara is a long time photojournalist, workshop speaker, blogger, and social media influencer based in Davao City. She has been proudly writing for SunStar Davao for more than two decades. In this nest she has grown to become an avid traveler and photographer. Email at jojiealcantara@gmail.com or visit her blog kodakerdabawenya.com.)