The Department of Education (DepEd) in Central Luzon has committed to look into concerns surrounding the conduct of the 2026 Regional Schools Press Conference (RSPC).
This developed as more unverified complaints have circulated on social media and through private messages among participants.
The agency also confirmed it has launched a probe regarding the plagiarism complaint linked to the event.
Reports posted on social media platforms such as TikTok, as well as information shared with this reporter, which have not been verified, include allegations that some judges may have previously served as trainers of competing participants, raising conflict-of-interest concerns.
Other accounts claim that mobile phones may have been used during the competition.
DepEd Regional Office III, which hosted the RSPC held recently in Baler, Aurora, said it will look into these concerns.
“The Department of Education Regional Office III will investigate these concerns and may institute reforms in the future conduct of the RSPC, if necessary,” DepEd said in a statement sent to this reporter.
Additional complaints raised by participants include questions about how subjects were handled or assigned in the photojournalism contest, as well as reports suggesting that some entries in the online publishing category may have been prepared in advance.
Some participants also questioned the thoroughness of the vetting process for judges and whether sufficient safeguards against conflicts of interest were in place.
Others observed that only a limited number of evaluators are active and practicing journalism professionals.
Feedback shared by participants further indicated perceived delays in the response of DepEd Region III to the concerns raised.
As of writing, no official findings have confirmed these allegations.
A teacher on Monday went on social media to raise allegations of plagiarism in one of the contest categories of the recently-concluded RSPC in Region III.
The RSPC is an annual competition involving campus journalists from across Central Luzon, covering various journalism categories.
As of this writing, the post has gained more than 1,900 reactions.
In his post, the teacher alleged that one of the entries in the Collaborative Desktop Publishing category bore similarities to a previous entry in the 2025 RSPC, which placed second in the English category.