HUDYAT writers gain more skills from “The Craft of

News Writing” seminar

Through video conferencing, the student HUDYAT writers participated in the first
session of the Online Lecture Series on Journalism on July 10, 2020, entitled “The Craft
of News Writing.” Ms. Donna Cueto-Ybañez, the Online Media Services Manager of the
Eagle Broadcasting Corporation, was the resource speaker in the seminar.

In her discussion, Mrs. Cueto-Ybañez highlighted the fact that writers must be lovers of
truth who appreciate the opportunity to narrate meaningful and impactful stories. She
stressed the importance of the basic techniques in writing factual and well-informed
news articles about an event. This includes the various approaches in preparing for a
news coverage, making articles, forming lead statements, and the do’s and don’ts in
writing, among many others.

Shenel Gem Casaysayan, a student writer, gladly expressed, “I felt very honored and
privileged to be a part of [this] free seminar led by an experienced journalist. I made
sure that every piece of information was embedded in my memory [so as not to] waste
this wonderful opportunity. I was inspired to be a better writer so that I could contribute
more to HUDYAT in the future.”  

“As an aspiring writer, this seminar is very important because it serves as an instrument
where I can learn and improve my skills in journalism,” says Alvin Joshua Jaurigue.
“Moreover, it is also a huge opportunity. Despite the prevailing dilemmas in the world,
the school administration allowed us to have this kind of activity where I can discover
more ideas from the experts in the field that I can utilize in the future,” he added.

Headline: HUDYAT writers gain more skills from “The Craft of News Writing” seminar

Gain more skill is a generalizing phrase. Newswriters SHOULD AVOID using this type of words/
phrases. Moreover, “skill” is an abstract noun and unquantifiable. The Newswriters should use
concrete and specific nouns.

“The Craft of News Writing Seminar”- In headlining, single quotation marks are used in place of
the standard double quotation marks.

 Through video conferencing vs Online Lecture Series on Journalism- It is

understood that a video conference can be done using an online meeting. There
is no need to emphasized that. Newswriters must eliminate unnecessary words
yet retain enough detail to make their stories informative.
 Student Hudyat writers- this is very basic error in word order. It should be Hudyat
student writers.
 Ms. Donna Cueto-Ybañez- as rule of newswriting in avoiding stereotypical
“isms”- sexism: Identifying a woman solely by her relationship with a man—for
example, as a man’s wife, daughter or secretary. Even so, the lead paragraph
addressed the resource speaker as “Ms.” but it became “Mrs.” in the 2nd
paragraph- a conflicting information.
 Eagle Broadcasting Corporation (EBC) - A name of an organization that is widely
known should be followed by its acronym.
 highlighted the fact that.. - is wasteful words. It is understood that the writer’s
report should be factual.
 Gladly- one of the basic principles of journalism is the separation of fact and
opinion. Describing the interviewee’s reaction or emotion is a writer’s opinion, not
a fact.
 ,” …says Alvin Joshua Jaurigue- there is no specific detail on the person. Is he a
student writer as well?