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IA là'p + Overview Overall, the general trends in communication as they relate to the future of Filipino children are as The African proverb, 'It takes a village to raise follows: a child," suggests that a child's socialization is best nurtured in a community, where parents, Children today are participating more neighbors, other community members, and actively in generating information, community-based institutions like the school initiating interaction with peer groups and media reflect and reinforce the cultural through social networking, and using values and practices of that community. It is in the media more actively as sources of this environment that interaction, dialogue, and knowledge. opportunity for participation in the life of the community are nurtured. Children are spending more time with the media than they do with formal school- In this age of the Internet and social networking, related activities. it is the small media in the community that play a pivotal role in the development of the Filipino Children are more discriminating about child. For despite the many benefits that a the choices of programs and information globalized communication media system brings, that they want from the media. the community media hold the greater promise of fostering interpersonal connectivity to promote • The availability of more channels and cooperation, creativity and critical thinking and to program choices presents a challenge in develop one's own cultural and national identity. media education and regulation. This is the challenge in today's Knowledge Society, • High costs of investments in media where the communication media virtually dominate infrastructure and content will be a every major activity of children and youth - from constraint in the development of socially- play to leisure, family relations to schooling, oriented programs which do not have socialization to education. Amidst the pervasive much commercial value, as owners or presence of big media, small community media investors are more interested in the provide the necessary counterpoint in helping return of their investment. shape the attitudes, beliefs, values and lifestyles of • Many of the values taught in schools are Filipino children. seldom supported by the values depicted in mainstream media. The communication media landscape for today's children and youth includes print, radio, television, The growth of citizen media" is a video games, computers and the on-line technology favorable trend as it encourages the of e-mail and various Internet applications such participation of children and the youth as social networking, blogs, chats, and user- in the production and dissemination of generated content. The shape of this landscape, information. They now are both producers media-related issues on child development, and consumers ('prosumers"). However, trends in communication media and the scenario this trend should be accompanied by for the Filipino child, and policy and program adherence to ethical standards. This recommendations are discussed in the sections has also implications in the relationship that follow. between professional journalists and citizen journalists. Communication Media and 229 the Future of Filipino Children Children of the Media: television is the most pervasive media channel. The 2004 4As Media Factbook showed TV household A Situationer ownership as follows: Metro Manila (96%), Mega Manila (94%), Balance Luzon (77%), Visayas (86%), Findings of the 2006 McCann-Erickson and Mindanao (83%). Television also was perceived Intergenerational Youth Study found that top as the most credible source of knowledge and leisure activities for teens after school remain to be information and overtook radio as the media traditional media, that is. watching TV and listening channel providing the population with knowledge to the radio. However, there is an emerging and information (2004 FLEMMS). Catering to prominence of technology-related activities like Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) are The Filipino use of celiphones and Internet, indicating a Channel of ABS-CBN and GMA Pinoy TV of GMA growing interest and participation in the so-called Network. technocentric life. Cable Television A. When Old is Still In: The Mass Media There are now 753 cable TV operators nationwide owned by more than 500 companies. Cable TV Newspapers is enjoyed by 36 percent of 2.2 million homes in Metro Manila. For the 13.1 million homes with TV Metro Manila has 30 dailies: 12 broadsheets, in Urban Philippines, only 26 percent have cable with nine in English and three in Chinese, and connection. Most programs on cable TV, however, 18 tabloids (2007). These dailies claim a total are from foreign satellite channels, since not circulation of over seven million (2005). About 150 enough local programs are produced. community papers outside Metro Manila regularly come out weekly or daily. Newspapers were cited as one of the top three sources of knowledge B. New Media, New Priorities and information in the 2003 Functional Literacy, Education and Mass Media Survey (FLEMMS). In Personal Computers and Internet Access terms of credibility, newspapers rank third, after television and radio, as a 'more often credible" The coming of the Cyber Age in the Philippines has mass medium (Philippine Center for Investigative also brought a "digital divide." Only 7 percent of Journalism, 2004). households owned personal computers, as of 2003 Radio (FLEMMS). The 4As Media Factbook (2004) cited that computer ownership among households in Metro Manila was 17 percent and only 7 percent in Radio is a pervasive mass medium, with 86 Urban Philippines. Personal computer penetration percent of Philippine households owning radio is estimated at 1.9 for every 100 persons. sets. Nationwide, radio reaches 98 percent of the population. Radio stations nationwide total 993 The Survey on Internet Access and Use by Filipino (National Telecommunications Commission, 2007). Children completed in October 2009 by the AIJC for As a source of knowledge and information, radio is UNICEF provides baseline data on the topic. The one of the top three sources (2003 FLEMMS). In survey had over 900 schoolchildren respondents nine regions, it ranked number one. As a credible from Metro Manila, Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. source, radio is considered "more often credible" According to the study, Internet usage is 74 percent by 35 percent, ranking higher than newspapers but for all four areas, higher in both the Visayas lower than television. area (90%) and Metro Manila (88 1%). The lowest Television incidence of usage is in Mindanao (47%). Majority of the non-users of Internet are female (55%), between nine to 12 years old (51 0/,,), are in grades With 350 stations nationwide (NTC. 2007), 230 INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY AND MASS MEDIA four to six (52%), and studying in the public schools form of Internet application that helps connect (66%). This finding seems to indicate the existence individuals online (Wikipedia 2006). of a digital divide. Reasons for not using the Internet centered mainly on the absence of Internet Friendster (www.friendster.com ), the most popular connection at home/school (61%) and computer social network service (SINS) in the Philippines, is illiteracy (51%). estimated to be used by about 5 million Filipino, as of end 2005. There are over 58 million registered Our schoolchildren are quite late' users, as Friendster users worldwide. The biggest percentage majority first used the Internet between 8 - 11 of users in Asia is from the Philippines with 39 years old, with Metro Manila and Visayas children percent of the site traffic. Other social networks as early users (2-9 years old), compared to Luzon include Myspace, Livejournal, Multiply, and and Mindanao schoolchildren. Face book. Internet cafes provide the venue for bridging the In the Social Media Study conducted by Universal digital divide, as 8 of 10 Internet users access the McCann in March 2008 entitled Power to the Internet in Internet cafes. Grade-schoolers access People Wave 3, the Philippines leads the way with the Internet more at home than in Internet cafes, 83 percent of the people surveyed being a member perhaps because the former may be perceived by of a social network, followed by 76 percent in both parents and guardians as safer and more secure. Hungary and Poland. In contrast, high school boys go to Internet cafés probably because there are less restrictions and A high incidence (88%) of membership in online they are able to socialize more with their peer social networks was reported by respondents of groups. the AIJC 2009 study. There is no difference among Mindanao (89%), Metro Manila (88%) and the The Synovate Media Atlas study conducted Visayas (88%). Luzon respondents indicated the nationwide from July 2008 to June 2009 reported lowest (76%) incidence of membership, probably that Internet access in the Philippines stands because being located in mountainous areas they at 40 percent, with the younger segment as the have limited access to the Internet. highest at 60 percent. In the Greater Manila area, 46 percent of respondents have access. Data was Blogging gathered from 8,028 respondents aged between 15 and 64 across all socioeconomic groups. Wikipedia defines blog as a 'website where entries are written in chronological order and commonly An earlier related study conducted October- displayed in reverse chronological order." Blogging November 2008 is the Yahoo-Nielsen Net Index enables individuals to "publish" their own profile, 2008. Covering 1,200 respondents with ages thoughts, and opinions, among others. ranging from 10 to over 50 years old, from 22 According to Liveiournal, the Philippines ranks major cities including Metro Manila, the study seventh among the top 15 countries where blog reported that children and young people are among hosting is popularly used. There are presently the heavy Internet users with 50 percent in this age 39,274 Filipino bloggers under this hosting site. bracket accessing the Internet. Another heavy user Among 29 countries surveyed, the Philippines is the 20 to 29 year-old bracket with 41 percent ranks second with 66 percent of Internet users going online.