PIA-6 campus journ program alum gives back

By: Leonard T. Pineda

THIRTEEN years ago, Aries Carino was just one of the participants in the annual Campus Journalism Seminar-Workshop spearheaded by the Philippine Information Agency (PIA) in Western Visayas.

Moving forward, Capt. Carino is now the team leader of the Military Information Support Team (MIST) of the United States Army.

“It is very surreal. Years ago, I was only a student listening to veterans, grasping the experiences that they had, and now I am using these in my daily job,” he said.

Recently, Carino, along with fellows from the MIST, Darrell Casino and Byron Babbel, conducted an activity dubbed “Social Media Analytics, Digital and Multimedia Strategies and Subject Matter Expert Exchange” with the PIA-6 staff as participants.

The topics covered in the activity included social media prospecting, marketing in the digital age, and social media analytics.

He said that doing the activity is one way of giving back to the agency that has contributed to honing his skills.

Carino was a former editor-in-chief of “The Lead,” the student publication of the Communication Department of the University of St. La Salle (USLS) in Bacolod City, Negros Occidental.

The resource speakers from the Military Information Support Team of the US Army, together with the PIA-6 staff, pose for posterity on Aug. 20 at the Madison Hotel, Iloilo City. (PIA-6)

In 2007, he became news editor of the university’s student publication “The Spectrum,” while also serving as correspondent for The Lead.

When he joined the Basic Journalism Seminar-Workshop, he would garner recognition as “Most Promising Writer.”

He was also an IWAG awardee, which is another initiative of PIA-6 recognizing graduating student editors and their immense contribution to developmental communication.

Carino shared that during his stint in their student publication, one of his memorable experience was interviewing the local populace in the island-province of Guimaras who were affected by the oil spill way back in 2006.

“We were able to interact with the locals to get their sentiments, to determine their needs,” he said.

He said it was a huge achievement for him, as a student journalist, being able to serve as bridge between the community and the government.

As for his experiences as a former trainee of the PIA-6 campus journalism program, he said he would always be thankful for the valuable learning he gained from this initiative, as well as to people such as Prof. Allen Del Carmen, who helped mold him to be better in this craft.

“It was truly holistic. We were taught to always write based on facts and to make sure that our sources are legitimate,” he said.

He added he was also able to learn how to be relatable and adaptable through the training he received from PIA-6.  (PIA-Iloilo)