Two decades of leaps and bounds

Reaching 20 years in a community that almost everybody tries to write off in the age of internet and social media is a feat of its own.

Ever since the world shrank thanks to the world wide web and its offspring, many declared that print is dying.

But two decades hence the first copy of Daily Guardian (then called The Guardian), that dying declaration became a credo of resurrection on our part.

The internet may have eaten in our traditional revenues and shifted public attention to Facebook, Twitter, etc., but the massive shift of information media actually provided us with a newer and bigger platform to continue our advocacy for community journalism.

Since our rebranding two years ago, we saw the widening footprint of DG in the virtual world, which pushed us from more than just a newspaper based in Iloilo City but a conscientious source of information and analysis across the country.

That transmogrification was accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic which tested the resolve of the community press as well. Challenging as it was, the crisis did not stop DG from exploring the mysterious and labyrinthine environ of a highly wired world. With everyone thirsting for information on an unknown enemy that is COVID-19, the crisis motivated us to tell stories that beefed up our knowledge and reopened our eyes to reconnecting to one another.

Modesty aside, 2020 was a year of victories for DG. We became a finalist in seven categories of the 2020 Globe Media Excellence Awards (GMEA), with 13 of our entries making it to the final pool. Our digital footprint made strong showing in the awards – 3 out of 4 of the Explanatory Videos of the Year and 3 out of 10 for Social Media Advocacy of the Year were in the final list. As they say, the nominations were already a win for us.

Our victory year was completed when the Philippine Press Institute hailed DG as the Best Community Paper for Business and Economic Reporting in its annual Civic Journalism Awards.

DG was cited for its “extensive coverage of business and economic activity not only in Iloilo but throughout the region; stories are well-written and comprehensive.”

The BEST IN BUSINESS AND ECONOMIC REPORTING award is given to community newspapers for excellence in the coverage and reporting of local business and economic events.  The newspaper must demonstrate regularity in its coverage and frequency of in-depth reporting of economic activities in the community. It is focused on economic and business developments of the community – its issues, concerns and, most importantly, existing and potential economic opportunities; it promotes entrepreneurship; it presents to the readers the impact of global and national business and economic issues and trends on the community economy.

PPI’s Civic Journalism Community Press Awards aims to raise the standards of journalism in the countryside, seeks to honor print news organizations, not only for editorial excellence but also for their role as catalysts for community development.

In our 20^th year, we expect more challenges as we all try to rebound from this pandemic. But we see a lot of opportunities to expand our reach and our brand of journalism. What we achieved in 20 years is likely to be surpassed in the next 2 to 5 years as our major plans, which include a spanking new headquarters, take shape. Bolstered by a young team of community journalists who mastered the magic of social media, Ilonggos are in for an exciting 20 years and even more.

For now, we thank our advertisers, readers, and ardent supporters for believing in what we have done and the things we intend to achieve.

Madamo nga Salamat kag padayon!