ANYONE know if someone has been caught taking a bath in this fountain?
Our online videographer Janie Christine Octia took this video — she noticed the “Bawal maligo” sign because a group of foreigners saw it and started laughing.
Given what this five-star hotel went through last year, maybe they should post at least two more additional signs: “Bawal ang standoff” and “No parking for APCs.”
Want more offbeat videos? Check out the Lighter Side channel of INQUIRER.net VDO.
IF you haven’t seen it yet, here’s a copy of “Don’t be too CNN,” the music video that’s criticizing Western media such as CNN for allegedly demonizing China and coming out with distorted reports on the unrest in Tibet.
And here’s a Reuters video report on the “Don’t be too CNN” video.
Now, I’m not the biggest fan of the Chinese government, though I find a lot to admire about China and its culture. Frankly, however, I can understand the frustration of some Chinese citizens over how Western media portrays their country. For all its claims of being objective, it’s hard not to think of media outlets such as CNN as being biased in presenting the Western viewpoint or version of events. Yup, I know there’s no such thing as complete objectivity, but Western media, intentionally or not, views everything through its own eyes and set of values, which it then tries to apply to the non-Western world.
This seeming bias has become even more pronounced in a post-9/11 world and the neverending “War on Terror,” almost as if it were unpatriotic for any mainstream media outlet in the US to criticize the American government or offer dissenting opinions on the war against terrorists. How many years did George W. Bush get a free ride from US media? Which prompted people to look for alternative news sources such as blogs and media outlets such as Al Jazeera. Whether you agree with what’s on Al Jazeera or not, it owes its success to the perception of people that they can find stories and viewpoints here that you probably weren’t going to see on CNN.
It’s almost taken for granted by Western media that the Chinese people are not free and are unhappy, and I suppose with the way the Internet is regulated in China, many foreigners just assume that the Chinese netizens who speak out against the Western media’s alleged distortions are brainwashed, coerced, or paid by the government. Because they just assume that’s the way it must be, yet who speaks for the Chinese, if not themselves? The reality is probably quite complicated — certainly more so than the West’s penchant for painting things in black and white and designating one Evil Empire after another.
“Quid est veritas?” Pilate once asked. “What is truth?” Now that question is being asked in cyberspace.
IT’S been another tiring yet satisfying day, editing and uploading videos sent by our reporters from different parts of the metropolis as they covered the 22nd anniversary of the 1986 People Power revolution, and the pro- and anti-administration rallies that were held today in the wake of the national broadband network scandal.
I’m proud of what we’ve been able to accomplish with INQUIRER.net VDO, in making online video a staple offering of INQUIRER.net, despite all the obstacles, despite the fact that we don’t have a broadcast background and are coming up with original video content rather than shoveling online the same stuff that’s already on TV. From the start, we knew that we couldn’t, and in fact shouldn’t, compete with TV. The traditional broadcast networks are giants who have a lot more money than we do. But to again use my favorite analogy, I liken the broadcast networks to the US when it was trying to fight a conventional war in Vietnam, while we’re like the Vietcong fighting a guerrilla war. The networks may have the money and the might, but we know the terrain — and we’re a lot more mobile. We know what works online, and I firmly believe that we have the advantage over traditional broadcasters when it comes to online video.
Anyway, here are the clips we uploaded today for our video coverage of the People Power anniversary. Check them out, and keep visiting INQUIRER.net VDO. You might also be interested in taking part in an online forum on the NBN deal — check out this article for more info.
