The mixed method study documented how journalists negotiated “the impact of COVID-19 coverage on their mental health” through surveys and in-depth interviews uncovered how journalists balanced doing their jobs and trying to avoid contracting the dreaded disease and possibly infecting their loved ones. Only 47% of the interviewed journalists in the Philippines and Malaysia said they were given protective gear, and some experienced companies’ refusal to cover the cost of testing—something that the Philippine government strictly required especially during the time when vaccines were not yet available.

Exposure to the virus was not the sole source of mental health strain, though, as the sustainability of the journalism outfits was also a concern—especially in the Philippines. With the Philippines counted as one of the countries with the strictest mobility restrictions, lockdown-induced business losses forced community newspapers to close. Journalists likewise juggled both in-person and virtual news coverage, resulting in heavier workload and the need to always be ready to report.

Salvosa and Esguerra are academic researchers of the Research Center for Culture, Arts, and the Humanities. Salvosa is a co-adviser of the Varsitarian and is the incumbent Chair of the Department of Journalism.

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In a chapter entitled “,” the three scholars pointed out that the “spread of misinformation, amplified on social media and other digital platforms, is proving to be as much a threat to global public health as the virus itself.” Rumors, hate speech, conspiracy theories, and orchestrated deception campaigns have collectively led to the “large-scale contamination of the public sphere,” the scholars averred, relating to the “information disorder” now present.

The Philippine context was investigated alongside those of Malaysia and Pakistan while utilizing the risk journalism framework of the Global Risk Journalism Hub. Common among interviews with journalists are the observations of an “increasingly fractious, populist, and polarized political environment” in which extremist views of vaccination, promotion of treatment without scientific evidence, and lack of digital literacy leading to the belief in conspiracy theories were among the findings.

The article is part of the new book Ecologies of Global Risk Journalism, published by Routledge in 2024. Salvosa is the incumbent Chair of the new Department of Journalism, and he serves as Co-Adviser of the Varsitarian. Both are academic researchers of the Research Center for Culture, Arts, and the Humanities.

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Arcalas won for the story “” that was published in his current news outfit The Philippine STAR.

A decorated journalist, Arcalas is the first Thomasian to receive the Bright Leaf Hall of Fame award for agriculture journalism. Last November 8, he also won the Agriculture and Mining Reporter of the Year award from the Economic Journalists Association of the Philippines.

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MA in Journalism candidate Tyrone Jasper Piad won the Best Business Feature Award for his three-part series in 2023 “The costs of mobility and the increasing use of cycling,” done for the Philippine Daily Inquirer. This series was the capstone requirement for the course Data Journalism. The articles are as follows:

●      Part 1:

●      Part 2:

●      Part 3:

Piad is actually a back-to-back winner for Best Business Feature for EJAP. Last year, Piad won for his 2022 story with his former outlet BusinessMirror titled “.”

MA in Journalism lecturer Jasper Emmanuel Arcalas also won, this time as the Agriculture and Mining Reporter of the Year. Arcalas, a 2024 graduate who’s a newly hired lecturer at the BA in Journalism program, has been winning national awards and one international award while being a scholar for The Varsitarian, studying in the graduate journalism program.

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The assessor team was composed of Prof. Dr. Satria Bijaksana, AUN-QA Council Member and Chief Assessor, Asst. Prof. Dr. Sharul Tazrajiman Hj Tajuddin, Prof. Dato’ Ir. Dr. Riza Atiq Abdullah Bin O.K. Rahmat, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Pham Van Tuan, Dr. Le Thi Giao Chi, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vongdeuan Osay, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Pornpun Prajaknate, and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Chailerd Pichitpornchai.

The assessment looked into how the program is being delivered, as envisioned in the University’s and programs’ vision, mission, goals, objectives, and outcomes, and how these are realized through the manpower and material resources provided by the University. The multi-stakeholder consultations included in the assessment proper involved University officials, the academic staff, the support personnel, students, alumni, and employers.

With the new recognition, eighteen of UST’s bachelor’s programs now have the AUN-QA’s nod. The first fourteen programs are BS Accountancy, BS Biochemistry, BS Biology, BS Chemical Engineering, BS Chemistry, Bachelor of Elementary Education, BS Electronics Engineering, BS Medical Technology, BS Nursing, BS Occupational Therapy, BS Physical Therapy, BS Psychology, and Bachelor of Secondary Education.

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