Inihayag na ng Junior Chamber International Philippines (JCI) nitong Biyernes ang mga nahirang na The Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) para sa taong 2021.
Kabilang dito ang GMA News and Public Affairs Head of Digital at GMA News Online Editor-in-Chief na si Jaemark "Jae" Tordecilla.
Dumalo sa ginanap na announcement ceremony sa Makati City sina Education Sec. Leonor Briones, PLDT Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan, TOYM President Chaye Cabal-Revilla, at ibang opisyal.
Sa panayam ng GMA News, sinabi ni Tordecilla na ang natanggap niyang pagkilala ay alay din sa Kapuso team, "who have been tireless in delivering serbisyong totoo to viewers on digital media, whatever device they're on, whatever platform they're on."
"For that to be recognized, that's really humbling and it feels very good," saad niya. "Hindi lang sa akin, pero sa buong team natin sa GMA. We work extended hours, we try to verify all the information to make sure that everything is correct. We take that extra step kaya mahirap talaga ang trabaho, kaya fulfilling na na-recognize."
Ang iba pang pinarangalan ay sina: Ariestelo A. Asilo for Social Entrepreneurship; Iloisa Romaraog-Diga for Agricultural Entrepreneurship; Eleazar Abraham ‘Abe’ L. Orobia for Education and Culture; Anna R. Oposa Environment for Marine Conservation; Jayeel S. Cornelio for Education and Sociology; Maria Yzabell Angel V. Palma for Science and Technology; Jaime Alfonso M. Aherrera for Medicine (Cardiology); Lou Sabrina S. Ongkiko for Education and the Academe; at Melvin J. Sanicas for Medicine.
"This is the significance of what we are recognizing and celebrating right now: four young women and six men, at the end of the day, prioritized others above themselves at a time when billions around the world were displaced, disrupted, anguished, besieged like never before, and thus focused on their own self-preservation," ayon kay TOYM Inc. Chairman Bienvenido Tantoco III.
"They kept their eyes on the prize, their calling, their purpose, and the most vulnerable," dagdag niya.
Sinabi ni Tordecilla na hindi naging madali maging sa digital media practitioners ang hamon ng COVID-19 pandemic.
"There's a lot of discourse about social media and fake news but the thing about digital media is there's an opportunity for us to get to know our audiences better, just because of the nature of the platform," paliwanag niya.
Sa panahong ito, sinabi ni Tordecilla na naghahanap ang publiko ng mapagkukunan ng mga makapagkakatiwalang balita at impormasyon.
"Naghahanap sila ng pagkakatiwalaan, and I think for the past two years, that has been underscored not just to me but my whole team, who has been working so hard. It was a mission for us to fill that need when people are at their most anxious about what's happening in the world," ayon kay Tordecilla.
Gaganapin sa susunod na linggo ang opisyal na awarding sa TOYM honorees.
Isinasagawa taun-taon ang TOYM awards para kilalanin ang kontribusyon sa kani-kanilang larangan at komunidad ng mga Pinoy na nasa edad 18 hanggang 40.
"[I hope] that they will continue their work and they will become an inspiration to our Filipino youth, and not only the youth, but all the Filipinos, that there's still hope in the country, na merong mga tao na tulad nila na hindi nagsasawa tulungan 'yung kapwa Pilipino," ayon kay Michael Ho, National Chairman ng TOYM Search 2021.
"What I hope is hindi sila magsawa, and that they could contribute and help... kasi ['pag] may natutulungan tayo na kahit isa lang, it will be a ripple effect," patuloy niya. —FRJ, GMA News
