Media and Politics Forum

On March 19, 2026, the 12th Media and Politics Forum, “Fun, Fearless–and Fierce: Reporting while Female,” was held at Leong Hall by SocSc 180i classes under the guidance of Sir John Nery, in partnership with the Friedrich Naumann Foundation.

In celebration of National Women’s Month, the forum spotlighted the voices and experiences of women in journalism, featuring award-winning journalist Luchi Cruz-Valdes. Through a candid dialogue, she reflected on her journey from a young reporter to a seasoned journalist, highlighting the grit, courage, and resilience that defined her career.

The discussion explored the realities of reporting while female—from navigating newsroom challenges to breaking barriers—while emphasizing the power of truthful storytelling in shaping public understanding.

Ultimately, the forum served as a reminder that women have every right to redefine and embody what fearless journalism looks like.

Photos and Spiel by: Ariana Jurisprudencia, Coco Pimentel, and Paula San Luis

We would like to express our deepest gratitude to everyone who joined us last March 19, 2026, for the 12th Media and Politics Forum, “Fun, Fearless–and Fierce: Reporting while Female.” 🎀 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘂𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗿 𝗷𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝘂𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗺, 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗯𝘂𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗮 𝗻𝗲𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗿𝗲𝗴𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗼𝗹𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘄𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗲𝗹𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗷𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗺.

A massive thank you to our esteemed speaker, 𝗟𝘂𝗰𝗵𝗶 𝗖𝗿𝘂𝘇-𝗩𝗮𝗹𝗱𝗲𝘀, for sharing her fearlessness and gutsy experiences. Her journey from a budding reporter to a seasoned journalist serves as a powerful statement to the vital role of women in journalism and the grit required to uphold the truth

We are deeply grateful for the following organizations who have made this forum possible:

Friedrich Naumann Foundation
Association of Communication Majors
The Philippine Collegian
UA&P University Student Government

To all our partners and attendees, thank you for helping us turn this vision into reality.

Layout by: Tiffany Chua-Reyes
Spiel by: Coco Pimentel

One day to go! ⏳

With the university’s approval, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝟭𝟮𝘁𝗵 𝗠𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗮 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘀 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝘂𝗺 𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗲𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝘂𝘀𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗲. Join us at the Fun, Fearless—and Fierce: Reporting While Female as we bring together two of the country’s leading female journalists.

Featuring Pia Hontiveros-Pagkalinawan and Luchi Cruz-Valdes, this forum opens the floor to discussions on courage, credibility, and the power of women telling stories.

📍 Leong Hall, Ateneo de Manila University
🗓 March 19, 2026 | 12:30–2:00 PM

The forum is held in partnership with the Friedrich Naumann Foundation.

Layout by: Gabbie Binguan
Spiel by: John Daniel Cancela

📣 To all interested participants of the 12th Media and Politics Forum, please be informed!

Being a woman in journalism 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘂𝗽, 𝗮𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿, 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗶𝘁𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹 𝘂𝗻𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗱, 𝘂𝗻𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗹, 𝗼𝗿 𝗲𝘅𝗵𝗮𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴. It means carrying both passion and pressure at the same time: for the love of the game, and the reality of having to navigate harassment, doubt, and being overlooked. Fun, Fearless—and Fierce: Reporting While Female opens space for these stories to be heard.

𝗕𝗲𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝘄𝗼𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗸𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝗴𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝘆𝘄𝗮𝘆.

In our forum, Ms. Pia and Ms. Luchi will share more about these lived realities; the challenges, the strength one needs to stay, and what it truly feels like to be a woman in journalism today.

This forum is held in partnership with the Friedrich Naumann Foundation.

Layout by: Yen De Los Santos
Spiel by: Chloe de Guzman

𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝘄𝗼 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗿𝘆’𝘀 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘃𝗼𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗷𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗺. 🎙️

In celebration of National Women's Month, the USG, in partnership with the 𝗠𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗮 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘀 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝘂𝗺, invites Dragons to The 12𝘁𝗵 𝗠𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗮 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘀 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝘂𝗺: 𝗙𝘂𝗻, 𝗙𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀—𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗙𝗶𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗲: 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗪𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗙𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗲.

Join award-winning journalists 𝗣𝗶𝗮 𝗛𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗼𝘀-𝗣𝗮𝗴𝗸𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘄𝗮𝗻 and 𝗟𝘂𝗰𝗵𝗶 𝗖𝗿𝘂𝘇-𝗩𝗮𝗹𝗱𝗲𝘀 as they share insights on courage, credibility, and the realities of reporting while female. This forum opens meaningful conversations on the power of women in journalism and the stories they tell.

The forum is open to UA&P students, so don’t miss this opportunity to be part of the discussion.

📍 Leong Hall, Ateneo de Manila University
🗓 March 19, 2026 | 12:30–2:00 PM

Register here: https://tinyurl.com/12thMAPForum

For inquiries, you may reach out at [email protected].

Meet the speakers. 🎙️

Two of the country’s most respected voices in broadcast journalism take the stage for the 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝟭𝟮𝘁𝗵 𝗠𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗮 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘀 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝘂𝗺: 𝗙𝘂𝗻, 𝗙𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀—𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗙𝗶𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗲: 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗪𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗙𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗲.

Join award-winning journalists 𝗟𝘂𝗰𝗵𝗶 𝗖𝗿𝘂𝘇-𝗩𝗮𝗹𝗱𝗲𝘀 and 𝗣𝗶𝗮 𝗛𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗼𝘀-𝗣𝗮𝗴𝗸𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘄𝗮𝗻 as they bring decades of newsroom experience to the conversation, sharing insights from the frontlines of Philippine media and the realities of reporting with courage, credibility, and conviction.

The forum is open to everyone—Ateneans and non-Ateneans alike— who want to be part of the conversation.

📍 Leong Hall, Ateneo de Manila University
🗓 March 19, 2026 | 12:30–2:00 PM

Register here: https://tinyurl.com/12thMAPForum

This forum is held in partnership with the Friedrich Naumann Foundation.

Layout by: Jojo Escober
Spiel by: John Daniel Cancela

BEHIND THE SCENES. Media Nation on Air—today, at 9.30 am! Please watch on either the Radyo Katipunan page or the Radyo Katipunan YouTube channel. Thanks! (And we would deeply appreciate your feedback.)