How new breed of reporters shape the BusinessWorld newsroom
By Mhicole A. Moral, Special Features and Content Writer
For nearly four decades, BusinessWorld has built its reputation on the discipline of reporting business news with accuracy and relevance. As the media industry moved from a predominantly print-driven environment to one shaped by digitalization, the multimedia company developed how it delivers journalism without abandoning the standards that established its name.
Its expansion into digital platforms, including www.bworldonline.com and social media accounts, allowed the brand to reach audiences beyond its traditional readership.
The transition also opened a new chapter in the newsroom, with younger reporters bringing digital-first instincts and a willingness to experiment with various formats.
BusinessWorld Editor-in-Chief Cathy Rose A. Garcia said the publication’s approach to younger journalists combines a strong grounding in traditional journalism with an openness to new platforms and formats.
“We want to give young journalists a strong foundation in business journalism. We focus on helping them develop the skills they need to become good journalists,” she said. “At the same time, we are also learning from the younger generation of journalists. They’re more comfortable using new platforms and formats.”
For Ms. Garcia, preserving journalism standards and adapting to a changing audience do not have to compete.
“The standards should remain high, but the storytelling has to evolve. We want our journalists to take the discipline and credibility associated with BusinessWorld and apply them to whatever form journalism takes next,” she added.
A digital-first newsroom
For younger reporters, digital journalism changed how they identify a story, decide when it needs to be published, determine which audience it should reach, and choose the format that can communicate it most clearly.
BusinessWorld Senior Reporter Justine Irish D. Tabile said the online environment has created a stronger sense of urgency around publishing news on the same day it is gathered. A story that might previously have waited for a later deadline can quickly lose its timeliness when other news organizations publish the same development online.
“There is a need to make it clear in the story why the issue is important and how it could affect people in their everyday lives,” she explained. “[I] tell them immediately why the story matters.”
Ms. Tabile noted that she previously viewed social media updates mainly through the lens of developments related to the beat she covered. Now, when a newsworthy story reaches her, she considers whether it warrants an update regardless of whether it falls directly within her assigned beat.
For BusinessWorld Multimedia Reporter Edg Adrian A. Eva, the speed of information online makes competition more intense, but he also sees the need for reporters to provide something beyond immediacy.
“With the advent of social media, the proliferation of information has become faster and more competitive than ever. While I also have to compete in terms of speed, I always keep in mind that I need to go beyond simply being fast. I have to delve deeper into an issue and add value to my stories,” he said.
He noted that being a multimedia reporter means thinking beyond written copy and considering whether videos, photographs, or other formats can communicate an issue more comprehensively.
“As journalists, our goal should always be to keep our stories grounded, relevant, and accessible,” Mr. Eva explained.
Writing for readers to understand
The coverage of BusinessWorld spans industries, markets, policies, economic developments, and technical subjects that can be difficult to follow, particularly for readers who may encounter a specialized term, unfamiliar figure, or complex policy issue.
For young reporters, making these subjects accessible has become part of the reporting process itself, requiring them to consider not just what information needs to be reported, but also how that information can be explained without losing accuracy or nuance.
When producing stories, BusinessWorld Reporter Almira Louise S. Martinez said she explains complicated terms and seeks perspectives from industry experts and professionals who can help make difficult topics easier to understand.
“I use the skills I learned in traditional journalism to produce different content for social media platforms, such as understanding which questions the audience would ask and how I can answer them accurately,” she shared.
The shorter format, however, does not remove the responsibility to provide context. Instead, it can make the reporter’s judgment about what information to include even more important.
For instance, a concise social media post may introduce a subject, while the full article provides the reporting, data, explanations, and sources needed to understand it. A video, on the other hand, may simplify the presentation of an issue through visuals.
Ms. Martinez said different formats can serve different purposes. Articles, videos, podcasts, and photographs affect how information is delivered and how audiences comprehend it.
“It’s important to understand which format fits not just your story, but also your audience. Articles, videos, podcasts, and photos each affect how you deliver your story and how viewers comprehend it,” she added.
Such distinction matters as multimedia journalism is not merely the conversion of written stories into different formats. Each medium requires a different way of organizing information.
Senior Reporter Beatriz Marie D. Cruz takes a similar approach but places particular emphasis on identifying the information that readers need from an event.
Her social media posts focus on the most important or relevant points raised during the events and press conferences she covers. At the same time, she said she tries to maintain BusinessWorld’s voice and style.
“We compete in terms of maintaining our digital journalist persona. Being a digital-first reporter means utilizing my social media presence to break the news first,” she shared.
Nearly four years into the job, Ms. Cruz said, being a reporter involves networking and strategizing to get the best story. It also involves finding the most relevant angle that can generate interest among readers and remaining critical amid the different issues and personalities that appear in online discussions.
Younger journalists as digital natives
The arrival of young reporters has introduced a different set of newsroom habits at BusinessWorld, shaped by a generation that encountered news through digital platforms as part of everyday life.
Their familiarity with social media, online conversations, visual content, and rapidly changing digital formats has given them a perspective on journalism beyond traditional mediums.
Ms. Martinez believed that younger reporters are more comfortable experimenting with different storytelling formats.
“Combining the skills of experienced reporters with those of newcomers helps balance exploring how people consume news with how BusinessWorld delivers it,” she said.
Likewise, Ms. Cruz explained that young reporters bring digital savvy and fresh perspectives to the newsroom.
“Young reporters bring in their digital savvy and fresh perspectives to the newsroom. These will be hard to ignore as the world becomes more digital,” she added.
On the other hand, Mr. Eva said Generation Z reporters bring additional dynamics because they are familiar with online conversations and trends and can contribute skills beyond writing.
“We can offer more than just writing. We are also digital natives who understand the conversations and trends happening on the internet. I think our newsroom can tap into that potential, particularly in finding new ways to tell stories, reach audiences, and understand how people consume information online,” he explained.
The same familiarity can also affect the reporting process from the point at which a story is conceived. Younger reporters may encounter a topic first through an online conversation, recognize the public interest surrounding it, and consider how BusinessWorld can approach the subject through its own reporting.
Meanwhile, Ms. Tabile said working with journalists from different age groups has allowed her to learn from both sides.
“One thing that I really like about being a reporter is how the job opens the door for me to interact with people from different age groups. Each generation teaches me something, and those experiences help shape how I do my job today,” she shared.
Generational differences, she noted, can affect newsroom practices without creating a divide between traditional and digital journalism.
“Working with reporters from different generations helps because we learn from each other. I get to learn from the experience of senior reporters, while younger reporters also push us to try new ways of doing things,” Ms. Tabile added.
BusinessWorld Corporate Editor Arjay L. Balinbin explained that the publication gives young reporters guidance from editors while allowing them to bring their own ideas to the newsroom.
“The way we deliver the news can evolve, but what stays consistent is how we check and handle information. Whether it’s a long report or a short social media post, the facts, attribution, and context still have to be right,” Mr. Balinbin said.
Such distinction provides a framework for understanding BusinessWorld’s transition from a newspaper operating primarily through print to a publication serving audiences across multiple platforms.
“Our role is to explain [editorial] standards and help young reporters apply them across different formats,” he concluded.
