MEDIUM RARE

Does the Rotary Club of Manila have more fun? They meet every blessed week without getting bored or tired of each other’s faces, but it could also be that I happen to have more friends in this club than in any other. More likely, the truth is that their projects don’t seem to gather moss, they move quickly from planning to real-time action. For example, 111 wheelchairs were distributed in Bacoor, Cavite on June 10, followed by a golf tournament yesterday to raise funds for more projects. Last June 15, I joined their meeting at the New World Hotel because it was the date chosen to honor the year’s outstanding journalists: Daily Tribune, newspaper of the year; GMA Integrated News, TV news station of the year; and DZRH’s Executive Session, talk show of the year. It had been a while since I broke bread with colleagues, ‘twas time to reconnect with old friends in Rotary, including Jack Rodriguez, whose wife Sonia, my friend, had just left that morning for a vacation in Orlando; Frank Evaristo, who was a regular at our “Bulong Pulungan” for years before the Covid-19 pandemic; and club president Hermie Esguerra, the handsomest, most glamorous logistician whose tankers transport oil and water in massive quantities over the waves and across oceans. Hermie is also the most time-conscious Rotarian host hereabouts. I watched him clocking officers and members as they delivered their spiels or speeches. I could only agree: the longer a speech, the more boring it becomes; the more words, the sooner you lose your audience. It’s a lesson ingrained in journalists: Cut to the chase. Use short words. Keep the story brief. The deadline – by the minute or by the hour – is meant to keep the pressure on reporters and editors. A few short words about the awardees. Willy Fernandez of the Tribune said his wife Chingbee does “quite a job” running a tight ship. The camera-shy Felipe Gozon, chairman of GMA Network Inc., was represented by Oliver Amoroso, VP and head of Regional TV and Synergy.  Executive Session’s six panelists were represented by Deo Macalma, aka “Mayor of Star City,” home of MBC. Rotary Manila deserves congratulations, too, for paying attention to how media pay attention to reporting the news.