Claire E. Tolentino, a fourth-year Bachelor of Arts in Communication (BAComm) student, clinched both “Best Presenter” and “Best Thesis” at the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) Online Research Colloquium with the theme “Synapse 2026: Connecting Minds, Meaning, and Message,” via Zoom on Friday, May 15.
Her qualitative case study, entitled “The Role of ABS-CBN News Selfie Patrol in the Evolution of Mobile Journalism,” examined how a Selfie Patrol balances immediacy, accessibility, and credibility while focusing on disaster and risk reports.
“Basically, a Selfie Patrol ay isang form ng Mobile Journalism or MoJo under ABS-CBN News. During disasters malaki ang nagiging papel or role ng Selfie Patrol as it provides real-time updates directly from the ground,” Ms. Tolentino explained the importance of Selfie Patrol.
Her study revealed that Selfie Patrol has successfully balanced immediacy, accessibility, and credibility with the use of the hybrid model of MoJo that integrates both the speed and flexibility of smartphone reporting.
The colloquium brought together and showcased the best research papers from the following programs: BAComm, Bachelor of Science in Psychology (BSPsy), and Bachelor of Arts in Psychology (BAPsy) for a joint discussion.
As part of the colloquium, the Best Presenters and Best Thesis Papers were deliberated by the Panel of Reactors: Dr. Jan Justin C. Rodriguez, Doctor of Communication (DComm); Dr. Helga Marie B. Cabarlie, Registered Psychometrician (RPM), Master of Science in Psychology (MSP), Doctor of Psychology (DPsy); and Dr. Sherwin B. Sapin, Doctor of Education (EDD).
In addition, the panel recognized Group 14 from BAComm with a study titled “From News Room to News Feed: Perceived Credibility of Citizen Versus Professional Journalism on TikTok among Laguna University Communication Students,” and Group 7 from BSPsy with a research study entitled “A Convergent Parallel Mixed Methods Study On Generational Perceptions of Psychological Distress Among IV District of Laguna.” They were awarded the top two and three “Best Presenters”, respectively.
Meanwhile, the second and third places for the “Best Thesis” category were both from BSPsy. Group 7 earned the second place, and Group 2 took the third spot with research titled “Child Free By Choice: A Phenomenological Study of Senior Women.”
Furthermore, the keynote speaker, Mr. James Christian Espayos, RPM, MSP, emphasized the importance of conducting undergraduate theses among the three fields. “Our role is no longer to access information, our task is deeper… more intellectual. We are called to filter noise from substance. To interpret surface-level findings and to transform information into meaningful knowledge.”
Photos:
By: Lourence Cuerbo
