Maguindanao Massacre and the Role of the Modern Media

Employing the descriptive method, the study determined (1) the effects of the Maguindanao Massacre on the media practitioners in their job performance, efficiency, and effectiveness; (2) the media practitioners’ perception of their role in the modern media according to spreading propaganda, public relations, and political communications; and (3) the significant relationship between the effects of the Maguindanao Massacre among media practitioners and their perception of their role in the modern media today.  Quota sampling was used to determine the number of qualified respondents from media offices of print, radio, and television companies in Cagayan de Oro City. The researchers immediately distributed the questionnaires to the select respondents together with the letter of approval. After the questionnaires were answered, the researchers retrieved the questionnaires immediately and the data were tallied, statistically tested, analyzed and interpreted using frequency counts and percentage distribution. The result of the study showed that the effect on the job performance of the respondents may vary in a given situation. Moreover, their job effectiveness and job efficiency were not affected by the Maguindanao massacre. In terms of their perception of their role in the modern media, the highest mean falls on public relation, followed by political communication. The lowest mean falls on spreading propaganda. The statistical test showed that there is no significant relationship between the media practitioners’ job performance and their perception of their role in the modern media in terms of spreading propaganda. The significant relationship exists between job performance and political communication.

Keywords: Maguindanao massacre, job performance, effectiveness, efficiency, spreading propaganda, political communication, public relation.