Jing Castañeda tells it like it is By Gypsy Baldovino (The Philippine Star)

Capable, committed, clear on purpose. These words best describe Jing Castañeda, new anchor of ANC and The Filipino Channel’s Balitang Middle East.

Jing and Henry Omaga-Diaz dissect the conditions in the Middle East and how they affect the lives of overseas Filipino workers and their families, every week.

With a decade-long experience in news reporting on ANC, DZMM and ABS-CBN, Jing occupies a stellar post in Balitang Middle East.

Jing made waves in September 2007 through her ground-breaking exposé on the multimillion-dollar ZTE-NBN scandal that rocked the establishment and damaged the friendships of some of the country’s most influential personages.

One particular assignment, however, brought to the fore her purpose in news reporting.

It was November 2004. Jing recalls, “I was two months pregnant -- though I didn’t know it then — when we went to Real, Quezon to cover the worst landslides that hit the province due to typhoons Winnie and Yoyong.

“Nasira ang mga tulay at kalsada daan-daang mga bangkay ang nakahilera sa kalye, mga gym at mga eskuwelahan. Then, someone tipped us that a building collapsed in Bgy. Tigaon and many residents were believed to be buried. So, we decided to investigate and braved the eight-hour walk to reach the site.

“Totoo nga. Gumuho nga yung Reparador building. On Dec. 9, and 10th day of the rescue effort, four people were found still alive underneath the rubble,” Jing relates.

To this day, Jing couldn’t forget the words of a miner, who said he volunteered for that mission after seeing her report on the collapsed building.

“Yun lang naman ang dahilan kaya ako narito,” she admits. “Yung makatulong.”

She found her niche in Balitang Middle East, where she intends to focus more on public service. “I see it as the heart of the program,” she says.

Asked how she manages to be composed in reporting emotionally-charged incidents such as the Tigaon tragedy, she states: “Because I’m not the story.”

In other words, she is here to tell the truth with a capital T.

She says, “One of the biggest challenges for journalists is to make sure that learned skills go hand in hand with the right values. Your upbringing, your background, the value system of the people around you — all these come into play in molding your concept of what’s right and wrong as a journalist.

“Our batch in ABS-CBN is very lucky our news heads, Maria Ressa for TV and Peter Musngi for DZMM give such a premium on ethics. It is important to have mentors who will help you sift through the gray areas and inspire you to remain on the principled path.”

Before working for ABS-CBN, Jing was a production/research coordinator on news and documentaries of ABS Network, New York, USA.

After finishing her Bachelor of Arts degree from Ateneo de Manila University, she studied Broadcasting in New York University, and finished her master’s degree in Business Administration, also from Ateneo.

Aside from Balitang Middle East, Jing serves as news anchor for the hourly news updates of ABS-CBN Channel 2 and Radyo Patrol Balita of DZMM Teleradyo.