Written By Prince Sean Kiefer T. Claros | December 10, 2025
The Bedan Herald bags multiple awards at the 27th Word Cup
WORD Cup Philippines is a national journalism conference and contest held annually that invites youth to test their skills and learn not only from industry professionals but also from their peers in a three-day event that challenges their wit, knowledge, and integrity. THE BEDAN HERALD’s contingent of ten campus journalists bagged a total of nine gold, five silver, and nine bronze medals, along with two honorable citations and a bronze ambassador award.
The 27th Word Cup was held from Dec. 5 to 7 at the National Press Club (NPC), Intramuros, Manila, with various campus journalists representing their publications and institutions nationwide.
As campus journalism grows more prominent, this event allowed campus journalists to grow and mature with the guidance of industry veterans and prominent figures like Leonel Abasola, NPC president, and The Daily Tribune reporter Alvin Murcia.
The contest proper began on the second day, with a press conference wherein Rep. Terry Ridon, House Infrastructure Committee Chairperson, was invited to discuss the current updates on the flood control project anomalies, providing campus press an opportunity to gather first-hand information and question a lawmaker on pressing issues of national interest. This was followed by the competition and workshop for news writing.
The afternoon scheduled the workshop and competition for Feature, Column, and Editorial Writing. For Sports Writing, Mobile Journalism, and Photojournalism a goodwill table tennis exhibition match held between two players from the Lyceum of the Philippines Manila varsity team was the main focus of their contests.
The second day began with the contests for Science & Technology, Copyreading & Headline Writing, and Editorial Cartooning, reconvening later in the day for the awarding ceremony.
The Bedan Herald has competed in the conference before, during in the 24th Word Cup where it brought home a multitude of awards and showed their prominence in the field.
Ten representatives from THE BEDAN HERALD participated in the 27th installment of the Cup, namely Isabel Daenah Manzanero (IV-BSLM), Luis Gabriel Santiago (II-BSA), Angela Marie De Leon (IV-BSLM), Maristella Mae Magdangal (III-BSP), Edwin Romero (IV-BSBA MM), Lindy Lois Tiu (IV-BSBA MM), Ashley Kiet Catarroja (I-BSLM), Alexandria Venice De Guzman (I-BSLM), Marie Leen Obal (I-BSA), and Jannica Faith Tan (I-BAIS), under the guidance of Prof. Vanessa Ignatio, the publication adviser, and Juan Miguel Diaz, Editor-in-Chief of the publication as well as the delegation’s coach.
“As members of TBH, the group already had the foundational skills needed,” Diaz commented as he explained his training regimen, prompting them to write articles swiftly twice per day. The coach, throughout the training, felt their determination and willingness to improve with their openness to feedback.
The team brought home a total of 23 awards this time around, championing the Bedan name and the pride of The Bedan Herald, achieving a total of nine gold, five silver, and nine bronze awards, including two special citations in the photojournalism categories and a bronze Word Cup ambassador award.
As a second-timer being a Word Cup participant, Magdangal shared, “I wanted to show how much I’ve improved, also to make my mentors proud and represent our publication and our school with pride.”
Magdangal considered her previous experience as essential learning lessons for this time around. She placed first in three competitions: Sports writing, Science & Technology writing, and Column writing, respectively.
“I not only had to focus on myself and my own category but also the people with me. I had to keep in mind their deadlines, interview questions, and overall whether they need anything from me,” Manzanero explained her experience as the leader of the delegates.
Manzanero considered the deep bonds they formed together to be a great achievement itself as they shared this experience together. To her, their placements in the contests were a product of their hard work and determination, despite the pressure to do well, as this was the second time The Bedan Herald competed.
The success of the 27th Word Cup marks a promising advent for the new year of journalism, not only for The Bedan Herald but other campus publications. The aspiring journalists continue to hone their skills and broaden their perspectives, strengthen the fight against misinformation, and improve journalistic integrity as a whole.
Volume 31 | Issue 6
