CNN Philippines journalist David Santos defended their use of improvised mic stick to cover the news.

In a passionate Facebook post, Santos slammed those who are making fun of their equipment saying it doesn’t diminish their roles in bringing news to the people in whatever capacity they have.

“Team ko po ito. Ako po ang reporter nila. Sa Baguio City po yan. At yes, amin po yang ‘low budget, galing kalakal, panungkit ng sampayan’ na mic stick. Hehe

“Pero to be honest, kahit ano pong panglalait sa ‘tubo’ na yan– hindi ko po ito kinahihiya. Bakit?
E kung sa yan lang ang kaya ng kumpanya namin. Pinagbabawal po ba mag-improvise ngayon? Kasalanan po ba ang dumiskarte o gumawa ng paraan?
“As long as our company allows us to keep our jobs and get paid for it– I wouldn’t mind using a PVC pipe as a makeshift mic stick.

https://www.facebook.com/david.yu.santos/posts/10157888735088212

Santos’ team was covering Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque in Baguio where the photo of their improvised mic stick was captured.

As the country is still in the pandemic, health protocols are strictly implemented. And one of those health protocols is social distancing of about 1 meter thus the need to use a mic stick to maintain physical distance by the reporter from their subject.

Meanwhile, Santos also defended his network CNN for doing their best to keep the company afloat and avoid retrenching employees as much as possible.

“Times are hard. Maraming kumpanya nagsasara. Maraming empleyado nawalan ng trabaho.
“Pero bat ganon? We still get to mock or poke fun at companies trying to stay afloat by balancing operational expenses AND keeping their employees.
“So what if our company can’t afford some equipment– or has to resort to some band-aid solutions so we can just continue operating?
“For as long as that ‘cheap’-looking mic stick serves its purpose– I will not let my ego get in the way,’ Santos explained.