Our new Qualitative Research Journal (Q1 Scopus) article, co-authored with my dissertation advisee Rae Francis Quilantang, argues that reflexivity has always been relational and mediated. DOI: doi.org/10.1108/QRJ-... Message me for a copy if you encounter a paywall.

[New article | Disability & Society (Q1) | Early online] What if generative AI is not just a shortcut but a scaffold? Under what unequal conditions are scholars asked to think without assistance? Free e-prints: www.tandfonline.com/eprint/PVCXE...

[New article | ACR (Scopus Q2) | OA] Our paper on ambivalent governance is out in Asian Communication Research. What happens when scandals produce visibility—but not accountability? We show how publics engage through patterned ambivalence, not disengagement. Link: doi.org/10.20879/acr...

New research note published in Social Transformations: Journal of the Global South, Vol. 13, Issue 1 (2025): “Negotiating Depletion and Endurance: Hiya, Tino, and Bait as Vernacular Grammars of Political Scandal in the Philippines.”  🔗 doi.org/10.13185/279...

[New article | Early online] My solo article, “Beyond Toolkits: Critical Autoethnography and a Relational Agenda for Discourse Studies in Media and Communication,” is now out in Discourse & Communication (SAGE, Q1 Scopus). 🔗 doi.org/10.1177/1750... Message me if you hit a paywall.

[New article | Early online] Our article on male vulnerability, masculinity, and Philippine teleseryes is now out in Communication, Culture & Critique (ICA/ Oxford University Press). Free access for 30 days: tinyurl.com/4nek9cyb

Coming in 2028: I’ve signed with Anthem Press for my new book, Scandal Worlds, on trust, scandal, and political legitimacy in the Global South. Looking forward to the conversations this book will spark.

I am honored to share that Humanities Diliman (Q1) has published my article, which I coauthored with former UST students Paolo Alejandrino and Diana Igual. Proud of Paolo and Diana for this milestone. 💚 saliksik.upd.edu.ph/journal-issu...

Happy to share I’ve signed a new book contract with Routledge🎉 This is a more theoretical follow-up to Navigating Trust—part 2 of a planned 3-book arc on trust & scandals in the Global South.

Our new SSRN preprint is out: In Relation, Not Replacement. We push back against calls to ban generative AI in qualitative research by reframing reflexivity as relational, mediated, and plural. Download here: dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn...

I just published a new piece with @therealrw.bsky.social: “Cooking Outside the PhD.” researchwhisperer.org/2025/11/18/c... I wrote this for scholars whose research lives don’t fit the linear PhD–postdoc–tenure template.

A shiny new project ahead. Just signed with Vernon Press for "Scaffolding the Self: Neurodivergent Life, Care, and Relational Sovereignty in the Academy" (out 2027). This is my first full-length venture into neurodiversity scholarship!

Just out in International Journal of Communication: my article “Scandal as Constructivation.” It argues that scandals in Southeast Asia aren’t mere exposures—but performances of trust and legitimacy. A small proof that theory can grow from the local. ijoc.org/index.php/ij...

I’m inviting you to the opening of my book launch series on Sept 24, 3–5 PM PHT: “Trust, Scandal, and the State: A National Conversation on Journalism, Democracy, and Public Life.”

Navigating Trust is now available with @routledgebooks.bsky.social. Order now! tinyurl.com/NavigatingTr...

Out tomorrow: Navigating Trust (Routledge, 2025) — my book on journalism, health, and democracy in the Global South, told through the Dengvaxia vaccine scandal in the Philippines. Years in the making. Grateful for everyone who walked this road with me. Secure a copy now 🛒🛍️https://lnkd.in/gFNe9D78

Excited to share that my book, Navigating Trust, Journalism, and Health in the Age of Populism, is now available for pre-order. Grateful for this endorsement from Prof. @swaisbord.bsky.social. 🔗 tinyurl.com/NavigatingTr... Ships after August 19, 2025.

My book, Navigating Trust, Journalism, and Health in the Age of Populism, is now available for pre-order. Pre-order here: tinyurl.com/NavigatingTr... tinyurl.com/NavigatingTr... tinyurl.com/NavigatingTr...

Fresh off the press! My first solo Q1 article—and first in a top media and comms journal—is now live in @mcsjournal.bsky.social 💫 📝 Held in trust: Relational sovereignties and the affective life of communication 🔗 doi.org/10.1177/0163...

📘 My book "Navigating Trust, Journalism, and Health in the Age of Populism" drops Aug 19 via Routledge. Pre-order alerts now open: www.routledge.com/9781032848464 Hardback’s a bit pricey, I know—but great for keeps. Working on paperback/ebook options too. #TrustCultures #Dengvaxia #GlobalSouth

In the Philippines, “drug use” still brings to mind the adik. “Mental health” still echoes baliw. But what about those of us quietly relying on licit meds—like Ritalin—to survive academic life? This is my small contribution to that harder conversation. 📝 doi.org/10.31235/osf...

I am grateful to share that my solo article, "Held in Trust: Relational Sovereignties and the Affective Life of Communication," will appear in the Crosscurrents section of Media, Culture, and Society @mcsjournal.bsky.social #TrustCultures #GlobalSouthScholarship #RelationalSovereignty #AcademicLife

Read that recent viral post on “cognitive debt” and ChatGPT? The one based on the MIT Media Lab study showing how AI might impair memory, engagement, and learning? Well, here’s my take. Share around folks!

Heard or read about that MIT study on cognitive decline and ChatGPT? This is my brief and preliminary response.

Last day to express interest in my 12-week online course on qualitative data analysis with MAXQDA. Covers RTA + MCDA, starts July 5. Only 6 slots left. ₱2,000 (students) / ₱3,000 (professionals) Form: forms.gle/6poc432Ydudn... Details: drive.google.com/file/d/1u56d...

🆕 Preprint now out via SocArXiv: doi.org/10.31235/osf... This is the first paper from our Tiwala at Pagsunod (TaP) project. We argue that political trust in the Philippines is not pre-political or abstract—it’s moral, relational, and lived.

Reposting for visibility! My book, Navigating Trust, Journalism, and Health in the Age of Populism, is in production with Routledge. It explores trust and crisis in the Philippines through the Dengvaxia scandal. Scan the QR code on the cover or sign up here for updates: forms.gle/TH9cBYgm3qTn...

Join my first online certificate course on qualitative data analysis with @maxqda.bsky.social ! 12 weeks, RTA + MCDA, rates: ₱2,000 (students) / ₱3,000 (professionals). Only 20 slots. Starts July 5. Forms close June 12. Form: forms.gle/6poc432Ydudn... Details: drive.google.com/file/d/1u56d...

My first book, "Navigating Trust, Journalism, and Health in the Age of Populism," is in production with Routledge. If you would like to receive updates and join the mailing list, please sign up here: forms.gle/jatqEJGeZGZn....

Just out: my OSF preprint Cognitive Scaffolds, Not Caves doi.org/10.31219/osf... Not a love letter to AI. Not a takedown either. It’s a neurodivergent scholar’s account of using ChatGPT to stay present, make sense, and write from the margins.

Just published my first piece on SoTL and relational pedagogy—on how trust, care, and culture shaped the way I taught qualitative research at PUP. Read here: drhiddencurriculum.wordpress.com/2025/05/08/n... #SoTL #Pedagogy #QualMethods

New preprint up: When Trust Divides: Scandals, Populists, and the Fragility of Democratic Legitimacy. doi.org/10.31219/osf... This is part of my broader trust, media, and crisis politics project. I would welcome your thoughts and engagement.

I’m thrilled to share that I’ve recently been accepted into the MAXQDA Trainers Network! It took a bit of time to finalize everything, but I’m glad it’s now official. Link to my trainer profile: www.maxqda.com/workshoptrai...

🆕 Pre-print out now: Widening the Frame: Trust, Culture, and the Emotional Life of Publics 📌 doi.org/10.31219/osf... #TrustCultures #PhilippineStudies #CulturalPolitics #PostdisciplinaryResearch

📝 Our pre-registered proposal for the Tiwala at Pagsunod (TaP) Project is now approved & public on OSF! We’re exploring how tiwala (trust) & pagsunod (submission) shape everyday governance in Pasig, Naga, & Davao. 🔗 doi.org/10.17605/OSF... #TrustStudies #QualResearch #OpenScience #TaPProject

Just shared my latest piece on OSF Preprints: “Trust Cultures in Crisis”—on how trust fractures in public scandals like Dengvaxia (doi.org/10.31219/osf...) Preprints matter. Visibility matters. Hope more early career folks consider this route.

We invite interested individuals to fill out the online demand survey for our planned offering of the Ph.D. in Interdisciplinary Communication Studies (By Research) at PUP Graduate School. 🕒 Survey takes only 8-12 minutes! Your insights will help refine this innovative PhD program.

Our article “Critiquing Power and Ethics: Teaching Multimodal Critical Discourse Analysis and Ethical Literary Criticism through The Boys,” has been published in Communication Teacher (Scopus Q3). Here is the link to the article: www.tandfonline.com/eprint/PPMC2...

I am pleased to share my recently constructed personal website, which serves as a showcase for my mentorship, teaching, and research endeavors. It is still in the process of being constructed; however, it is worth perusing if you are interested in learning more about my work.

“A compelling national narrative is one that is not just crafted by policymakers but embraced by the people,” Karl Patrick R. Mendoza, an associate professor at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines’ Department of Communication Research, said in a Facebook Messenger chat.

In a recent BusinessWorld article, I discussed the potential implications of requiring social media platforms to secure a legislative franchise in the Philippines.

Interviewed for this article: "Meta’s decision to remove fact-checkers highlights a broader issue — the perception of truth is not just about the accuracy of information but about the political and cultural frameworks through which people interpret facts.” www.bworldonline.com/the-nation/2...

How do trust (tiwala) and submission (pagsunod) shape governance and everyday life in the Philippines? Launching in socmed this July 2025, the TaP Project will dive deep into the emotional, cultural, and historical dynamics of trust in three vibrant cities: Pasig, Naga, and Davao #tiwalapagsunod

Fellow academics: Have you ever reviewed a paper so good you thought, ‘I wish I’d written this!’ or felt inspired to reach out and collaborate with the author?

New article in Journal of Communication looking at changes to trust in news across 46 countries in the last 10 years. Trust in news declined in just over half of countries. It decreased more in countries where TV news use has declined, and/or where social media news use has grown. A thread:

In case you missed it, I am re-sharing my recently published article, "Health Scandalization and Exclusionary Politics: A Social Semiotic CDA of Online News Coverage of the Dengvaxia Vaccine Scandal in the Philippines.” doi.org/10.18848/232...

What happened to the DOST’s/UP’s Balik Scientist/Balik PhD programs? Many colleagues who pursued studies abroad come back but eventually leave again. If we want to retain talent, we need better support systems. How do we make returning sustainable?

I finally had the pleasure of meeting Junep Ocampo, a veteran agriculture journalist from Manila Bulletin, in person. Junep is not only my PhD student but also a valued collaborator at PUP. I’m incredibly proud to share that he will be presenting his paper in my course at the #ncrc2024

I’m excited to share my latest article: “Health Scandalization and Exclusionary Politics: A Social Semiotic CDA of Online News Coverage of the Dengvaxia Vaccine Scandal in the Philippines.” doi.org/10.18848/232... Feel free to contact me if there’s a paywall; I’d be glad to share a copy.

If you are an academic who went from Twitter to Bluesky, what are your reasons for migrating here?