Her voice was earnest, almost pleading. “Kung mamatay mo, madala na ninyo inyo sakyanan? Ang inyong balay? Ang kwarta?” (When you die, will you be able to take your car, house, or money with you?) “Unya ang basil?” I thought to myself. (What about the basil?) I was waiting at the border controls in BarangayContinue reading “Facebook persona”
Author Archives: Max Limpag
Scoop
“Ayaw sultii si Fionah ha? Ayaw tagai si Jasmin,” I used to tell sources when working on a story I was sure would be an exclusive when I covered Cebu City Hall for The Freeman with Zeny Jainar. This was in 1996, about the time The Freeman first connected to the Web. Fionah Bojos, nowContinue reading “Scoop”
Live and unfiltered
Cebu City Vice Mayor Michael Rama still uses the same personal phone number that I called to contact him some years back. He unwittingly confirmed it to me and gave it to thousands of other people on Facebook Live. Rama attended the meeting Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia called for mayors of the different towns andContinue reading “Live and unfiltered”
“Fake news” and Labella’s overreaction, abdication
Authorities arrested artist Maria Victoria Beltran yesterday over allegations of spreading “fake news” when she posted on Facebook that there were 9,000 new COVID-19 cases in Zapatera, making Cebu City “the epicenter in the whole Solar System.” The post is clearly satirical with its galactic reference. But the point of contention and the crux ofContinue reading ““Fake news” and Labella’s overreaction, abdication”
Tuslob Buwa® and HTML entities
“How do I add ® to my post?” an acquaintance posted on Facebook as everyone piled up on Azul for trademarking Tuslob Buwa by posting their own versions of trademarking Cebu products and delicacies. It’s so much easier now. You can just copy and paste special characters, including the registered, trademarked, and copyrighted signs, andContinue reading “Tuslob Buwa® and HTML entities”
Eau de toilet
With fake products, as with fake news as explained by British journalist Ian Hislop, “people are more likely to believe a lie if they want it to be true.”
Interactive history
The full and historical story of Magellan’s Cross is much more interesting. We’re telling it using modern technology and devices.
I have suffered. But there’s a Bosendorfer here so let’s see what happens.
Late in her life when she was broke and reduced to hiring men for sex and the affections she craved, Nina Simone performed My Baby Just Cares For Me in Montreux. The song was used in commercials for Chanel No. 5 “unfortunately of which I have none,” Simone said before she started her performance. SheContinue reading “I have suffered. But there’s a Bosendorfer here so let’s see what happens.”
How AI led me to Carla Bruni
It had to be Edith Piaf, Madeleine Peyroux, or Joan Baez. It could also have been Eva Cassidy, Janis Ian, Sarah Jarosz or Joni Mitchell. More likely, it was my listening to all these artists that led Spotify to recommend Carla Bruni to me earlier this month. I have been listening to her songs since.Continue reading “How AI led me to Carla Bruni”
The case for chatbots
Are you open today? What’s the number of your Ayala branch? Answers to these questions are easy to program as chatbot routines. Instead, here I am, after more than an hour of calling and searching on mobile on my way to and now attending an event, and none the wiser as to whether any ofContinue reading “The case for chatbots”