ABS-CBN News broadcast journalist Chiara Zambrano brings honor to the Kapamilya network after being named by the Junior Chamber International (JCI) Philippines as one of the The Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) in the Philippines for 2017.
Chiara, who is currently in the United Kingdom pursuing her studies as a British Chevening scholar, is the TOYM awardee in the field of Journalism and Mass Communication. She was cited for her work including the "Di Ka Pasisiil" documentary on the Marawi siege, which she covered from the war zone last year, and "Spratlys, Mga Isla ng Kalayaan," another ABS-CBN News documentary.
In an interview with TJ Manotoc on ANC's "Early Edition," the journalist revealed her passion for storytelling, which has kept her coming back to doing documentaries, her first love.
"There's really something about documentaries that makes me happy while I'm doing it. Of course, news reporting is a different beast in itself. It has its own sense of fulfillment. But you know it's just a matter of preference, and that's why I decided this year to kind of take a break from all the chaos that we involved ourselves in and to revert to my first love. So, I'm out here now studying to do better documentaries and it's been a great experience so far," she shared.
Before becoming an ABS-CBN News reporter covering the defense beat, Chiara was working behind the scenes as part of the network's iconic investigative program "The Correspondents." She said shifting to news was a big leap for her but she is grateful now that she is able to do both news reporting and documentaries.
"Our bosses are kind enough and they trust me enough to give me the chance to do both. So, most of the time I do news I still give the space to do documentaries like "'Di Ka Pasisiil" about Marawi, the one I did with Jeff Canoy and the Spratlys documentary," she said.
Chiara earned praises last year for her courageous coverage from the battle lines in Marawi. She shared her insights from her experience there. "Reporting about wars isn't so much about the weapons and the war. The clash and the bang. It's really I think one of the most human beats that you can tell, because you are literally talking about lives lost. And lives saved. And lies shattered by war. That's why it works for me."
Chiara follows ABS-CBN broadcast journalist and news anchor Karen Davila as TOYM awardee from ABS-CBN News. Karen won in 2009.
Joining Chiara in the TOYM for 2017 are P/Supt. Byron F. Allatog for Government Service and Law Enforcement, Cirilo Joseph Javier for Arts and Music, Eugenio P. Mende for Veterinary Medicine, Ronaldo C. Reyes for Education, Jason Roy T. Sibug for Community Development, Mark Anthony J. Torres for Government Service Education, and Hidilyn F. Diaz for Sports.
The TOYM award is conferred by the Junior Chamber International (JCI) Philippines on individuals who have demonstrated "outstanding leadership and excellence" and contributed to "the cause of humanity" in his or her field.
