[Inside the Newsroom] ‘Appdate’ — that’s our new term for breaking news

If you will pay close attention to the lineup of stories on the Rappler website, you will notice something. We now rarely publish story pages for breaking or straight news — or what we call internally the “he said, she said, this happened today” stories or “crumbs.” 

Instead, for the past several months, what we have been publishing daily are unique takes on current affairs (in addition to our staple in-depth and investigative reports). 

We skip simply reporting that Person A has been appointed to a government post, and tell you immediately what you need to know about that appointee’s background. You won’t find us churning out daily stripteases on crime investigations, but can expect us to do a well-curated wrap of what police have found so far over the past week, or to make sense of why it is difficult to capture Fugitive B and Absconder C when they can file court motions and their statements are all over the media through their counsels. 

If your reaction to what I just said is, “Really? I didn’t notice,” then I’d like to thank you — it means you’re an avid Rappler follower who sees our releases on all the platforms where we are present. 

If your reaction is, “So I cannot expect you anymore to bring me into the thick of action?” then this edition of the newsletter is for you. 

Rappler continues to bring you, in real time, anything big that breaks: an official resigns, a big fish is arrested, a landslide of garbage buries dozens, an impeachment complaint is junked, a Senate coup is averted. But you no longer find them in story pages on our site, but as updates on the Community tab of the Rappler app. 

Aptly, our justice reporter Jairo Bolledo coined the term “appdates” for this kind of reports — as in, news updates broken on the app. These appdates have “clickable” links that our Community Growth team share on social media, which can bring the readers to our app and its many topic- or sector-based channels. 

After we’ve broken the daily news, you will be served the unique stories: an explainer, a context piece, an insightful recap, for example. 

This is how it works: 

• Appdate: The Supreme Court upholds its earlier decision to block the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte.
  Rappler site: It’s final: Sara Duterte’s impeachment is unconstitutional. Here’s why. 
• Appdate: Officials showing up at the Independent Commission for Infrastructure on any given day.
  Rappler site: How to evade ICI livestream? Request for an executive session
• Appdate: Harry Roque offloaded a plane in The Netherlands.
  Rappler site: Harry Roque’s bubble in The Hague: ‘Not sure what happens now’
• Appdate: Zaldy Co’s son Ellis speaks out against his father, urges him to face allegations.
  Rappler site: What’s wrong with what Zaldy Co’s son Ellis said
• Appdate: Binaliw landfill collapses in Cebu, with daily updates on death toll.
  Rappler site: DENR halts landfill operations after tragedy claims lives
• Appdate: Antipolo mayor asks Vena Energy to relocate its wind turbines.
  Rappler site: Why are Masungi caretakers opposing a wind energy project?
• Appdate: Moving dates for the BARMM election.
  Rappler site: The BARMM vote, explained
• Appdate: Gwyn Dorado places second in South Korea’s ‘Sing Again 4.’
  Rappler site: How Gwyn Dorado put Filipino talent on the map yet again in Korea’s ‘Sing Again 4’
• Appdate: The Chinese embassy’s constant verbal attacks on Philippine officials.
  Rappler site: View from Manila: The wolf (warrior) is back

You get the drift. 

The intention is to still serve you, our audience, the really important breaking news, but do it in a form that doesn’t unnecessarily lengthen what can be said in a sentence or two, and to do it on Rappler’s own platform that’s free from the manipulated algorithms of the big tech platforms. That way, you are kept abreast of happenings. (In fact, other news organizations maintain channels on the app: The vast network of the Philippine Press Institute, Iloilo’s The Daily Guardian, and Cebu’s SunStar.) 

The Rappler site, meanwhile, serves you a lineup of carefully chosen content that makes sense of the news, provides context, explains issues, and investigates — not bits and pieces produced mechanically or routinely and which overwhelm you with sheer quantity. 

Have you downloaded the Rappler app? Please do so — it’s free on iOS, Android, and the web. You will discover we actually have more than breaking news and appdates there; we have conversations and tiplines where you can do your part as engaged and empowered citizens.

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– Rappler.com