Telum Media invited a few journalists to share their thoughts and insights on key topics and trends they will be watching out for in the coming year.

Marlet D. Salazar, Founder / Editor at Back End News
Back End News is watching out for these particular topics: more practical use cases of generative AI and cloud innovations. We also want to see more news about quantum computing.

Jason Caballa, Music Editor at Billboard Philippines

• Regional music events like concerts and festivals, now that the world has opened up and artists are touring the world again after the pandemic.
• The rise of physical media, as vinyl made a comeback many years ago, and K-pop fans have always collected the lavishly-packaged CDs of their idols. As a collector myself, it makes me wonder if there is enough demand for record labels to print and distribute their artists’ music on physical media on a mass scale like in the '90s or '00s.
• There’s almost always at least one important band that reunites every year, and I wonder who it will be next year, whether local or international.

Gretchen Gatan Fragada, Founder / Editor-in-Chief at The Metro Edit
In the ever-evolving world of fashion, beauty, and lifestyle, current trends and sectors reflect a dynamic blend of innovation, sustainability, and inclusivity. Fashion is witnessing a surge in sustainable and ethical practices, with a focus on eco-friendly materials, transparent supply chains, and circular fashion concepts. Beauty has embraced a diverse range of representations, celebrating authenticity and individuality. In lifestyle, there's a growing interest in wellness and self-care, with an emphasis on mental health, mindfulness, and holistic living. The convergence of these trends is what shapes The Metro Edit. Additionally, we’re always on the lookout for local brands that help elevate the industry.

Andrea Panaligan, Editor at Young STAR
In 2024, Young STAR is keen to cover the following topics:

• Youth communities / sub-cultures in the regions (music / art collectives, NGOs, independent film groups, etc)
• Travel destinations for young solo travelers and friend groups
• Upcoming film and book releases with a youth slant or made by young people

Rocky Teodoro, News Editor at Rigzone
There has been a lot of major M&A activity in the oil majors in the past year, and they are forming what we call "oil supermajors". The drama and conflict between the oil and gas firms versus the hardcore green organisations who want to shut down all oil operations is also interesting to follow. Finally, the financial and technical challenges of moving to renewables from fossil fuels is also a good trend to observe.

Jasper A. Arcalas, Reporter / Podcast Content Creator at BusinessMirror
He is always on the lookout for leads on these topics:

• Agriculture and food prices
• Taylor Swift
• Elections

Leandre Mari Grecia, Assistant Managing Editor at TopGear.com.ph
The three topics I'll be watching out for this year:

• Electrification — as more and more electric vehicles (EVs) continue to arrive in the Philippine market, I expect to see more in-depth discussions about EVs, including infrastructure, actual use cases, and more.
• Public transportation — the government's public utility vehicle modernisation programme is set to take full effect this year. While there have been some postponements, the last extension for the deadline of consolidation is said to be the absolute last one, so there could be drastic changes to our public transportation system in 2024.
• New car launches — this may not be a specific topic, but we can't include this here. There were several new cars and brands launched in the Philippines in 2023, and we expect to see more of these in 2024. The industry will most definitely be even busier this year.

Russel Anthony Loreto, Reporter at Philippine Daily Inquirer
The top three topics I'm looking out for are:

• Artificial Intelligence, journalism and misinformation — multiple important elections are happening this year, especially the US elections. Is AI going to be implemented in fact-checking or for spreading disinformation and misinformation? With the rise of deepfakes, this has called into the legitimacy every piece of online content (even video). I think it will give us a good glimpse of how AI might affect the Philippine 2025 midterm elections. Newsrooms around the world have already felt the impact of AI. For example, DW reported: "German tabloid Bild, Europe's top-selling newspaper, has told hundreds of editors they will be replaced by AI." Will this be a trend that will spread to the Philippines? We already saw GMA debuting AI sportscasters. In my opinion, a combination of strengthening disinformation networks and shrinking newsrooms is a recipe for disaster.
• Climate change and the effect on the Philippines - PAGASA said that a "strong" El Niño will be felt this year. How will this affect agriculture? Our economy? How about our water supplies here in the city? Rainfall is also important for hydropower. How will this affect our energy needs?
•  West Philippine Sea and China-Taiwan-US - Tensions are escalating in the WPS. How will this affect the normal Filipino people? How will it affect the fisherfolk? China has also recently summoned our diplomat over President Bongbong Marcos' message to Taiwan's newly elected leaders. The tension in Taiwan is palpable, especially as China has vowed to take Taiwan by force. But a US intel report found out that China's missiles are filled with water instead of fuel. Is China just saber rattling or is this just propaganda? Or is there more to this story as geopolitical tensions are high? Will Beijing strike while the US is pre-occupied with the conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine? More importantly, how will this affect the Philippine economy and diplomacy? What stance will the current administration take?