Inquirer.net journo wins int’l award for health reporting
Inquirer.net data journalist Cristina Eloisa Baclig won the grand prize in the online category of the 2025 Merck Foundation Media Recognition Awards 2025 for her reporting on health issues affecting Filipinos.
Baclig was recognized for reports focusing on noncommunicable diseases and translating complex medical information into accessible public-interest stories.
For the 2025 awards, three articles by Baclig were entered into competition.
In the report “Breaking Hearts and the Bank: The Cost of Heart Attack, Stroke in PH,” she examined the health and economic impact of cardiovascular diseases in the Philippines.
In “Hypertension: What to Know About the ‘Silent Killer,’” Baglic provided updates on one of the leading health threats in the country.
In “Diabetes: A Bitter Health Crisis for Filipinos,” she underscored the rising number of diabetes cases in the country, the disease’s long-term health effects, and strategies for prevention and increased public awareness.
Launched in 2017, the Merck Foundation Media Recognition Awards recognize journalists from Africa, Asia and Latin America for their coverage of critical health and social issues.
Awareness, change
The awards seek to promote awareness and behavioral change on issues such as infertility stigma, diabetes and hypertension.
A total of 125 winners from 32 countries were recognized this year.
Last year, Pia Piquero of Cebu Daily News Digital—a member of the Inquirer Group of Companies—won first place in the online category.
Over the past several years, Baclig has received recognition from the Philippine Statistics Authority, the Bright Leaf Agriculture Journalism Awards and the Think Pink Awards.
She is also a fellow of the Environmental Data Journalism Academy-Philippines and the Jaime V. Ongpin Journalism Seminar of the Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility.
