Vice President JejomarBinay will be the guest of honor and keynote speaker at the Catholic Mass Media Awards (CMMA) 33rd awarding ceremonies on October 19 at 5 p.m. at the San Carlos Seminary Auditorium on Edsa Guadalupe, Makati.

The theme of this year’s CMMA, based on the World Communication Day message of Pope Benedict XVI, is “Truth, Proclamation and Authenticity of Life in the Digital Age.”

More than 200 mass media workers, individuals and institutions, have been named finalists by the panels of judges to the CMMA 2011. A total of 696 entries in the different media categories were received by the CMMA Secretariat, up from last year’s 541 entries.

The CMMA was established by the late Jaime L. Cardinal Sin, then archbishop of Manila, in 1976 as archdiocese of Manila’s means of paying tribute “to those who serve God through the media,” as Cardinal Sin said.

The CMMA started recognizing only four media fields: print, radio, television and film. This gradually increased to seven, with the addition of advertising, music and the cyber media.

In 2004 the CMMA recognized institutions and individuals with the creation of the Serviam awards primarily as a tribute to Cardinal Sin.

The CMMA is headed by Ambassador Antonio L. Cabangon Chua as chairman and president, and Manila Archbishop Gaudencio B. Cardinal Rosales, as honorary chairman.