Killings, attacks, threats continue to hound Philippine press

The latest issue of the i Report of the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (November-December 2005 edition) carried a story written by Ma’am Vinia on the case of Philippine Daily Inquirer correspondent for the Southern Luzon region Melinda “Mei” Magsino-Lubis. Lubis has been hiding for more than three months now after her stories on alleged irregularities in the Batangas provincial capital involving Gov. Armando C. Sanchez had angered Sanchez, said to be one of the biggest jueteng operators in the country. Lubis had to leave her family and five-hectare mahogany farm in Batangas in July after a police source told her that two convicts from the provincial jail had been released to find and kill her.

Lubis’ story reminded me of the state of journalist killings in the country, which the Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility (CMFR) has been monitoring since 1991, aside from other threats to and attacks against press freedom. The high number of journalists killed in the line of duty since 1986 (54 as of the present CMFR count), when our democratic institutions following the Marcos dictatorship have supposedly been restored, prompts one to ask: Is the Philippine press really free?

CMFR did a recent study on the journalist killings, focusing on the 25 journalists that have been murdered since 2000. It presented the findings of the study to the media on September 6 (In case you want to know, the press coverage of the CMFR study was anything but accurate, as noted in a PJR Reports monitor).

Among the findings were:

- Most of those killed were community journalists;
- TV and radio broadcasters were more vulnerable to attack;
- Other factors show the weaknesses of the press as an institution, such as the lack of institutional identification/credentials on the part of the broadcasters, the lack of education and formal training in journalism, among others.
- The failure of owners to supervise broadcast press responsibility

In the study, CMFR reiterated that no single solution could solve the cycle of violence and impunity against journalists. While it emphasized the “freedom of speech and press should never be penalized except through the course of libel, slander, or organizational sanctions imposed in line with self-regulation,” CMFR enumerated ways in how to strengthen the press against press freedom violators. These were:

- Safety training undertaken by newsrooms
- Strong legal defense with coordination from law enforcement agencies and the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP)
- Ethics training and Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas accreditation
- Strengthening the Philippine Press Council (PPC) of the Philippine Press Institute (PPI) and the regional press councils in Baguio, Cebu, and Palawan as venues of complaints against the press. In his article, “The Press and the Public: Words, not Guns, Please,” published in the June 2005 issue of the PJR Reports, PPC chair Gary Mariano noted the potential of a strong PPC in solving complaints against the press. With an invigorated PPC, he said, the real winners will be the journalists. “Journalists with fewer libel cases because grievances are quickly settled at the Council. Journalists remaining free because legislative threats are preempted by effective self regulation. And journalists staying alive, yet fighting as ever, because complainants do not escalate beyond an exchange of e-mails or faxes.”

I met Mei Lubis when she went to the office telling her case. Her story reflected the difficulties community journalists have to face in reporting the truth in their communities. I just hope she won’t be the 55th.

By the way, check out the upcoming November issue of the PJR Reports. Mei is our writer for the issue’s “Back Page” section, telling us her story.

And the truth shall be bought?

I can’t believe that The Philippine Star did not have a report on October 15 about the previous day’s “canonization” of those in the Mendiola prayer rally. Excuse me, Star, but is your pro-GMA slip showing?

The Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility (CMFR) took note of the press coverage of the said prayer rally led by three Catholic bishops of the Kilusang Makabansang Ekonomiya. (A small note: The CMFR monitor on the October 14 rally is just a part of a more comprehensive monitor of the coverage of the rallies amid the government’s controversial “calibrated preemptive response” (“CPR”) policy which will be on the November issue of the PJR Reports.)
The rally was attended by prominent anti-Arroyo personalities such as former Vice-Pres. Teofisto Guingona, activist priest Fr. Robert Reyes, Sen. Jamby Madrigal, and TV host Oscar Orbos. To me and gazillions of people out there, the “water-dousing” incident should be the biggest story the next day. Whether the paper is for or against President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo does not matter. The news elements in the hosed-down prayer rally are pretty much obvious for it to land in the front pages on October 15.

While the rest of the papers were feasting over the latest rally to brush against the government’s notorious “CPR” policy, the Star, apparently, was not interested. From cover to cover, there was no report on the dispersal anywhere in the Star’s October 15 issue. Not even a small, itsy-bitsy news bullet in the paper’s Metro page. To think that Star is considered a major paper, one of the so-called “Big Three.” Why, even the conservative Manila Bulletin had its front-page report on the incident! Hello, Star?

At left are the top three papers' front pages on October 15.

According to the CMFR monitor, text messages pertaining to Star’s snubbing of the October 14 rally instantly circulated. The text message circulating said that the paper had been “bought” by the Palace to keep mum over the incident. The Star should be boycotted, the message said.

Interestingly, Star publisher Max V. Soliven also got the same message. In his October 18 column, he said that he was in Europe when the incident happened and got embarrassed when he found out that his paper did not have a story on it on October 15. He called up his editors for an explanation, Soliven said. “The following day, a day too late, was a follow-up headline: ‘Guingona III: Rally dispersal form of tyranny, oppression’,” he wrote. At least Soliven was correct in saying that it was a day too late for his paper to publish the incident.

What was his reaction to the critical text message he got? “Oh well. Those who believe that stupid canard must already be readers of the other newspapers anyway. Truth will prevail, as our masthead says. No more excuses.”

Ho-hum.

Blogging conference for journalists

I was invited by Sir Alecks P. Pabico of the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) to attend a conference they organized on blogging for journalists tomorrow, October 22. The conference, “Journalists as Bloggers,” will be held in The Linden Suites in Pasig City.

About 60 journalists from the mainstream media, bloggers and non-bloggers alike, will attend the event and discuss insights on the relatively new medium of blogs.

Among the speakers are some of the prominent names in journalism -- Sir Alecks, news anchor Ricky Carandang, the Philippine Daily Inquirer’s John Nery, Malaya columnist Ellen Tordesillas, and journalism professor Rachel E. Khan of the University of the Philippines College of Mass Communication. Ma'am Rachel is also our deputy director.

The one-day activity will discuss issues of law, ethics, and corporate policy affecting blogging, and the impact and directions of journalism in the country in the Internet age.

The conference happens a few weeks after Reporters Without Borders (RSF), a global press freedom watchdog, launched a handbook for bloggers. Entitled “Handbook for Bloggers and Cyber-dissidents,” it is primarily a guide for those who want not only in setting up a blog but in using it as a tool to fight censorship in their countries while remaining safe and free from government control.

The guide identifies bloggers as the “new heralds of free expression” and the “vanguard of new information revolution.”

Can't wait to be in this event.

Ripping off the rip-off "Pinoy Ako"

The Orange and Lemons rip-off affair has taken several turns and twists a few days after I did my initial post on the issue. Will take them up in a future post (as soon as I finish with the November issue of the PJR Reports).

Meanwhile, here's the newest version of "Pinoy Ako" from Toothpick of Pulp Community. Saw this version too in Rickey's Blog from someone who commented on his post, but I'm using Toothpick's version.

Ripping off another rip-off, here's the song.


Pinoy Ba Ako?
By Ponkan and Calamansi

Lahat tayo ay naging biktima
sa dinig pa lang ay malalaman na
di man ito kagustuhan
ngunit ito ang katotohanan

Original na lyrics ang hanap ko
magbibigay ng paghalaga sayo
Nais mo bang ipakilala
kung sino ka ngang talaga

Pinoy ikaw ay Pinoy
ipakita sa mundo
kung anong ginaya mo
Nahihiyang Pinoy
Wag kang mang gagaya
maging original ka
Pinoy ako Pinoy tayo

Pakita mo ang tunay kung sino ka
wag kang umasa lang sa iba
Kailangan ay perpekto basta ito ay totoo

Original na lyrics ang hanap ko
magbibigay ng paghalaga sayo
Nais mo bang ipakilala
kung sino ka ngang talaga

Pinoy ikaw ay Pinoy
ipakita sa mundo
kung anong ginaya mo
Nahihiyang Pinoy
Wag kang mang gagaya
maging original ka
Pinoy ako Pinoy tayo

Talagang ganyan ang buhay
Wag tayong masanay
walang ring mangyayari kung
kung laging nakikigaya

Wag ipagmalaki ang sarili
kung ito ay yong gawain
“Ang Lagi mong Iisipin
Kayang Kopyahin”

Pinoy ikaw ay Pinoy
ipakita sa mundo
kung anong ginaya mo
Nahihiyang Pinoy
Wag kang mang gagaya
maging original ka
Pinoy ako Pinoy tayo

Orange and Lemons' "Pinoy Ako," a rip-off

I like the Orange and Lemons band. Not because they're also Bulakeños, but because they offer a fresh and vibrant sound amid the melange of rock and pseudo-rock bands (mostly of the pogi-rock-band type) currently lording over the local music scene. When the group came out with "Hanggang Kailan," I instantly became a fan.

Their second hit for me is better than the first one. It has the right ingredients for a follow-up hit: Quite-poppy-but-catchy melody, nice lyrics, and a cool band image. Not to mention that this is the theme song of the hit ABS-CBN reality show "Pinoy Big Brother." But, I'd like to think that "Pinoy Ako" is a hit because it is about having a sense of pride as a Filipino.

A few weeks ago, there were news reports that the Orange and Lemons hit is a rip-off from a foreign group. A Manila Bulletin report on the issue carried the denial of band member Clem who said that "Pinoy Ako" is different from the song "Chandelier," an original song of the UK-based 80's band The Care. A representative of the Star Records, which released the group's song, said that Orange and Lemons may have been influenced by the new wave group but the former did not copy their song. Initially, I didn't give a damn about the issue. I thought maybe someone was trying to pull down Orange and Lemons. And besides, I do not know The Care, so I can't really compare if Orange and Lemons did copy one of The Care's songs.

I was browsing the popular blogsite pinoy.rickey.org recently, and lo and behold, he also wrote about the issue. He even got the mp3 files of the two songs in contention (and for that I salute you, Mr. Rickey!). Here are his links to download the files:

Pinoy Ako - Orange and Lemons

Chandelier - The Care

After hearing both songs, I'm convinced. Orange and Lemons copied the melody of "Chandelier." Why, for an unsuspecting listener, "Pinoy Ako" could even pass as the Tagalog version of The Care original! The songs do not have the same lyrics, but eerily, have almost the same melody, except for the chorus part.

Someone commented in the pinoy.rickey.org post on the rip-off issue who said that there are other alleged rip-off cases earlier this year.

The hit "Leaving You" of another good group, Session Road, was a rip-off from the "Garmonbozia" song of the US-based band Superdrag. Actually, I've heard this rumor before in Pulp Community, but I did not have the Superdrag song back then.

And the second case was the more recent hit "Stay" of the pogi-rock band Cueshe. It was allegedly copied from a song of the Australian grunge band Silverchair entitled "The Greatest View."

I looked for these foreign songs in Limewire (I already have "Leaving You" and "Stay" in my music folder) and fortunately, they are available. Too bad, I can't upload the mp3 files here in my blog (unless http://www.blogger.com has uploading features that I do not know) but if you want a copy, just give me a pm on my yahoo messenger id -- deadlynecromancer.

And oh, my conclusion: "Leaving You" is indeed a rip-off! "Leaving You" unabashedly copied the melody of "Garmonbozia." The melody of both songs are almost the same, even in the chorus part. The melody of the two songs are so similar that you would think Session Road and Superdrag are the same (well, maybe except on the vocalist, since Session Road's vox is a female and Superdrag's a guy).

Compared with how Session Road ripped off "Garmonbozia" and turned it into "Leaving You," you'll only notice the similarity between "Stay" and "The Greatest View" on the chorus part, where the tune in both are similar. But, "The Greatest View" is edgier and harder in guitar riffs and drum beats compared with "Stay," aside from the fact that Silverchair's Daniel Johns has a much wider vocal range than the two cutesy vocalists of Cueshe. So, I don't think "Stay" is a rip-off from "The Greatest View." This is where I can accept the argument that maybe Cueshe is "inspired" by Silverchair.

Going back to Orange and Lemons, I profess that I am not a music expert, but as an avid music enthusiast and a band member, I dare say: "Pinoy Ako," the song that tells Filipinos to show to the whole wide world that we are proud as Pinoys, was a blatant rip-off. How ironic.

Download the files. Judge for yourself. And tell me your thoughts about the issue. It doesn't matter if we agree or not.

Gangsta wannabe

Ang init e!

Goodbye, Sir Ivan (part II)

Saw the Cebu Daily News and Philippine Daily Inquirer report on Sir Ivan's death. The 43-year-old editor in chief died following a delicate heart operation. According to the Cebu Daily News, he "underwent surgery for an aortic dissecting aneurysm after suffering a stroke on Aug. 31."

"He turned out to be the best editor in chief among us," the Cebu Daily News report quoted publisher and acting editor in chief Eileen Mangubat as saying.

"Cebu Journalism: The People and the Times," a publication published in 2004 by Sun.Star Cebu, also one of Cebu's top papers (and who also reported on his death), featured the prominent Cebu-based journalists today and of the past. Included in the list was Sir Ivan.

Explaing in the publication why he loved newsroom work despite its chaos, Suansing compared it to his favorite game, chess. "I often have to make quick decisions under time pressure," said Sir Ivan, who was the 1985 UP Diliman chess champion and former member of the UP varsity team.

Here is his picture in the publication.

Bye, Sir Ivan. Thank you for the kindness, the good words, the good reports. Rest now. For you have played your game well.

Goodbye, Sir Ivan

I first met Cebu Daily News editor in chief Ivan Suansing at the Journalism Asia 2003 Forum held by the Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility (CMFR) in Bali, Indonesia. He was my roommate. Since it was the first time I met him, I wasn't really that enthusiastic talking to him. Of course, it didn't help too that Sir Ivan was silent and serious most of the time, or at least that was my first impression of him. Our conversations were basic, like the things we were doing in the office or the activities that we had in the forum. Fortunately, we became friends after the forum and personally, I was thankful for knowing a great journalist like Sir Ivan.

We met again months later in a forum-workshop (again sponsored by the CMFR) on media and access to information and corruption in Davao City. He was more friendly on our second meeting, maybe because he knew me from the Bali conference, and that Davao City was like Cebu for him -- him being familiar with the place and the local press community. I didn't get surprised when he knew a lot of people from the CMFR forum (CMFR invited many participants in the Visayas and Mindanao regions).

The Davao forum, which lasted for three days, was memorable to me because for two nights, almost right after the day-long sessions, both I and Sir Ivan went out with some of our fellow participants, drinking and enjoying the city. Grabe pala si Sir Ivan! Mas masaya at maingay 'pag umiinom! Fun, those two nights. My Davao sojourn would have been duller had it not for Sir Ivan.

That was why when CMFR held a forum in Cebu (on press freedom protection) last year, I was looking forward to meet Sir Ivan again, and we almost met -- had it not for a last-minute article that he was working on on the night we were supposed to meet. Too bad. But I knew he was the editor in chief of Cebu Daily News, one Cebu's top papers. And a hardworking editor in chief at that.

I first knew about Sir Ivan's illness last month, when Cebu Daily News publisher Ma'am Eileen Mangubat told us that Sir Ivan was to go under the knife. Upon receiving Ma'am Eilieen's email, we hoped that Sir Ivan would survive the operation and get well soon.

This morning, my colleague Nathan told me that our former editor (and now the Philippine Daily Inquirer reader's advocate) Lorna Kalaw Tirol called the office to say that Sir Ivan died. The details are still sketchy -- I am still not sure what his illness was or if he died during or after his 10-hour operations.

Goodbye, Sir Ivan. Thanks for all the good memories.

Angelo de la Cruz, erstwhile media darling, loses job

I was quite shocked when columnist Federico D. Pascual Jr. of The Philippine Star wrote last September 20 that former Iraqi hostage Angelo de la Cruz lost his job as a rockloading operator that the government, through labor secretary Patricia Sto. Tomas, had arranged for him at Clark Field.

Pascual said in his article, "Angelo, GMA's favorite truck driver, now jobless": "Remember Angelo dela Cruz, the truck driver whose kidnapping in Iraq led to the early pullout of a Philippine military-police contingent from that war-torn country in 2004 and soured the Arroyo administration's relations with the White House?

"Angelo is now jobless.... From a daredevil driver in the Middle East and later rockloader at Clark, the 48-year-old father of eight from Mexico town is now down to being an occasional jeepney driver plying the Angeles-Magalang route."

Is this the same De la Cruz who, just a few months ago, was the object of a much-frenzied and criticized press coverage?

At the height of the Angelomania, I recalled traveling to De la Cruz's Pampanga hometown, Buenavista, in time for his return to reunite with his family and townmates. And boy, did media spare nothing and no one in its coverage! As I noted in my article in the inaugural issue of the PJR Reports, "Overnight... the village became a media battleground, with journalists, camera persons, and photographers staking out the area, hounding Angelo's relatives, friends, and neighbors. The result was media overkill, and a public drowning in a sea of information overload. A reader or viewer could not be faulted if all s/he could recall afterward was the picture of the De la Cruzes' pet dog rather than the reason for the kidnapping."

Later, with the media limelight away from him, Angelo tried returning to his normal life. But with his current problem, I won't wonder if he wants to return to Iraq, even if it means risking his life again.

30 fellowships open for 14th Lopez Jaena Journalism Workshop in October

Got this information from Sir Danny Arao's blogsite. I don't know if the application deadline was actually last September 16. Anyway, I just wished many practitioners applied for the workshop.

The University of the Philippines (UP) Department of Journalism, in coordination with the UP Center for Women’s Studies (CWS), will hold the 14th Lopez Jaena Journalism Workshop from October 23 to 29 at the UP College of Mass Communication, Diliman, Quezon City.

Thirty fellowship slots are available for this workshop. Applications are open to full-time print, broadcast and online journalists and journalism educators.

The workshop will focus on Media and Gender Sensitivity in observance of the 100th year of the feminist movement in the Philippines. The Asociacion Feminista Filipina, the first “formal organization” of women, was founded on June 30, 1905 by Concepcion Felix. Last April 29, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo signed Proclamation 622 declaring 2005 the centennial year for the Philippine feminist movement.

Resource persons from the academe and women’s groups will speak on gender-related issues like ethical guidelines; sexism in language, media and advertising; and news, feature and investigative reporting in a gender-fair manner.

Applicants should be currently engaged in the journalism profession and/or journalism educators with at least two years’ working experience. They must submit an application letter; resume; two published/broadcast news reports; a story plan for an investigative report on a gender-related issue in their locality; and an endorsement from their editor, local press club president, a Lopez Jaena Journalism Workshop alumnus, or their school dean or president.

The fellowship will cover board and lodging. Participants will be billeted at the University Hotel inside the Diliman campus. Due to limited funds, however, they will have to shoulder their travel expenses.

Interested journalists and journalism educators may send their application papers to The Project Director, Lopez Jaena Journalism Workshop on Media and Gender Sensitivity, College of Mass Communication, University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City.

The deadline for applications is on September 16, 2005.

For more details, please call Prof. Danilo A. Arao (Chair, UP CMC Department of Journalism) or Ms. Raquelita C. Bacarra (department secretary) at 920-6852 or 981-8500 local 2672 or email rcbacarra@up.edu.ph.

Help?

Too bad. We are currently finishing our articles for the September-October issue of the PJR Reports. So, my posts have to wait. 'Kakahiya, especially now that we have a new editor.

Speaking about posts, could anyone tell me why my first posts (which were in August) do not appear in the August link of my "archive" section? When I check the "edit posts" section, my first posts are there, but strangely, when I check my August posts, no links to these posts!

Some help, please?

Dashboard rules!

'Nuff said.

Video provided by VideoCodes4U

Sick, sick political system

I read with disgust the latest report of the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) on how government funds, including those from the agriculture department, were used to finance President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's candidacy in the last elections.

Nothing can be truer than what PCIJ had said in its report: "While Congress has been busy looking into allegations that jueteng lord Bong Pineda contributed P300 million to the Arroyo campaign, far less attention has so far been devoted to charges that the President's biggest donor was actually the Filipino taxpayer."

And that's the way the ball falls into the side pocket

For some time now, one of my favorite hobbies has been playing billiards. Sure, I may not be a great player, compared with my cousins Rjhay or Philip (whom I am also urging to blog) or in-laws Fernan or Vijay. I am even the first one who'll admit to that. Still, I love it, especially when the gang's present, taking turns in playing at Charcoal.


Usually we play nine-ball, although sometimes we do eight-ball or "killers." If you're in Charcoal, playing billiards is the best way to let time pass by without getting bored, especially if the place is ultra-packed, and you can't find a table for you to sit, drink, and relax for a while.

On Morato, and eating

I always like going to Morato. It's like everytime you go there, you see new restaurants, new establishments, new hangouts. So, when Ate Carol and I went to Morato last Wednesday to meet NUJP's Jose Torres and PCIJ's Baby for breakfast, I was kind of thrilled. I was even the earliest to arrive in our meeting place (Contrary to popular misconception, I am always on time for my meetings)! Not because I'm meeting Sir Joe and Ma'am Baby (not that I don't want to meet them on the other hand), but because I'm looking forward to eat and feel the ambiance of two restaurants that I haven't gone before -- Heaven and Eggs and Kalye ni Juan. We were to meet Sir Joe in Heaven and Eggs then go to the nearby Kalye ni Juan for a lunch with Ma'am Baby.

Actually, I could not say anything about Heaven and Eggs aside from the fact they have nice interior surroundings ("walls are painted like the sky," says one online fan), that their cappuccino was okay, and that their service was slow (well, at least when we went). Too bad, we weren't able to order anything other than our coffees. I didn't try some of the resto's specialties, like the salt and pepper porkribs with yang chow rice or Asian shrimp poppers, among the culinary greats Malaya said in a report on the resto.

It was a different story when Ate Carol and I met Ma'am Baby. After two coffee servings, Sir Joe left us, apparently busy preparing for his US travel (his prize for being this year's Ninoy Aquino Fellow for Journalism). So, we paid our bill and went to Kalye Juan.

I was amazed by the resto's array of dishes. Actually, I didn't mind all the dishes, only one thing mattered that time: There's SISIG! Avowed sisig fans that we are, both Ate Carol and I ordered it for lunch. While waiting for Ma'am Baby to come, we had Dinamita (breaded chilli peppers filled with cheese with mayo dip... yum!) as our starter. Ma'am Baby, on her way to Kalye Juan, texted us to order for her deep fried hito.

And we were never wrong in ordering sisig. It filled our week-long crave for that sinful delight, lustily eating our sisig (honestly, our tummies were so full we brought what was left of our sisig to the office and ate it 3 hours later). The name of my dessert momentarily slipped my mind, but as far as I can remember, it was Kalye Juan's version of the delicacy ginumis (I did get that right, right Ate Carol?). Our lunch with Ma'am Baby, who frequents Kalye Juan, was quite an experience.

I think the guys in the office could go in those two restos sometime and taste not just the coffee and sisig.

Media and Mindanao

How do the media view Mindanao? Are reports on Mindanao focus on terrorism? Do news stories about the people in Mindanao mostly pertain to the likes of Abu Sayyaf Gang? A workshop organized by the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas (KBP) will address such issues.

Titled "Looking for Peace in Mindanao: What is Media's Role?," the seminar-workshop was organized by the KBP, the national association of broadcasting companies in the country, in cooperation with the Asian Institute of Journalism and Communication and UNESCO. The event will be on August 27 at the Mergrande Ocean Resort, in Talomo District, Davao City. Participants will be radio and television broadcasters in areas affected by the conflict, specifically, Cotabato, Davao, Lanao, and Zamboanga.

For more info, check KBP's website or call (63 2) 892-5129.

A new business daily?

While we were having our dose of coffee at Heaven and Eggs in Morato earlier, a friend and fellow journalist told me that a new Manila-based business daily will come out next month, with former Today editor in chief Lourdes "Chuchay" Molina Fernandez at the helm. The paper, according to my reliable pal, will be composed of mostly ex-Today staffers and will be known as the Business Mirror.

Well, if this is indeed true, I hope that the paper will last, given the public's need for more economic reports that go beyond the usual take on statistics, or mentioning catchwords such as GNP or tariff rates without bothering to explain these terms at all. Hopefully, the former Today people would find a home in Business Mirror, including Ma'am Chuchay who left the Manila Standard Today just as soon as the two papers, Today and Manila Standard, merged.

By the way, PJR Reports previously did a story on the merger of the two papers, and the issues that arose from the union.

A dangerous president

I'm currently doing a monitor on how the media covered the recent media blitz-cum-image makeover of President Gloria Arroyo for the next issue of the PJR Reports (formerly known as the Philippine Journalism Review). Vergel O. Santos, our consulting editor and chair of board of advisers of the Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility, reacted on Arroyo's July 27 press conference in the August issue of the PJR Reports. In his well-written article, the veteran journalistm, who is presently writing a column for the Businessworld, said:

"Televised nationwide, the press conference was over in about 30 minutes, but it has left enough stink to last perhaps an entire presidential term. Yet, the more worrisome aspects lie beyond the stink. They suggest a dangerously insecure and self-righteous president—one who would control her environment and one who would readily appropriate God for her cause. The first tendency showed in the scripted proceedings and captive audiences in Congress during her State of the Nation Address and at her press conference; the second was betrayed by her own chilling words.

During her press conference alone, she must have mentioned God being good to her at least three times. Before that, she had been content with having His earthly representative, the pope, for her patron—John Paul II, specifically, who, according to her, had himself told her she was his choice as Philippine president. But of course, when she made the claim, John Paul had become too dead to confirm or deny it. God, on the other hand, is too mysterious in His ways to be helpful Himself.

Obviously, in any case, President Arroyo’s controlled environment would have no place for an independent press. After all, an independent press regards skepticism as a virtue and government as an adversary; it also does not stop asking questions until it is told the truth; and it leaves God well enough alone."

Very well said.

Additional call for the Coconet

I may be a padawan in the blogosphere, but I know for a fact that writer Julian Alejandro's Piercing Pens is among the most-read and active sites today. Our little call for everyone out there to support the Philippine entry in the BBC-Newsweek World Challenge website will at least be given the much-needed additional exposure. Read his post on the call.

Go, coconets, go!

Here is an email from Pia, a friend from a previous workshop.

I've already placed my vote, so I hope you'd do the same and pass this to your friends. Let's help our country win through our online support :) - Pia

Friends,

Please check out the BBC-Newsweek World Challenge website and vote for the Philippines' entry, Coconets. (Only one vote per person is allowed.)

Coconets is produced by a Philippine company that was nominated and subsequently selected to be one of the 12 finalists for the BBC-Newsweek World Challenge contest. This is a search for the project which has contributed the greatest impact at a grassroots level.

There will be a documentary about the Philippine coconut geotextile/coconet industry which will be shown on the BBC World cable channel several times between September and October (one broadcast will be on September 24th, 8:30 GMT). The finalists will be featured in a special issue of Newsweek coming out on August 29th.

The World Challenge competition offers the possibility of tremendous exposure and publicity to the flourishing Philippine coconut geotextile industry and to our Philippine coconut fiber exporters.

Please help campaign for more votes by forwarding this message to our other co-workers, and to your friends and relatives. Thank you very much in advance.


I visited the site and saw the actual contest and the entries. Let's help the only Philippine entry. It won't take 5 minutes of your time. Let's show our support to our kababayans who have done a great service to the country by thinking and doing things such as these delightful coconets.