We will not surrender our freedomsToday, Independence Day, we renew our pledge to serve the people, to continue speaking truth to power, and to guard and defend freedom of the press and of expression from all threats.Read More Covering the PandemicRead more Covering the CoViD-19 Pandemic From Marcos to Marcos FIFTY-TWO YEARS ago today, we as a nation suffered the greatest betrayal in all of our contemporary history. Discontinuity of Unity on Ninoy Aquino Day 2024 FILIPINOS SHOULD not forget that it was on August 21, 1983, when Ninoy Aquino was assassinated at the Manila International Airport. A staunch critic of the Marcos dictatorship, his death roused Filipinos from the state of repressed discontent. Years of military rule silenced free expression and freedom of the... Media and the need for a unified front on the West Philippine Sea THE INCREDIBLE restraint shown by Philippine forces in dealing with China’s coast guard and militia in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) has been noteworthy and deserves national as well as global recognition, even gratitude. Duterte’s resignation and the failed education system Sara Duterte showed herself quite unprepared for the challenges confronting the country’s education system. She did not discuss her thoughts on the paramount learning crisis that called for policy action. SMNI vs Romualdez and House: A case against political control of media franchise THE CONGRESSIONAL fuss over offenses of the Sonshine Media (SMNI) hosts is politics at work and little else. The probe and the penalties imposed on Jeffrey Celis and Lorraine Badoy have little to do with the values of civic discourse. The driving concern here was the defense of Martin... Press Freedom’s Ally THE DENIAL by the House of Representatives of ABS-CBN’s application for the renewal of its franchise is but one more step in the return of authoritarian rule and the destruction of the Republic that President Rodrigo Duterte and his police and military cohorts have been orchestrating since day one... Closing down ABS-CBN IN THE midst of the tension and fear over the pandemic and requisite community quarantine, the government has forced a major media company off the air, literally closing it down. ABS-CBN has been cast in near total darkness. Government closure of any large company affects many lives and leads... EDITORIAL: Crisis in government communication calls for media to step up COMMUNICATION IS vital to democratic governance in normal times. But it is even more essential during and in the aftermath of disasters, political, social and economic crises, and such public emergencies as the continuing COVID-19 threat to the health and well-being of the Philippine population. The citizenry needs to... A call for leadership A QUICK scan of mainstream news earlier highlighted the quick actions and commitments made by the private sector: extending deadlines on scheduled payments; re-allocating budgets so they can help provide for the public’s most urgent needs. Accounts have also tracked government responses, which are demonstrably done in in bits... Call for media solidarity on COVID IN CRISIS, the impulse to call out failings is tempered by the already high level of tension and anxiety. Why add to the difficulties? Social media influencers in support of government have asked Filipinos to let the leaders lead, “just cooperate and follow.” But media’s function remains critical and... 12Next »
