Journalism Review Archives | Page 84 of 161

Head Start Advantage: PCIJ Report Bares Pre-campaign Spending

THE RACE officially started on February 12, but the contenders have been burning money on advertisements way earlier. After examining the pre-campaign ad spending of senatorial candidates for the May polls, the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) found candidates whose spending exceeded their individually declared net worth. CMFR...

Media Clueless about “Pork” in the 2019 National Budget

IN 2013, the Supreme Court declared “pork barrel” as unconstitutional, the name given to the practice inserted allocations, also known as Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF), in the national budget. Nearly six years after, the multimillion peso discretionary fund for lawmakers is back and in even bigger amounts. CMFR...

Measles Outbreak: Countermeasures Highlighted, Vaccination Woes Revealed

LAST YEAR, a news brief in the Philippine Daily Inquirer published on October 25 reported a 926% increase in confirmed measles cases since January 2018, as recorded by the Department of Health (DOH). Unfortunately, that staggering rise in cases did not get a follow-up from the press and thus...

Jolo Cathedral Bombings: Terrorism Despite Martial Law

AFTER TWO years, Martial Law has failed to quell the violence in Mindanao. Two bombings rocked a Catholic shrine, the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Cathedral in the predominantly Muslim city of Jolo, Sulu. The bloody attack struck during mass on Sunday morning on January 27; killing 22 people,...

“Battle for Manila Bay:” Another Rushed Rehab?

GARBAGE ALONG the baywalk may have been removed, but the stench remains. Following the rehabilitation of Boracay island last year, the government set its eyes on Manila Bay as its new rehab project with the Environment Department leading the task. The so-called “Battle for Manila Bay,” a three-phase and possibly...

Sentiment and Science Against Labelling Children as Criminals

THE BROUHAHA over the lowering of the age of criminality — to nine, then twelve — reflected both science and sentiment about the issue which media picked up quickly as professional groups and human rights advocates protested against the idea. That children can be in conflict with the law...

CMFR Notes Exceptions to Pedestrian Coverage of BOL

A HISTORIC moment, the people of Mindanao ratified the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL) on January 21, fueling the hopes for a peaceful and prosperous Mindanao. The announcement of the referendum results on January 25 capped two decades of peace negotiations between the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation...

Making Sense of Election Surveys

ALTHOUGH SOME candidates have been campaigning since the fourth quarter of 2018, the election period only began officially this month, on January 13. In preparation for the midterm polls in May, security measures, including the setting up of checkpoints and the gun ban are in place. The official campaign...

PR Piece for PNP

JEERS TO The Philippine Star’s report for publicizing the Philippine National Police’s (PNP) claim that it is 98% in compliance with human rights standards, without an independent fact-check on its veracity. On January 18, The Star published a report based on one single source –PNP Chief Director General Oscar...

Passport Data Mess: What’s the Real Problem?

ON JANUARY 8, Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin, Jr. tweeted that the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) is rebuilding its database from scratch because a former passport contractor “took all the data.” The tweet responded to a question asking why the current passport renewal process requires applicants to present...