Journalism Review Archives | Page 91 of 159

TV Attention Wanders from SONA # 3

THE THIRD State of the Nation Address (SONA) of President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday, July 23, may have been a first for the president because it was relatively short and expletive-free. But whatever positive impact it had was lost in the melee, as partisans battled for the speakership...

BOL in the News: Coverage Stuck on the Event, a Matter of Procedure (Updated)

ON THE evening of July 18, the bicameral conference committee approved the reconciled version of the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) after addressing the different contentious provisions of House Bill 6475 and Senate Bill 1717. The historic passage came a year and a day after the 21-member Bangsamoro Transition Commission...

What to Make of the People’s Initiative on No-EL

HE MAY seem to be the lone voice pushing for the postponement of the midterm elections, but House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez may be getting some other signal from his political bosses, as the latest statement from Malacañang suggests official acceptance of a “people’s initiative.” Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque...

Prepping for the SONA: Media Flags Critical Issues

THE STATE of the Nation Address (SONA) has given the country’s chief executive an opportunity to report its achievements as well as map out plans for the future. The political ritual is a generous gift to the incumbent, and clever politics milks it for every bit of positive...

Chinese Military Vessels in Davao: Another New Norm?

IS THERE a new norm that Filipinos are being primed to accept? On July 17, the Philippine Navy and National Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana confirmed that Yuan Wang 3, a Chinese research ship, docked in Sasa Wharf, Davao City in the evening of Monday, July 16. Lorenzana told...

Contradicting Surveys: Media Must Explain

MUCH HAS been said about how polarized Filipinos are on political issues under the Duterte administration. Surveys should help us understand how different opinions and views make up the whole truth in terms of the public’s approval of or satisfaction or trust in their officials. In reporting survey...

Media Drinks Government’s Kool Aid on Inflation

RODRIGO DUTERTE did not run on an economic platform. He did not talk much about what economic changes people should expect. As president, he has admitted not knowing much about economics. Soon after his election, he showed his irritation when asked questions about business and financial issues. Two...

Federal Constitution: No Need for Speed

FINALLY, A copy to review and scrutinize! Federalism was the reason President Rodrigo Duterte was so het up to roam the country in 2015, pushing for its adoption in the Philippines. Or so he claimed; as he presented himself as a new kind of politician in a virtual...

Underreported in the Media: a Three-Alarm Fire in Megamall

FIRE HIT a construction site beside SM Megamall in Mandaluyong City on Thursday, June 28, 2018, past 7:30 p.m., calling to the site numerous fire engines which further aggravated the usual heavy traffic crawling on EDSA. The construction site is part of the mall’s expanded area. A three-alarm fire...

Eyes Wide Open While Some Media Turn a Blind Eye to Marcos History

THE GOVERNMENT raised by People Power in 1986 set as one of its goals the recovery of national wealth plundered by Ferdinand Marcos, estimated in the billions. To do this, then President Corazon Aquino established the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG), as a special body “responsible for...