All eyes on Pacquiao, the boxerBut what of the legislator?
By: Ellah D. Pama, Jocelle T. Pizarra, Maria Cecilia S. Pedrocillo, Sherlene E. Mae San Joaquin, Marie Jojina S. Serrano/CMFR Interns
DUBBED THE “Fight of the Century”, the Manny Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather Jr. boxing match on May 2 (May 3 local time) received heavy international and national media coverage. A match five years in the making, the Pacquiao-Mayweather fight was hard to ignore not only because it involved two of the most media prominent boxing champions but also because of the hefty amounts of money involved.
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SIDE BAR THE HIGHLY anticipated Pacquiao-Mayweather fight was aired by the broadcasting networks ABS-CBN 2, GMA-7 and TV5 on May 3. They ran their own campaigns and sent out news teams to cover the fight from the preparation stage to the fight night until Pacquiao’s return to the country. CMFR looked at the May 4 primetime news coverage of the three networks (GMA-7’s 24 Oras; TV5’s Aksyon; ABS-CBN 2’s TV Patrol) and CNN Philippines’ Network News. |
Every Pacquiao boxing match is a show stopper in the Philippines; it’s no exaggeration to say that most Filipinos watch his fights. In Metro Manila, for example, and as the media never tire of mentioning, a zero crime rate is usually observed during Pacquiao’s fights.
Almost no one who accesses the media could escape news about the fight. The “big three” networks ABS-CBN 2, GMA-7 and TV5 announced they would all air the fight on free TV, in a marked departure from the usual exclusive airing by GMA-7.
Every major news organization devoted personnel and other resources in the coverage of the fight, from the preparation of the boxers to fight night, until Pacquiao returned to the Philippines via Manila. Some media organizations also ran campaigns urging support for Pacquiao.
The Center for Media Freedom & Responsibility (CMFR) looked at the coverage of the broadsheets Philippine Daily Inquirer, Manila Bulletin, The Philippine Star, The Manila Times, The Daily Tribune (excluding April 16, 17 & 18 issues) and The Standard from April 13 to 23. CMFR also looked at the May 4 newscast of ABS-CBN 2’s TV Patrol, CNN Philippines’ Network News, GMA-7’s 24 Oras and TV5’s Aksyon (see sidebar).
Number of Reports
The Inquirer had the most number of reports on the Pacquiao-Mayweather fight with 42 reports, out of which 11 were on the front page.
The Star had the second highest number of reports on the fight with 35 reports. Most of the Star’s reports were in the Sports Section, in which 28 reports appeared.
Except for the Tribune, which published only two reports on the Pacquiao-Mayweather fight during the period monitored, the other newspapers monitored published reports on the fight almost daily.
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Content of reports
The newspapers reported mostly updates on the training, preparations for the fight and the exchange of barbs between the two boxers. In the Inquirer’s April 21 issue, the newspaper published a sports article (“Pacquiao focused on toppling M’weather”) that stated how eager Pacquiao was to beat Floyd Mayweather Jr. It even mentioned that the Filipino fighter’s speedbag had an embossed image of the American boxer.
The following day, the Inquirer released an article (“Money seethes over speedbag taunt”) on Mayweather’s reply over the speedbag taunt, in which he said that it only fueled his “Pacquiao fire.”
The newspapers could not help focusing on the fight, but could they have at least contributed to their audiences’ understanding the technicalities of boxing? By focusing on what is a mostly scripted exchange of taunts and challenges between Pacquiao and Mayweather, they instead fueled further the already chronic bickering among the fans of both fighters.
Another lapse in the press was the papers’ premature certainty of Pacquiao’s victory and domination. A number of stories (“Manny sure of beating Mayweather,” Inquirer, April 14; “Apl. de. ap sees K.O,” Star, April 23) claimed a Pacquiao win despite his being considered the “underdog.” The conditioning the public received led to its great disappointment when Pacquiao lost by unanimous decision.
Support for Pacquiao by celebrities from both the local and international entertainment scene also filled the pages of the newspapers monitored (“Stallone pays homage to Pacman,” Bulletin, April 20; “Apl. de. ap sees K.O,” Star, April 23; “Stallone says Pinoy champ still the best,” Star, April 20). The mix undoubtedly helped promote “Kid Kulafu,” the biopic on Pacquiao’s life.
As usual, Dionesia Pacquiao, mother of Manny Pacquiao also landed on the front pages. The Bulletin, in its April 21 issue ran an article about Dionesia’s dinner with the family including her boyfriend (“Mommy D and boyfriend join family dinner”). The pre-fight rituals of “Mommy D,” as the media call her, were also the subject of reports, as well as her plans during the fight (“No Hexing for Mommy D; She’s all fired up,” Inquirer, April 23).
Self-promotion and Advertorials
The Inquirer had time to publish self-serving PR pieces highlighting its coverage of the Pacquiao-Mayweather fight. On April 13, the Inquirer published “PDI knock-out coverage of fight to be ‘all heart’” and another article “Inquirer ‘home-team’ advantage in place” published on April 20. Both articles appeared on the front page.
The man with many hats
In the end, the media coverage of the Pacquiao-Mayweather fight recalled not how much coverage Pacquiao the boxer has been getting but how little Pacquiao the public official has been covered.
Pacquiao the boxer certainly has the attention of the media. But Pacquiao is after all also the Congressional representative of Sarangani province, and it’s a post he won through the mandate given him by his constituents in the polls.
To be sure, there have been reports on Pacquiao as a politician and a legislator:
In the April 20 issue of the Standard (“Ferrer seeks Pacman’s support”), Government of the Philippines Peace Panel Chief Miriam Coronel Ferrer visited Pacquiao and was asked for his position in the on-going discussion of the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL). The Filipino boxer just expressed his approval of the law and stated that his current focus is on the fight against Mayweather Jr.
Another story from the Times which landed on the front page (“Pacquiao to ‘fight’ for Malacañang in 2022,” April 16) had Bob Arum, chief executive officer of Top Rank, proclaiming his support if Manny decides to run for President in 2022.
The fight and the preparation for it came at a time when Congress was (and still is) in the middle of trying to pass the Bangsamoro Basic Law, investigating the Mamasapano clash and the human and drug trafficking issues related to the case of overseas Filipino worker Mary Jane Veloso among others.
These issues notwithstanding, the media did not seem interested at all in getting Pacquaio’s views, given his position as a legislator. It was an opportunity for the media to help the public understand these issues, given its interest in Pacquiao.
The media have shed some light on Pacquiao’s record as a lawmaker, but these have been few and far between. No effort has been made to solicit his views on public issues so that his constituencies could benefit from those views, if any. At most, what have appeared in the media that could be described as related to his role as legislator are reports on Pacquiao’s dismal attendance record in House of Representatives sessions, and his alleged plans to eventually run for the Presidency.
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