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The forgotten
While Congress and media were preoccupied with the Charter-change debate, important bills were gathering dust in the House of Representatives. The Manila Times published a special report on the proposed laws that legislators were neglecting (“Urgent national bills, including Palace-certified ones, neglected,” Nov. 26 and 27).
The Times article noted that the House of Representatives failed to pass proposed legislation aimed at helping poverty, increasing wages, exempting oil and power from the value-added tax, and the repeal of the Mining Act of 1995.

Interesting but…
It’s an open secret in the journalism community that the  Philippine Daily Inquirer news pages are focused on looking for the angle that will make stories different and more interesting.
One example appeared in its Dec. 8, 2006 issue. According to the story, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo gave money to Western Visayas mayors who signed a manifesto supporting Charter change through a constituent assembly. The money, which was allegedly given on Dec. 5 at an Iloilo City hotel, ranged from P20,000 to P50,000 (“GMA gives mayors ‘Christmas love’”).
A mayor defended the “gift” giving and was quoted as saying the amount was a sign of “Christmas love.” The gifts supposedly came in envelopes with Christmas cards showing photos of the First Family.
Interesting? Yes.  But significantly missing was what Malacañang had to say about it, whether in confirmation or denial.

A one-source story
The Philippine Daily Inquirer reported last Dec. 11 that the Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) had warned President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo about possible public outrage resulting from the brazen attempt of Malacañang’s allies in the House of Representatives to railroad Charter change.
Quoting a “reliable source,” the Inquirer said that in a meeting last Dec. 8, INC leaders had told the President “they were concerned about her and the situation in the country and the stability of the country (because) of the outrage caused (by Con-ass).” (“INC warned GMA of public outrage: Concern over Con-ass relayed to JDV group”).
Succeeding events gave credence to the Inquirer report. But at the time the one-source story came out, there was no apparent effort from the paper to seek confirmation of the report, based on the “reliable source,” from either Malacañang or INC.  All it said was its source “did not want to be identified for lack of clearance to speak about it.”
The Inquirer story did report the statements of government officials who denied that the President had ordered her House supporters to drop the idea of a Constituent assembly without the Senate, but no one confirmed or denied the reported meeting between the President and the INC. Apparently the Inquirer didn’t bother to ask anyone.

Missing the basic questions
Despite the extensive coverage of the Charter-change (Cha-cha) debate, the media failed to provide the background information that would have enhanced public understanding of what was really at stake. As usual the media focused only on the personalities and sectors involved in the controversy and on the status of the Malacañang-House drive to amend the Constitution.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of amending the present Constitution? Why should the country adopt a parliamentary system of government? What would the Philippines’ adopting federalism entail? Will amendments to the 1987 Constitution really result in better governance and improved services—or did the Cha-cha ringleaders have less noble motives?   The answers to these questions could have provided the context that the public sorely needed.
A paper prepared by the Senate Economic Planning Office pointed the press to some of these questions, as well as other missing links in the discussion on—as well as the coverage of—the charter change issue. The Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism posted the paper in its blog on Dec. 11 (“Missing Links in the Cha-cha debate,”).

Blood for breakfast
The Manila Bulletin went tabloid again in its Dec. 17 issue by using a graphic photograph of slain Abra congressman Luis Bersamin. Although not a close-up shot, the bloodied, disfigured face of the slain representative was clearly shown.

Missed opportunity
The MANILA Standard Today issue of  Nov. 27 reported  the call of Alagad party-list representative Rodante Marcoleta for the immediate passage of his food subsidy bill aimed at helping to feed hungry Filipinos. It would have been a great story.  But the report did not say just how prevalent hunger was in the country and how feasible Marcoleta’s proposal was.

Learning from China
The Manila Standard Today reported on Nov. 28 an official five-day trip to China by Malacañang’s media team, led by Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye.  The report said the group wanted to learn how to improve the government’s relations with the press.
The report correctly pointed out the folly of the trip. China is one of the world’s worst media freedom violators, according to the press freedom watchdog Reporters Without Borders. It also provided sufficient background on China’s press freedom track record.
The report, however, was mum about the outcome of the trip. So what did Bunye and company learn, if anything? The story merely described the five-day visit as a “gastronomic adventure.”  So was that how the Chinese government maintained good relations with the press?  Does it stuff its journalists with food?

What’s the context?
Although it has been with Congress for years, the anti-terrorism bill has continued to languish in the legislative mill. BusinessWorld reported that this was because of “the lack of safeguards from government abuse” in the various versions of the bill including the Enrile version (“Anti-terror bill’s okay unlikely this year,” Dec. 20). The story was based mostly on the assertions of Sen. Aquilino Pimentel Jr. about certain provisions of the Senate bill (SB 2137).  BusinessWorld also reported the reaction of Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile, the  sponsor of the bill.
Like Charter change, various versions of the anti-terrorism bill have been in and out of the public consciousness. Given their highly contentious provisions, it would have helped if the report provided a more detailed background on the concerns raised about certain provisions of the Enrile bill. Moreover, it could have reported on how other countries had crafted their own anti-terrorism laws without sanctioning human rights violations.
BusinessWorld noted that the “crimes covered by the House bill include piracy and mutiny in the high seas or in Philippine waters, rebellion, coup d’etat, murder, kidnapping, serious illegal detention, and crimes involving destruction through arson, use of hazardous substance, hijacking, piracy, and illegal possession of firearms and explosives.” It did not say that existing laws already penalize these crimes. Why are they included in the  anti-terrorism bill sponsored by Enrile? BusinessWorld did not say.

A dried-up report on milk
The Philippine Daily Inquirer report on the support the Philippine government has been getting from various foreign advocacy groups “in the wake of the ‘blackmail’ by American businessmen” over the country’s revised implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of the Milk Code was very interesting (“RP gains support on Milk Code stand,” Nov. 21).
But readers would have had a better understanding of the issue if the story explained the importance to Filipinos of the Milk Code. Is the Code, which limits the marketing of infant formulas and requires companies to put labels on their products warning of possible health hazards to babies and infants, being challenged in Congress?
The report noted that the Pharmaceutical and Health Care Association of the Philippines challenged the Code’s IRR, but did not explain why.

The cost of not working
The Philippine Daily Inquirer did a good job in demystifying the “holiday economics” of Malacañang.
“Five years after President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo introduced ‘holiday economics,’ the dyed-in-the-wool economists largely dismiss its hoped-for effect of increasing domestic consumption and boosting economic growth,” the report said.
“More importantly, the business community believes the policy may even restrain growth instead of helping it along because of hidden costs associated with operating on holidays,” it added.
Quoting economists and businessmen and using graphs, the Inquirer showed that despite the government’s forecast that holiday economics could boost local economic output, there was little concrete evidence to support the assessment. Even Economic Planning Secretary Romulo Neri, the Inquirer reported, seems “unsure of the actual impact that holiday economics has on the economy.” (“Holidays economics: More bane than boon,” Dec. 1)

Tainting a talent show
Who would have thought that a singing competition like Philippine Idol would be tainted by politics?
Looking at the successful talent show from a different angle, Newsbreak reported that politicians were instrumental in making contestant Maureen Marcelo become the first Philippine Idol.
“Besides skill and talent, political muscle and machinery can tilt the balance in favor of an underdog vying for popular support,” Newsbreak reported.
It said that local politicians from her Quezon hometown provided Marcelo with money (a minimum of P5,000 per official) so that her supporters could buy prepaid cell phone cards to text votes for her. Some officials even provided free transportation so her supporters could troop to the Araneta Coliseum for the finals night of the competition on Dec. 11.
The report pointed out the similarities between politics and winning in Philippine Idol. Runner-up Jan Nieto told Newsbreak that just like in politics, “the best singer or the smartest and most capable political candidate does not automatically win.”
“It boils down to popularity, packaging, or the support base,” the report noted. “Critics of the contest say it inordinately gives an advantage to wealthy candidates or contestants who have the means to spend on prepaid cards and organization” (“Choosing Our Idols”.
The Philippine Daily Inquirer, for its part, reported that, with the election season fast approaching, Marcelo had been warned by relatives and fans to stay away from politicians.
“With her newfound national popularity, I would advise her not to allow herself to be used by politicians,” Marcelo’s grandmother, Erlinda Reyes, told the paper.
According to the Inquirer, local politicians in Quezon had “originally extended their support to another local candidate, Reymond Sajor.” But when Sajor was eliminated and Marcelo reached the finals, the officials shifted their support to her.
Quoting a local TV broadcaster, the Inquirer said that when Marcelo arrived in the studio for a TV interview, “she rode a borrowed barangay patrol vehicle, assisted by only one village councilor.”
When Marcelo won, “streamers of all sizes and colors from local politicians extolling her feat suddenly mushroomed in major highways of this city and in some parts of the province,” the paper reported (“Beware of pols, ‘Idol’ told,” Dec. 15).

Knowing the next chief justice
The Manila Times went the extra mile and provided extensive information about the nominees for the post of chief justice of the Supreme Court (“FVR, Estrada appointees make up the JBC shortlist,” Dec. 6).
In its front-page article, the paper gave the personal background, education and career history, as well as track records and current duties of Justices Reynato Puno (who was appointed to the post on Dec. 7), Leonardo Quisumbing, Consuelo Yñares Santiago, and Angelina Sandoval Gutierrez. It also reported each of the nominees’ landmark decisions and the president who appointed them to the high court.

Outdoing the tabloids
In the game of titillation, the broadsheets can give the tabloids a run for their money. The Philippine Star thus provided readers graphic details from the sworn statement of a minor who was sexually molested in a mall (“Ex-cop’s nephew accused of molesting 15-year-old girl,” Nov. 24).
Quoting some parts of the statement, the report narrated in detail how the suspect molested the minor inside a movie house. The victim’s name was not mentioned, but the name of her school and her year level was disclosed in the report.

Double injury
The Daily Tribune committed a very common mistake by many newspapers: identifying a rape victim (“Munti security guard foils rape try,” Nov. 29). But the paper added insult to injury by displaying a lack of sensitivity to the plight of the victim. It described the woman as “a handicapped victim” who was not able to defend herself because “half of her body was paralyzed caused (sic) by stroke.”

Returning to a tragedy
Nearly four months after the oil spill in Guimaras, reports on the disaster’s effects have become few and far between. The BusinessMirror, however, looked into the alternative sources of livelihood for the residents of Guimaras and how they’re coping with the tragedy (“Other jobs for Guimaras folk,” Dec. 4; “Guimaras folk deeply scarred by oil spill, rehabilitation still hangs,” Dec. 19).

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