When The Media Stereotype

By Debbie A. Uy

HAVE THE Philippine media become more open to criticism of their coverage and reporting? A recent complaint against top broadcasting company ABS-CBN 2 is an instructive study on the media’s lapses, improvements in their response to criticism, and what more can be done.

The remark

Last Jan. 8, a coalition of groups held a rally in front of the Israeli embassy in Makati to protest Israel’s attacks in Gaza. The program featured different speakers on various topics related to the conflict. The protesters appealed to the Philippine government to take action, and for the US and Israeli governments to stop the violence. They also threw shoes at the Israeli flag.

One of the speakers, preacher Ahmad Barcelon, during his talk said, “Marami ang tumawag sa akin na gustuhin nilang bombahin ang embahadang ito. Ngunit, hindi ko sila pinapahintulutan (Many have told me that they want to bomb this embassy. But I didn’t allow them).”

The report

That night on ABS-CBN 2’s primetime newscast TV Patrol World, a headline said, “Pasasabugin ang embahada (Israeli embassy, threatened with bombing)!” while showing the protestors marching.

In its lead-in, the report said, “Samantala, sumugod sa embahada ng Israel sa Makati ang mga galit na Muslim. May nagbanta pang pasasabugin daw ang embahada kapag hindi natigil ang mga pag-atake ng puwersang Israeli sa Gaza city (Meanwhile, angry Muslims stormed the Israeli embassy in Makati. Someone even warned that the embassy will be bombed if Israeli forces do not stop their attacks on Gaza city).”

The report said over 300 Muslims had marched to the Israeli embassy to protest the Israeli offensive in Gaza which has killed their fellow Muslims and as well as non-combatants including women and children.

The video showed Israeli ambassador Zvi Vapni saying the offensives would continue.

After showing the protestors hurling shoes at the Israeli flag, the report then said: “Babala ng isang Muslim preacher, may nagbabanta na na pasabugin ang embahada ng Israel (A Muslim preacher warned that there are those that threatened to bomb the embassy).”

It showed a clip of Barcelon saying that he had received calls from Muslims in Mindanao who were saying that the Israeli embassy should be bombed, but that he had been chiding them.

The report then said that for the Philippine National Police, the situation was under control.

The complaint

Upon seeing the report, Herbert Docena, one of the protestors and a representative of the Stop the War Coalition Philippines, wrote an open letter to ABS-CBN 2. He accused the network of “crass sensationalism” and “bad journalism” for reporting that the protesting groups had threatened to bomb the Israeli embassy.

“Not only does this put one speaker’s statements out of context, it totally mischaracterized the nature and intention of our actions…. Instead of reporting on the substance of our actions…your report zeroed in on one particular statement of a speaker, distorted it, and sensationalized it,” he wrote.

He emphasized that Barcelon did not agree with suggestions to bomb the embassy “and that he advocated peaceful means to address the situation…. He did NOT threaten to bomb the embassy.”

Docena also attacked the portrayal of the protesters as being made up only of Muslims, and as angry ones at that.

“Portraying us as ‘angry Muslims’ [“sumugod ang tatlong- daang mga galit na Muslim”] hellbent

on bombing Israel…fuels the stereotype of Muslims as pathologically irrational terrorists who have no grounds whatsoever for demanding justice; it bolsters the misguided assumption that only terrorists (i.e., Muslims) could possibly be opposed to Israel’s war crimes.”

He said that many non-Muslims also joined the protest, as could be seen from the flags the protesters were flying during the rally.

The defense

In response, Charie Villa, Head of Newsgathering of ABS-CBN 2 News and Current Affairs, said that after reviewing the stories which aired on TV Patrol, Bandila, and Umagang Kay Ganda (Beautiful Morning) and reading the scripts of the rally, “I found the stories accurate.”

“(T)he reporter, Zyann Ambrosio never said nor pictured that the rallyists were just a bunch of  ‘angry (M)uslims’, Villa said in an email to Docena last Jan. 13.

“The reporter also never said the rallyists were out to bomb the Israel embassy. It was one of your speakers Ahmad Barcelon who said there were ‘(M)uslims in (M)indanao’ who want to bomb the Israeli embassy,” she wrote.

“Thank you again for watching our newscasts and for as long as your activities are worth covering we shall continue to do so.”

Villa included in her e-mails a copy of the script of the story packages in TV Patrol and in their late night news program Bandila.

The exchange

In a reply to Villa that night, Docena maintained that “(C)ontrary to your claim, (the transcripts) clearly and unambiguously show how the reporting was distorted and sensationalized.”

“Your transcript makes it evident that your report took a big unwarranted jump from quoting someone (as) saying that he ha(d) been receiving CALLS to bomb the embassy, to saying that there was indeed such an existing PLAN to bomb the embassy, and then saying that a THREAT was made to bomb the embassy,” Docena wrote.

“It takes a whole series of actions for a call to become a plan to become a threat—actions that were never shown nor proven in your report. How calls were turned into a plan and morphed into a threat was therefore clearly a case of exaggeration…”

Docena wondered why the headlines could not have been: “Mga aktibista nagprotesta laban sa Israel (Activists protest against Israel),” “Mga ralyista nanawagan sa pamahalaan na kondenahin ang Israel

(Rallyists call for government to condemn Israel),” or “Panawagang bombahin ang Israeli embassy pinigilan (Calls to bomb Israeli embassy stopped).”

“(W)hile we welcome your coverage of our activities (should they be ‘worth it’ in your judgment, as you say), if your coverage is just going to be as sensationalistic and as distorted, we would actually request you not to cover us. Unless your reporting shows more accuracy and respect both for those being covered and for your viewers, your coverage undermines our very advocacy for peace and justice,” said Docena.

Villa’s reply more than an hour later was short: “You are entitled to air your opinion and views and bring it wherever you wish. I have replied to you and my position remains. Let the public be the judge. I apologize if you took offence to my statement about covering your activities if we deem it ‘newsworthy’. Rest assured we shall not be offended if you don’t want us to cover your staged rallies.”

The next day, Docena said they had no desire to engage in a protracted exchange with the network. Their letter “was a small plea—an appeal for those of you who wield the power of media in your hands, the power to decide what is ‘worthy’ and what’s not, the power to shape the public’s view of the world, and therefore the power to influence the public’s response: please use that power responsibly—not so much for us but for those who are at the receiving end of the missiles.

“It was a small plea that though we may not have as much power as you, please treat us with a little respect.”

Villa replied an hour later.

“We are where we are not to bask in glory or power as you charge us, but to try as much as we can to reach out to viewers in the hope they get information they need. Our vision-mission says exactly why we do what we do—excellent journalism to make this world a better place….

“Yes, by virtue of our position and profession we worked so hard to achieve and attain, we wield this so called power to decide which is newsworthy or not. But I know, from years of practice and good fortune of working for Reuters news agency, that I must exercise this ‘power’ with responsibility…. Please review your letters which reek of arrogance and my replies where I contained any emotions to answer your concerns the best I can.”

Docena’s swift and short response was to back off: “I meant no disrespect nor arrogance and I profoundly personally apologize if this is how my letters reached you….”

The points

Two days later, Maria Ressa, Head of ABS-CBN 2 News & Current Affairs, replied. She thanked Docena for is apology. “Many people, like Charie, found your tone offensive, making it difficult to assess the points you made in the right light. Your apology now sets the right mood for a better exchange of ideas,” she wrote.

Ressa acknowledged the validity of two points Docena made. “We could’ve done a better job if we had kept them in mind,” she said.

First, in the video, she saw only “one Muslim banner (Anak Mindanao) among flags from Sanlakas, BMP, Alab Katipunan, Partido Lakas ng Masa and other groups from the rejectionist faction of the Left.”

Second, “(i)t was misleading to headline the threat without saying it had been defused.”

Ressa noted her reporter’s initiative to interview the Israeli ambassador to get both sides.

“She also picked up the most ‘newsworthy’ aspects of the rally. I think you, as an activist, understand what actions would draw the attention of the public. We merely magnify those actions by helping you reach more people through mass media.”

“I’ve spoken with the newsgathering team as well as the producers who handled this story so we can do a better job in the future,” Ressa ended.

The lessons

The complaint and subsequent e-mail exchanges between Docena and ABS-CBN 2 provide lessons and insights on coverage, media accessibility, and communication.

While there have been improvements in their reporting, the media can still do better to avoid common pitfalls, as pointed out by Docena and acknowledged by Ressa.

Prevention is better than correction. It’s important to do things right the first time. As Docena said, “Of the public that should be the judge: How many of them watched your damaging report casting us as irrational terrorists? And how many of them would have read our open letter protesting such treatment?”

Greater caution should have been exercised in the choice of angle, words, and visuals. To say that the rallyists were Muslims and that there was a plan to bomb when there was none bolsters views that the media sensationalizes and stereotypes.

Consider: Muslim, angry, bomb. It’s so easy for people to make the connection—but it shouldn’t be.

It should be said that it is not only media that stereotypes. People see stereotypes in media because we have personal stereotypes. Media just magnifies them.

These stereotypes can hinder deeper coverage of issues. In this case, media coverage on Israel’s offensive in Gaza is lacking because of stereotypes against Palestinians, which proceed from existing stereotypes against Muslims. As Docena pointed out, this distracts media consumers “from the real questions (Why is Israel allowed to kill over 1,000 Palestinians with such impunity? Why is our government not saying anything?), and allows Israel to cast itself as the victim in the face of such imaginary angry bomb-lobbing Muslims—instead of the aggressor that it really is.”

Ressa added that their competitor, GMA-7, did not run a story on the protest rally. However, PJR Reports checked the Jan. 8 episode of 24 Oras, GMA- 7’s flagship newscast. It aired a one-minute report on the rally.

“Our coverage of Gaza will show…that we believe this is an important story, and…we would like Filipinos to think and talk about it, to join the global debate and weigh in on what’s right and what’s wrong,” Ressa added. “I think that was apparent in our story, and the motives of the protestors were clear both from Zyann’s track and the soundbites used.”

Sensationalism and stereotyping are lingering complaints about the media. Both are generally subjective and interpretative, and the media tend to be defensive about these accusations.

With intense competition for more viewers and readers, media will always find ways to grab the public’s attention. Sensationalism is a cycle, feeding on itself. Knowing that the bombastic captures media attention, those being covered sometimes give in to the temptation to act or say the shocking to gain or divert media’s attention.

The goal

When the media fall short of their own ideals, the aggrieved can shrug it off, grumble privately, or write a letter like Docena did.

That Villa and Ressa replied personally to Docena’s complaint is commendable, even if it is expected of them. Villa’s inclusion of the transcript is also a sign of transparency and respect. But was there really any need to suggest that rallies are “staged” (Villa)? And what was the point of the claim that the protesters were from “the rejectionist faction of the Left” (Ressa)?

With most news organizations operating without an ombudsman, are grievances addressed promptly, if at all?

As the exchange between Docena and ABS-CBN 2 shows, these encounters can be heated and emotional. But it is important that despite disagreements, the accused as well as the offended treat each other with respect and humility. When heads are cool, it is easier to understand each other, admit mistakes, and propose solutions.

After all, at the heart of these disagreements should be a common desire for peace and justice by shedding light on issues and providing the right information for people to decide and act.

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Debbie A. Uy is the readers’ advocate of Davao-based newspaper Mindanao Insider. She is also currently an Asian Center for Journalism Fellow at the Ateneo de Manila University.

One response to “When The Media Stereotype”

1. PJR Reports January – February 2009 | Center for Media Freedom & Responsibility says:

   January 16, 2012 at 8:59 pm

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