Inquirer.net misrepresents source in report praising Lacson, Sotto 

JEERS TO Inquirer.net for an article heaping praised on Presidential and Vice-Presidential candidates Ping Lacson and Tito Sotto for their performance in the recent Comelec “PiliPinas” debates. The piece failed to mention that the complimentary comments were made by someone who had already endorsed Sen. Tito Sotto in November 2021. That most relevant detail should have been included in the identification of the source.

The report described the positive reception of the tandem’s presentation with quotes from three individual sources, all of whom said only good things about the candidates for government’s top two posts in the coming elections. 

The article  quoted  netizens Kyle Elijah S. Kub-ao and Junilyn Loriega Sarmiento, identified only as “Facebook users”, who called the team a stand-out and lauded Sotto’s “soft-spoken” delivery. 

It also quoted Obed dela Cruz who celebrated the tandem’s “heart and expertise” and said the performance would sway voters: “Siguradong maraming mapapa-isip na magbago ng kanilang iboboto,” (Surely, many will consider changing who they are to vote for,). Dela Cruz was identified as the lead convenor of conservative group Philippine Nationalist Conservatives for Progress. 

The March 21 article “Lacson, Sotto praised for performance in debates” failed to include context and background – that Dela Cruz had already backed the vice-presidential bid of Sen. In his personal blog on Facebook, Dela Cruz had also endorsed Sotto. His posts on “Si Obed – Ang Modernong Konserbatibo” are followed by thousands. 

Inquirer.net had actually reported his endorsement when Sotto announced his candidacy last year. Dela Cruz was quoted heavily in the report of the endorsement and in this latest report, calling Sotto “a true statesman” in both.

Without this information, the report misleads readers into thinking that De la Cruz’ reaction was from someone who had not yet aligned himself with the Lacson-Sotto team and had simply been won over by the latter’s performance during the debate.

In the comments section of the article, Inquirer.net’s online readers questioned the relevance of Dela Cruz as a source, called the article “a paid ad disguised as news”, and asked “how much was paid to Inquirer to cater stooge (sic) reports.”  

Media reports must be careful when citing sources expressing favorable and positive views about political candidates. Those who have already aligned themselves with a candidate must be identified as such. There is a crucial difference between those honestly reacting favorably to a candidate and those already aligned with the candidates they’re praising. Reporters should be clear about the identities of their sources.