Pleasure against Wisdom

 Pleasure against Wisdom

 By Rajeane S. Responde

To build up human interest is the role of media, to cover anything that is within the interest of the public, but in order to achieve their purpose, they come up of misleading the people to the world where the priority is within the nonsensical things.

Almost everyone gets news updates about what is happening in the society and of the world through media as medium which is considered as the most reliable and comprehensive source of information but media sometimes becomes irresponsible with its actions, competition among stations and publications for reputation, popularity and being conspicuously superior is its goal and not mainly for public service.  Obviously, the most notable or recognize which belongs in the top rank gains more benefits than the others.

Award is given to the most “fair and balanced” news station or publishing which is supposed to be its task. The rule is “The more you win the more you earn” reverse than the usual right? But that’s the reality on media; the most recognized gets more attention from the public and drags more audience, so winning the top rank means earning more.

Business Entity comes along the way, the profit-oriented media, giving entertainment and through showbiz or “Show Business”, celebrity news which are nonsense to be talked about; it’s making the public grasp the idea that this kind of news has something to do with our lives so we must give importance to it.

The news on Kris Aquino and Joey Marquez’s love tragedy serves as evidence. Aquino’s revelation on television about being a victim of Marquez in battery, violence, and acquired sexually transmitted disease broke the silence of the public and cause commotion of the media. High ratings of the top stations ABS-CBN and GMA7 were observed and even in the newspaper industry. The issue was accentuated by the news media because it caught the attention of the public and everyone was talking about since it involve two prominent personality in the society, a local government official in a rich-city and a popular actress and daughter of the former president. The issue was given importance and news that worth more acknowledgements for the public was disregarded.

Another example is the Kc Concepcion and Piolo Pascual’s break up, the interview of Kc on The Buzz which was marked as exclusive news in the show let the public hunger for this issue because it involves public figures, it was treated like food which people must crave for, but after knowing these things what did people get? Amusement, Pleasure, what else? Is it beneficial? It’s just teaching the people to go through and talk about somebody else’s life in a negative way or specifically teaching the mankind to “gossip” which is unintelligible. Instead of inspiring the public about persons with great achievement or success in life what was lend in the public were ruined lives because of finding it more intense and interesting which is again a nonsense.

Entertainment is within the nature of the press but the power is abused, it is regarded as the most priority, most significant and the one which has the greatest value.

The most important role of the press has been neglected – to Educate. Entertainment is something wanted that causes a moment of happiness but Education is something needed that develops one’s mind, skill, character and so much more which is acquired for a lifetime. Media can be a tool to educating people, especially the underprivileged, it can be the bridge through knowledge and understanding because it shapes, reshapes, misshapes the way people think.

Another technique of the media to persuade the public is by appealing to their emotions. Filipinos are known to be kind-hearted and has the compassionate heart especially with those who suffer difficulties in life particularly death. To obtain sympathy from the public, media uses its power to dictate on how to deal with these consequences. The death of the young actor Rico Yan is an example of the country and the journalist’s amiable nature. Grief is used by media to influence the public, through the display of agony felt by the people with relationship to them.

 The commiseration of the people towards the family of Rico is the way of the media to overpower or control them. Side issues about it keep obstructing on news and cause the public to eager for more updates about it. The technique of the media stated above is obviously unprofessional, the manner ABS-CBN media practitioner conducted its investigation and interview regarding the incident was intrusive and improper with her questions to the family harassing them.  “Ano po ba ang naramdaman ninyo ng matanggap ninyo ang balita?” instead of digging for facts it was done in a cheap, weak and disgusting manner. Where then is the professionalism and sensitivity of journalists?

Media becomes oblivious in the pieces of information they give to the public because media can drag more audience by hitting their emotions and through entertainment which is their interest and with the purpose to bring prosperous commercialism.

The good qualities of journalist’s has long been forgotten, being ethically sensitive or knowing what is right or wrong, considering the sensitivity of the audience – its advocacy of responsibility and accountability which enable the people to transform for betterment that can contribute to the country’s development.

Journalists should be professional, sensitive with their actions and must also be humble. It is not about glory and not about being paid for it; it is for the sake of the people. “It is not about the byline, it is about lifeline, the biggest tragedy of a journalist is not to be chosen as God’s pride.” 

Martyr or Traitor?

 Martyr or Traitor

By Rajeane S. Responde

            The standard of living rely on its people who depends upon what they have learned from the past, the events of the past that has a connection with the creation of the present time that is a foundation of the future.

The Philippine revolution became the bridge through the freedom of our country; it governed the people to the achievement of Philippine Independence. By the revolution, people were united and were pursued to fight for freedom, but the acknowledgement is only given to its leaders as they turn to be the principal hero of their people. It is very confusing how Dr. Jose Rizal became our national hero despite of his refusal to unite with the national revolution. Rizal opened the eyes of his fellow men with his novels and by awakening Filipino consciousness; many people were pursued to be a part of the revolution and are willing to sacrifice even their lives just to achieve freedom from the abusive and brutal Spaniards, but instead of supporting Bonifacio (father of Revolution) and his people, he became as the greatest barrier and threat when he tried to hinder in the movement against the Spaniards since he believe that it is impossible for the Filipinos to win.

Rizal is definitely a traitor for betraying his people who struggled a lot just to attain freedom, if he succeeded to stop the revolt, there would be no such thing as we called the Philippine Revolution which is the beginning of the people’s way to gain independence that we are enjoying until now.  He became heroic trough his writings, but he never put his words into action, he did not have the courage, he was afraid and do not believe in the capability of his people, he always wanted to protect his name, his name that brought him to enjoy the luxurious living being an illustrado (a person who belong in the middle structure of Spanish government before), and even studying and living in abroad, that an ordinary Filipino during that time would never afford. He is mainly a representation of a person who came from means and of great privilege who yet spend 35 years visiting affluent countries, while the native Filipinos called Indos (lowest structure of Spanish government) suffer in the hands of the cruel Spaniards.

Until the present time, the name Jose Rizal is venerated by people with his monuments all over the country, his image in one peso coin and even celebrated December 30 as a day to commemorate him, being the most popular hero and known martyr of this country then overlaps by his towering statues the revolution. His life is mandated to be studied by students’ even children in elementary as a part of their knowledge in their growth as required by law. The country’s educators were the primary culprits of this belief, they wanted to indoctrinate the students the traits, values, attitude and everything Rizal was, they push them to bow in his altar and make them believe on his exaggerated perfections at the same time over-shadowing his errors and misconducts.

Considering Rizal as the national hero means level the heroes of our country and making Rizal as supreme, the top most acknowledged hero and the one with the greatest authority. As people focus on Rizal, other hero is disregarded and is not appreciated. The taught us the manner of ranking the dead heroes of our history from the greatest to the least appreciated ones, the practice taught by the Americans and still live out in this day and age, competition among individual to be considered as the best, aim for power, discrimination and inequality. The other criteria given by the Americans to choose Rizal as our national hero now seems to be just an alibi to cover up their main purpose, for the Filipinos’ to inherit the legacy of Rizal, a person who never advocated independence, who would not build up rebellion against the government and only seeks for justice still under the rule of the colonizers unlike other disapproved heroes like Bonifacio who wanted sovereignty. The Americans somehow became unfaithful as they betray us when they made Filipinos trust their purpose of promoting prosperity in our country which later turned into bitterness revealing its real goal to just colonize and attain benefits from us.

In the present time, is seen that we still acquire the American culture, we learn to be so much attached with them that instead of nurturing our own culture we have grown depending on their refinement and considered them as the most powerful nation. The American sponsored hero Jose Rizal has a common purpose as that of that sponsoring country which is to influence our country with European nations: life and culture, languages and customs, industries and business and laws. (Jose Rizal, Martyr and National Hero pp.39)

Rizal taught us to accept as a fact that without them (colonizers) it is absolutely impossible for us to reach the success of life, we adopted other nation’s ways of living and brought us to the world where the honor is within them and made us bury own pride and civilization. Comparable with the Spaniards, they trained us to accustom their language which must be learned and put aside. Nowadays, this malpractice is still applied in the Philippines, with the knowledge that if an individual could not speak or understand English language (international language), that person can be considered as of low profile and an uneducated one. Although speaking English is a way to communicate and be understood by foreigners its bad effects to our society has been a real great damage to promote nationalism.

The failure of Rizal is that he sought us to inherit foreign country’s culture; he wanted us to be invaded by them and rely on them. If he did not suffer a dramatic death in Dapitan, what act could have emphasized his worth? A great change would probably be encounter. Even without him freedom of our country could still be attained through the joint force of our heroes of the past that has long been unnoticed as of the supremacy of Rizal.

From the evidences shown, it is proven how our national hero emphasized the way of being an internationalist. The foremost source of problems here in our country is mostly made by those people who still reckon in the application of history as an effective way of improving life.

How about promoting change and formulating new techniques to improve living? People agreed with the desire of the foreign countries to colonize us and control our government and economy with their potentialities of development together with the influential power of our national hero that dictates us, we tend to follow rather than trying to develop our country through our own capabilities and method.

The proper understanding of the history has something to do with our present time; the goal should probably be for the welfare of the people. Rizal’s life is mainly accustomed with Spanish traits and culture, the system of his family as they adopt the way they dress and make living, so far from the life of the native Filipinos’.

People are dependent with the colonizers in the past as well as it is today, we must strive for independence because it’s also a way of promoting sense of nationalism which is somehow missing in the hearts and minds of our generation. The understanding of unity among nations as a key to unity and successful living becomes a misconception of Filipinos as they become so abusive dependent to it. Rizal advocated equality because he wanted his people to be just like what the Spaniards are, he looked at his people just like how Spaniards look into our fellow men, so down and debilitated, pointing out discrimination to Filipinos and praise to the Spaniards.

China is now on its peak of being like the Spaniards of yesterday who wanted to colonize us, strenuously and with great speed of business expansionism throughout the Philippines and even yearning to own some portion of our land. If we apply in this instances the ways Rizal did in the past, would it lead to positive or negative results? Would we allow the colonizers to lead and slave our people for the reason that they know more, has the greater capability to provide means for economic growth for they are richer or should we just strive from our own effort?

Today people of our country especially the youth has already the capability to speak and express their sentiments , our fellow men turn out to be victorious in throughout the world, a great slap on the face of the colonizers of the past who discriminates us. Now, we stand out like what the revolution and the Katipunan intended, to show the world the Filipino consciousness, confidence, braveness, intelligence, power and independence, a change has been made and difference in life was greatly observed. How much more if Filipinos build unity to promote change for betterment of life?

To promote a sense of Nationalism, we must stand with our own effort, learn to nourish what we have, nurture our land with unity of people and not depending on others, most of all, to start the change and advancement of ourselves for a prosperous life. 

Honour vs Reputation

By: Rajeane S. Responde

            Journalists are the watchdog and voice of the people. Despite of the fact that one has to deal with the mad world of media where it is a matter of choice to live as a sinner and a traitor or to live dangerously. It is for your own honour versus the reputation of your subject, loyalty to one person against the prosperity of infinite number of people, willingness to go through the barricade that looks like “a guillotine waiting to crush intruders”, life or justice.

            “The state recognizes the vital role of communication and information in nation-building” (Article II, Sec. 24 of the Philippine Constitution) Communication is a bridge to inform and educate people, a tool for understanding and a thing which serves as a direction which would guide people to the roads of life. Press has the power within the society being the “fourth state of the realm” which allows them to answer questions regarding matters in the society and of the world, most especially to be aware of the prominent people’s life which involves the government concerning the common good of the nation and its citizens. The media or the press is responsible for unrevealing the truth and must expose all hidden agendas of public figures who abuse their power and the primary task is to aim for justice.

            Some politicians or public figure wears the cape of heroes’ concealing the reality behind their names and wears visible crown to emphasize their authority. Well-known individual mostly have their deepest darkest secret, journalists must remove the cloak and reveal the secrets behind their glory or else burn the cloak to show the reality which is not seen by our bare eyes, and press in accordance with the law is guaranteed with this powerful shield against the cruel person barriers but was not given importance and was taken aside. A challenge of the press is on how to deal with the forces order to do their job effectively.

 Journalists have this power to control the mind of their audience but the men in throne have the power to command people. “No law shall be passed abridging the freedom of speech, of expression, or of the press, and the right of the people peaceably to assemble and petition the government for redress of grievances” (Art.3, Sec.4 of Phil. Constitution) the real hero is the one who is not afraid to unleash the reality through intelligent means, just like our what heroes did, example is our national hero Jose Rizal who trusted the press to seek for justice. There are no limitations on who to talk about as long as it tackles for the benefit of many and as long as it follows the rules of the law.

 It is the duty of the journalists to dig for facts and give people the truth and nothing but the truth without prejudice because press is prone to manipulation. He has to have strong will, guts and immunity against the persuasion when serving the public but the freedom is associated with boundaries not to invade privacy of other people without appropriate reasons and should not step into the right of the other person, there must be certainty or corroboration of facts before giving the public conclusions. Also, a brilliant journalist does not lend facts for the sake of boosting business,  putting “chocolate to the ears” or for entertainment purposes, it is matter of informing the people for their welfare, the one who does not accept bribes, must be sensible, works intelligently probably a formal report lending a product of public obscenity.

Therefore, journalists must be ethical because every word counts, every statement can create and destroy a person or start and end up something, and pen is a very powerful instrument of the press. There are several aspect to look into in a certain news, for it to be worthy and plausible. Accurate information or reliable source is needed for it to be stated as a fact, objective or that it is not bias it has to be a press release no a press release, not opinion based but rather has a factual basis, and fair and balance, it should tackle its negative or positive sides, while when it is about persons in conflict, both sides in the story should be seen.

“An ethical journalist applies the porcupine dilemma when dealing with the reality, it is about getting close without being hurt, to unite anything without moral constrains, the right to attack then withdraw with no regard on who is hurt in the name of truth” 

Anxiety of Influence

ANXIETY OF INFLUENCE

By: Rajeane S. Responde

Television – an extraordinary product of technology which plays a great role in family’s life. Remote controlled furniture feasible for venture and a shadow of cyborg existing in the present time.

The increasingly prevalent style of influential media forms constructs reconstructs and de-constructs the world we live. Media and telecommunication networks expand with unprecedented speed which results to the transformation of the conditions of life. We are in the big stage of human evolution wherein people depend so much on television and the press, we are pushed from the millennial cliff and fall off into the unconsciousness of living in the darkness. Public is engaged with the media’s tricks of using the people for business purposes.

In an interview of the newscaster Eliza Romualdez with the owner and president of ABS-CBN, Eugenio Gabriel “Gabby” Lopez III, one of the top leading stations in the Philippines, it was proven how some network used media as a market place. “We’ve pretty much a marketing-driven corporation, so we pay attention to the ratings” says Lopez. Competition is within the society of media; their aim is mainly on ratings or to be on top among the others. ABS-CBN and its rival GMA7 makes way to entertainment to have an easy grab of audience, giving people what they want instead of what they need. Networks have no intellectual security of the foundation of everything but rather securing-in-insecurity and authority, acting in the world of which priority is business, sense of relevance and values for their own good, insecurity of goals for the security of means.

 Public is persuaded by the pleasure they get from entertainment and forgot the benefits brought by news. The focus shifted from hard news to pure drama, the entertainment based television, to gain high ratings and success. Another technique of different stations is to hit sponsors through advertisement. Financial is pretty tight and commercialism is a way to fulfill these needs, to attract corporate sponsorship, telecommunication brought us to the brink of extraordinary social and cultural revolution. Television is a ground for advertisement, it seems like commercialism is a part of media’s tactics to earn, sometimes there are even more commercials than shows, networks become “ad-dictive,” very disturbing and irritating.

General public is largely unaware of what is at stake in recent technological developments. People are prisoner for unintelligible significant relationship, brilliance is stupidity without learning. Telecommunication industries misshapes the environment in the world where future generation are destined to dwell, there must be a change.

In our culture nowadays of potential catastrophe, academic neutrality paves the way for a polite silent rape. What is needed is the strength to escape from reality with the vision for the obvious. Authorship is within the environment of media, impressing the people and begging for their sympathy probably for profit. The law of the media is the law of the dirty hands, using its audience or by using the public for reason which is distasteful. Media’s trick is fooling around and yet nourishes us, opposing on money or assets as its ultimate capital.

The challenge is to create a vision that sells, a system that magnetizes, a product line that delivers a product of entertainment and builds a generation where impressions count more than intelligence. The press and the television is a privilege instrument of persuasion, the news which is given less importance is deal in rush, the debt of hard news is disregarded. Style, timing and personality has to be considered so journalists try to move quickly to be the first to get a scoop and decide without careful which reflection is to act irresponsibly.

The irony of the people is that they remain blind to the advent of the profit oriented media. A concrete policy of networks is ready made by its owners, we are in the culture of command where people are spoon-feed, take everything that is given without scrutiny, we are full and overfed with food that has no single nutritional content at all. People needed to grasp the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

 Media’s expertise is to present essentialities for securing authority. Someday news would be like water which people would need badly, thirst for it and suffer the agony in the place like desert. We have a choice and power, unity and to move as one to demand for change against the powerful cannon, to build a better future.  We must live n the reality of facts and not just live in imagination, aim for wisdom.

Society is something like a cybernetic system that is ruled by media or networks, the advertising industry. Images made by various networks are only instrumentality for their victory. Even politicians used media as medium to become popular effectively for their significance, just like news turned to movie, when a person was put into a news then used it as bridge to stardom.

We must be awaken from the nightmare and change the image through which we live, SPEAK and ACT in an effort to make difference, because an effective human conduct requires knowledge and the ability to WEIGH the forces of the media.

Reality Behind Glory

REALITY BEHIND GLORY

By: Rajeane S. Responde

Without light is darkness and behind darkness is where the hidden reality exists, the truth unseen and never acknowledged. The society is blindfolded for the benefit and glory of some whom are of great influence and the ones who attempts to be against will be threaten. Journalists are of professional ability to acquaint the public of the events happening around us but is lacking in financial capability with their empty pockets to afford tools which would allow their thoughts and ideas to reach the public. To provide these needs, business entity has been a part of press’s  nature and businesspeople usually are the ones who has the capacity to provide these needs , they become the proprietors of the publication but some becomes interventionist and hinder in the power of the press to inform the public, they become decision makers and abuse the privilege to use their power for business interest rather than allowing the journalists to be aware on what really is happening behind us or the what we call “ reality”

In the early 1990’s some circumstances testify how the society was affected by the lords of the press, dominant in the world of editorial decision making of the journalists in the world of print media. The cases of the ex-president Joseph Estrada against the press last February 1999 are good example, the issue headlined by the Manila Standard alleging Estrada using a mysterious BMW which belonged to Quezon Rep. Danilo Suarez who was then being investigated for dropping the presidents name to land fat in the government contracts but turned out later to be false, caused the newspaper owners to of the newspaper to apologize to the president and jokingly favors to fire the editors, jokes are half-meant, right? Another example is that of the Manila Times which reported that Estrada stood as “unwitting godfather” to a supposedly anomalous power contract, this cause the president to threaten a libel suit and tax audit to the Gokongweis, owner of the Manila Times, also in the case of the Philippine Daily Inquirer in the president’s involvement in the textbook fund scandal which made Estrada on top of ordering a tax audit and have a business ally threaten the withdrawal of advertising that brought them to makeshift and apologize for the offending story while Times even issued a front page apology that cause 3 of its editors to resign in protest.

Those are just instances proving how the dark side of a well-known individual was concealed through knocking off owners in their ample pockets and a ground for belief that there is a narrow opening in the armor of the press. Behind the glory of the byline in the screaming headlines is the controlled and limited power of the press in the freedom to write freely. It is stated that the Philippine media is in the laxest system of the state supervision in Asia, restrained only by laws on libel and sedition, so the government practically has no control for publishing and no official rights to prohibit the press, what they can do is to file charges in the court but still some government officials make ways in order to influence media by paying off journalists or by exerting pressure on the press proprietors, those what journalists called “red tag” and the “praise release” are the things that serve as barriers for the journalists to do their job which is to report freely, fairly and effectively.

            Journalism is NOT a job for the glamour, to get pay in the senate or either to assassinate a character, what come down to it is conscience, integrity and responsibility not for the sake of the influential ones but for the benefit of the society. Newspaper proprietors turn out to be dictators; they always make sure that everything is doing well for their own gain and focused mainly on how the publicity will earn or is profit oriented. During the times of ex-president Ramos, the Manila Bulletin publisher Emilio Yap who had use the editorial pages of their dailies to persuade Malacanang to set aside the outcomes of public biddings which is unfavorable to them, by this tool he convinced Ramos to reconsider results after being lost in the bid against Malaysians for the Manila Hotel which Yap claimed to be a part of national patrimony, the Manila Bulletin’s publisher Emilio Yap is now the owner of the Manila Hotel. Another example is the questionable Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority contract which Ramos had order the biddings against Hong Kong Company to be rescinded after the Standard owner Razon family who runs International Container Shipping Terminal Inc. (ICTSI) lost the bid Manila Standard campaigned for reconsideration, as a result it was then by the Razon’s.

These two cases were evidence of how newspaper publishers use pages of the paper to gather campaign for their other business interests. Opposite to interventionist of other publication, some newspaper owners just give their editors a wide area of freedom although pressured by powerful officials, what they did to prevent their rivals to have access in their newspaper, they let the editors decide on what the paper can print or some are professional journalists. Other publication leaves the editorial decision making to professional journalists, the Philippine daily Inquirer is known operating in this mode and was later called the fighting journalist owned opposition’s paper. Unlike other newspaper, editors accept the rules set by owners and dutifully execute orders to highlight or kill a story. This is the case of the Philippines Star or Malaya, the main disadvantage is that critical understanding about the owners and their friends and allies as well will be toned down, buried in the inside pages, or not printed at all, blindfolding the public about the hidden facts.

The evolution of the Philippine press has something to do with the situation nowadays; the development of the press in the Philippines in early 20^th Century was taught for the purpose of business “entity”. The American colonizers introduced newspapering in the country with the notion of a commercially new and profit-oriented press, so by the 1920’s, newspapering because a profitable business with the expansion of the readership and advertisement market. The chain of newspapers founded by the Spanish Mestizo Alejandro Roces, then by the U.S. press tycoon William Randolph Hearst and later on followed by Philippines press proprietors. Even Manuel Quezon persuaded his millionaire friends to set up the Philippine herald to serve as a masterpiece for his political function and this introduced Philippine Big Business into the field of journalism.

In the 1930’s – 1945, the Philippine press chain continue to pass into different business people proprietors because El debate- Mabuhay-Herald-Monday Mail (DHMM) chain than the Manila Chronicle during 1950’s in the time of Martial Law. Journalists are shackled with hand cuffs during Ferdinand Marcos term prohibiting the press to exercising its freedom. Marcos even ordered closure to newspaper industry and allowed again to open after few months but is under the strict government and supervision but was still used by the owners for their varied business concerns.

After Marcos fell in 1960’s newspaper industry began to rise again but had a hard time in setting up big presses, large marketing, distributions and business staff, and a network of professional journalists that needs a large capital. Anti-Marcos newspapers like the Inquirer and Malaya were eventually sold to move established entrepreneurs.

It was a remarkable time in print media when big papers suck up most of the advertising revenue while the rest operate at a loss or barely break even if they lose money for their aim that profit but influence, there is a great competition and business people use every weapon to influence those who run the machinery of government. Later on, newspaper ownership tended to follow changing face of Philippine business, press lords, Spaniards and Chinese-Filipino businessman began acquiring ownership of newspapers in 1980’s. Manila bulleting was later owned by Emilio yap after the death of publisher Hanz Menzi Betty Go-Belmonte broke away from Inquirer and set up the Philippine Star, John Gokongwei Jr. purchased manila times from Roces family and the manila Standard was bought by Yuchengcos but later sold by Elizalde family to Soriano in 1989.

Chinese-Filipino businesspeople invade the Philippine society especially in the world of print media, but insecurity about their citizenship prevented them to have an active and overt role until they granted with Filipino citizenship, from this, they began to become more confident both about business involvements and engagement with mainstream Philippine society.

Emilio Yap, the owner of Manila Bulletin was said to be the most known in interventionist extreme as he runs the paper in a manner that some Bulletin editors said as authoritarian. The maneuver’s everything in the newspaper including the people in the newsroom. Yap’s objective is to use the Bulletin a jump-off point to social prominence and as a springboard for protecting and advancing his business interests. Somewhat, he also includes in some other pages his charitable deeds and role as leader in building up Chinese-Filipino community and of course anyone who is against him would be threaten, it is only the supreme court which he can’t dictate because it is the closest to his heart for his many lawsuits. Getting through this seems to be an issue Bulletin always toes the line whichever government is in power that is what Yap portrays that there is just a simple thought here, if there’s no gain your nothing. Opposite to Yap, some other newspaper proprietor of good will and traits, although the same nationality being ethnic Chinese. The Gokongweis has a different technique on managing newspaper taken hands off policy at the times, although the he graduated from the U.S. journalism school and has a better grasp of liberal notion with the press as watchdog and part of the forth estate. It really takes a good leader to have good people and a real leader is not the master of all but the servant of all. The Inquirer had made it’s way in being the most leading newspaper in the country, mainly because of the way it is run by its owner, known for it as hard-lifting and is willing to take the risk of losing its market rather losing its critical edge, that makes the bullettin profitable.

The media plays a very important role in the society, without media, the dissemination of information would be a great problem. But the question is, do the people rely on right, factual and accurate sources? It is a great challenge for the press to promote humanness and do their responsibility if someone always gets in the way, someone who dictates what to do, how can there be a change and justice among everybody? The answer is “balance and fairness” although business entity is a part of the press’s job; it is still the responsibility of the journalists to be truthful in informing the people on everything that happens around us. Media is entrusted by the people because the press is the voice of the citizens in our society.

Journalism is a job that requires man and woman who are noble, responsible, has the courage, conscience and integrity and in order to establish an effective world of the press; a helping hand is needed, watchful and observant citizens, unity among people for betterment of the society together with GOD is the greatest armor.