Dilemma of the Philippine Media Articulate Democracy Issues in the Press Freedom

By : Suriani Mappong

- Dilemmatic of the Philippine media

In the press freedom side, Philippine may proclaim itself as the first nation which allowed it and we have always been known to have one of the freest, if not the freest press in Southeast Asia or the whole of Asia even. When post Marcos government several years ago had given constribution not a little to press freedom in The Philippine, specially to articulate democracy issues and something that related of them.

Although there is no government regulations which can restrict press freedom, but nowadays The Philippine media pricesely face a new dilemma to articulate democracy issues and public interests, because they must face perpectators of economic and political who have a strong influence to determine independency of media policy.

Some of watcher of press developing in Philippine like Luz Rimban and Sheila Coronel from Philippine Centre for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) and Luis V. Theodore, Deputy Director from Centre for Media Freedom and Responsibility (CMFR) told that businessmen and politicians have a big influence to the press developing. While no regulations but there is factor that sometimes compromise independent of media , like political pressure, for example during Estrada administration. As addition to that, non governmental factor also influenced media against mostly thing, some of these are influenced by economic factor.

For example during Estrada administration, the government could pressure to media that impact of political factor. There was no role to control media but Estrada could pressure the press by the economic factor, too. Estrada who has political power confince and built advertiser groups. So that is way, economic rate equarer has less income.

Other example, influence of advertiser : when (milk) one of products of The biggest corporation Magnolia in Philippine found bacteria, some reporters had to report it, but how journalist write about that, because SM is big advertiser in their newspapers. Only the Philippine Daily Inquirer published it. It means that, although no government regulations, there are factors out side can effect press freedom. Actually there is independent otonomy of editor, but some stories do not separated a practicioner has written the story. As far as there is no regulation, but there is no press freedom in this case up to now. Sometimes press freedom is compromised, because another factor can influence.

After the Marcos, what happen all the lost regulating media. The new government, Corazon Aquino, as far as government was concerned to its aim and the second thing is that she has a hundred constitutions cap the same constitution about press freedom, but addition to that the new constitution of 1987, even made it was more liberal than the past. Because they included to ride freedom of press. It is the include, not only the press but other expression such as artistical. And addition, there are now lost about that particulary of the press in the Philippine. There are even lost by the application. So that, it lost expression of press freedom up to this.

It is another impact of several factors. So the journalists could not to be independent. Many journalists are low wage. In some newspapers impact, that income can influence the corruption. The corruption of course as the impact of press freedom. For example, the journalist got money from politician, it is the wrong but the same time journalist try to them selves. They go to the politicians to get the money. Specially in the election in the Philippine, during election in the Philippine, newspaper was working for politicians and tire newspaper did for election. Sometimes there’s newspaper published for election, but after that it stopped. Include on television and radio in the Philippine. They sold the program. In 1998, there are cases of elections by the radio would not able to campaign the politician without money. So they would say, if you gave realize let you pay. If you pay, we have to report it. If you just campaign not advertise, no respond.

According to Theodore, It just not individual journalist, but station them selves automatically. It is Press Philippine matter. If they go to the politician, told that interview you, how many copy, several hundred copies (magazine). While that people do not get information that they need. Because the information is determined by how people pay. But also its depend of practiser. Why that is be happen because the newspaper could not make any profit, and related the welfare of journalists. People arrange to correspondent, regular fee, their paid for column inch. So it means they can not enough.

If we compared to professionals, journalists in the Philippine are paid salaries so measly. The data from the Philippine Journalism Review (PJR) explained that the entry levels for reporters in major boardsheets found that new reporters earn from P 4,500 to P 7,000 per a month. So comments a reporter-turned-media handler of presidential want able : "So, when a politician come along offering you double, triple or even quadruple your salary, and may be throws in a car, how can you refuse?"

"The welfare of journalist of critical to ethical practical of journalism. We see it the relations of press freedom and the proffesionalization of Philippine Journalist is not paying enough. Corruption is major in this case as far as decrease proffesionalization and habitual," Theodore added.

Many reasons can influence them, like economic situation made the country be poor. Secondly, is also cause of newspapers can get enough money, but also people is not buying and do not understand what they suppose to or from the media. So it makes small circulation. Electronic media . television and radio were less advertisement. Another factors is poor training. Although develop communication program, but nothing. This program is only a few as good.

If we hope its condition can be restored by press association in The Philippine, it means that nothing. Because press association like National Press Club (NPC) which has thousands number of journalists did not do anything to correct the resources from government official or businessmen who gave a big contribution for their media. Moreover NPC has already taken donation from government Arroyo about P1 million. So this association is difficult to correct the government if makes mistaken.

The other hand, according to Luz Rimban, there is also the factor of stiff competition among the news media. The race to capture readership or audience is pushing the news media to be more enterprising about the stories they cover, to widen the scope of their coverage to include issues that the press might have ignored or overlooked in the past.

Of course, it is also a reality that there are countless issues and problems facing our people that really need to be covered by the press--social, environmental, political issues and problems--that remain obstacles to development.

- Strengthening of Business influence

In February 1999, one of The Manila Standard headline storied that mysterious BMW Presiden Presiden Joseph Estrada was being chauffeured around in belonged to Quezon Rep. Danilo Suarez, who investigated it. The vehicles was actually owned by businessman, whose brother Ronni is the executive secretary of the famous corporation in Manila. But the next, Standard publisher Andy del Rosario told that one of the owners of the newspaper, businessmen Enrique Razon Jr. apologized to the president for error. To appease him, He asked Presiden Estrada by the phone, "What do you want to me to do Mr President, fire my editors?”

The story described us how Joseph Estrada did not tolerant to a bad press which had been written about him. He would seek out the offending reporter an express his displeasure by urinating on the man. Including of journalist and owner pressure by some gifts and envelopes.

Although there is vitually no government control of publishing and no official censorship, the Philippine media operate under one of laxes system of state supervision in Asia, only restrained by laws on libel and sedition. Given the constitutional guarantee of a free press, it is very difficult for government to intervene in the way newspaper are run, except by filing charges in court. Official therefore have tried to influence media coverage in other ways: by paying off journalists or exerting pressure on press proprietors, many of whom operate a wide range of interlocking corporate concerns.

Quoted of historian in the press field from United State, Lewis Gleeck that “the conversion of Filipino journalist of opinion run by politicians into newspapers run as business interprises,” Actually the politician were seeing the power of mass-circulation newspaper and were quick to get into the bandwagon.

So that, media post Marcos era, paradigm of media begun to change. Newspaper are published even if they lose money, because their aim is not profit but influence. In a country where there is intense competition among rival elites for business opportunities subject to arbitrary and not always impartial state regulation, business people use every weapon in their arsenal to influence those who run the machinery of government. One of the weapon is a newspaper.

The next impact, the profile of newspaper ownership has therefore tended to follow the changing face of Philippine business. In the immediate postwar period, the press lords came from Spanish mestizo families and landed sugar baron. But since the 1980’s, whealthy Chinese-Filipino businessmen had begun acquiring ownership of newspapers. The trend began 1984, when the banker and shipping line owner Emilio Tap took over The Bulletin in a series of controversial corporate maneuvers that followed the death of Bulletin publisher Hans Menzi. In Juli 1986, Betty Go-Belmonte, who came from a Filipino-Chinese publishing family, broke away from the Inquirer to set up the Philippine Star, initially the help of a P2 million investment from Chinese-Filipino businessman William Gatchalian, who is currently an Estrada ally and presidential consultant, on overseas Filipinos.

It is a part of all describtion about changing of owners and authority to media time by time. It had seen how the strong of business interests to determine press run in the Philippine. The other side, also show how the media was used to against other businessmen, included pro to politicians who will be colleague of media owners in campaign of election.

- The problems to articulate democracy issues

Now Philippine has press freedom, because there is no limited from government regulations such as the others countries in South East Asia. Although less than 13 years ago, the Philippine was under a regime that had little tolerance for dissent and criticism of any kind.

While most of the mainstream media at that time were cowed into submission, some journalist still occasionally tasted the temper of the authorities. And then struggle of journalist more and more appear when opposition leader Benigno “Ninoy’ Aquino Jr. was assassinated in 1983, the alternative media became determined to go beyond the boundaries drawn by the military backed government of President Ferdinand Marcos.

That the press in the Philippines could not contain its criticism of government even under a repressive regime is the legacy of history. Nowadays, press freedom in democracy area that hoped has responsibility and correct to government as 'watch dog', but the orther side press must face a new challenge like the strengthen of businessmen and politicians interests.

We realized, there are institutional or cultural conditions that continue to hinder the growth of the press. While newspapers and television news programs have expanded, the public often ends up quite confused about the complex dilemmas of development. Reporting is merred by inaccuracies, misquotes or quotes out of context, subjective slating, and sensational and misleading headlines. Commentary and opinion columns often take up one side against another on an issue, without context or perspective, driven sometimes by other partisan agenda.

One thing as treathening factors of press freedom such as the form of press freedom has values to protect press from government's regulations. Although, the last period press usually was end by the court.

Meanwhile, in democracy era, journalists face the dilemmas of writing about conflicts include how to write democracy issues. It could be as internal conflicts of journalists. And talking about the future of a restored democracy unit is country whose life has been threatened by six coup d'etat attempts in nearly four years. It is important to have a functional definition of democracy.

Quoted definitions of definition Juan Linz, the Latin American Scholar, who said that democracy is a system "that supplies regular constitutional opportunities for peaceful competition for political power (and not just a share of it) to different groups without excluding any significant sector of population by force,"

It is also recognizing of the many cultural and political similiarities -- between the Philippines and Latin America-- such as the influence of the Roman Catholic Church, legal and feudal structures, the volatility of politics, and the swing from authoritarianism to democracy.

Relationed of them, press developing in Philippines we can see many kinds of journalism schools can bring journalist to the real world. There are the norms by which we are told to determine the "truth". But when these nation collide with the reality of covering conflict (include conflict interests), many of the journalist do not find them a good formula for reporting the "truth" as if these nations were the only way of arriving at the truth.

In some cases, like in a coup d'etat Filipino journalists cant not be, and can not afford to be, natural One way of war or the other they have to take sides. Crisis do not permit them to be ideological eunuchs. Conflict does not give them space to report all sides simply, because no one journalists can be in all places during street fighting and combat.

When constitutional government is attacked by a coup d'etat, a serious problem arises over how journalists handle the news without violating the truth. In a democratic regime, the question of how to report conflict without violating the truth is left for the individual journalist to determine--but, are the sentiments the journalist have learned from communication school good for normal times in stable democratic system. Actually, to face of them, the journalists must think clearly about their ideological priorities, when writing about conflict in their own societies.

In Coup d'etat for example, what is stake is a constitutional system is in danger of being overthrown and replaced by another system that has no respect for the concept of change through peaceful means. A coup d'etat is an expression of violent from of change an in Latin America, as in the Philippines, coup attempt come from soldier whose ethic about change in determined by guns and not by Franchise.

From the fenomen, the nations is an upshot of two things: the enormous conceit of media in the advanced industrial democracy that leads them to believe that they are the fourth government, and that they can make or unmake governments. True the media in the stable industrial democraties influence public opinion but the issue is how much. But the pertuation of this belief is a good for the ego. The press in the third world countries cannot emulate this arrogance.

And the other hand, confrontational journalism may function very well in stable political system where conflict thought in the parliamentary area. Confrontational journalism to the conflict involves a battle of words. Thus, no matter how vicious the press criticism is, the worst thing that can happen is one party is defeated in an election or president resign, but the constitutional system is preserved. The system is so stable that abrasive criticism does not damage the fabric of the system which is based on institutional checks and balances.

But in as in the third world countries conflict take place simultanciously system. When a coup takes place the attack seek more that a change of leaders. It aims at a change of ideological and philosophical basis of government and a change in the view of society and the view of the world. It is an attack on foundation on which press freedom is built.

Before the imposition of martial law in 1972 press freedom was with the nation of checks and balances and the system was resilient enough to absorb the shock, coming from irresponsible and abusive journalism. In fact, the norms of the era encouraged to applaud abuse and personal attacks on authority. No matter how vicious was in exercise of press freedom, the stability of the political system was such that there was regularity of change of leadership but always within the rules of the constitutional order.

Today when the restored democracy is uncertain to endure, journalist are called upon to provide a corrective course to its errors. This correction cannot be accomplished by nit picking, trivializing the issue or pushing authority, especially when it's attacked by constitutional. The issues of survival in the Philippines are fundamental in nature but they are being trivialized by packaging political gossip everyday.

The press can be critical. Indeed it should be. But it also has to strengthen the constitutional basis of its freedoms. For those who want this democratic renewal to endure, the choices are clear. We have to be more inventive about the methods of criticism and indeed, critical examination of issues is what differenties a free press from a captive and schackled press.

Specially how the Philippine's media articulate democracy issues for election in governmental position, three newspapers as the biggest in The Philippine are The Philippine Daily Inquirer, Philippine Star and Manila Bulletin, much of their articles primarily revolved the campaign trail instead of focusing on the more important aspects of candidate, such as his personality and stand issues. Articles contained on the front-pages were almost all about the presidential candidates. Story about legeslative and local candidates rarely came out, and if they did, were mostly because they were victims of election violence.

And It was ironic at the time, the journalist was very difficult to be independent because most of politician served the budget to cover periods, the rates range from a low of P 10,000 a month each for reporters to as high as P 50,000 a month each for editors. It is a data of Philippine Journal Review (PJR) which acknowledged indirectly by some editors or publishers of the media.

According to Mr Ben R. Rodriguez, Editor in Chief of Manila Bulletin that the media has difficulties to avoid the pressure of politician who has authority and big companies. The media is depended of their advertisement. So it was one of problems that must be faced. The same statements acknowledged the others editor and publisher like The Philippine Star.

To solve all of the problems according to Sheila Coronel that there are four indicators to improve press condition in The Philippine. These include : democratizing media ownership, improving the welfare of journalists, upgrading journalistic skills and setting up a self regulating mechanism to correct the excesses of the press. She told that these parameters can restore the credibility and self-respect of journalists and enhance freedom press.

- Press Freedom in Indonesia

If we compare with Indonesian Press, they struggle to reach press freedom like the road is still long, winding and steep. The fear of journalists feel while doing their profession has not gone away. Although the era and system have changed, the dictator has fallen and we are in trasition into democracy, but violent attack on journalists continue to occur. Threat on the press never stop.

When Soeharto rezim, more less journalist’s rights were determined by the heart of the authority, therefore is was ‘normal’ that they were living in fear. But nowadays, press freedom is guaranteed on the Counstitution (Act. No. 40/1999 on Press Issue). One of the articles stated: “sentence for maximum of two years or Rp 500 million fine for anyone preventing the freedom of the press”

It was not the least bit doubtful about assaulting, threatening and committing violent acts on journalist are clear conducts to prevent press freedom. More than 100 cases of journalist violent until now, but none of the perpetrators was ever fined or sentenced neglecting the regulations already existed. How ironic, to make matter worse, the most common institutional perpetrator is the law enforcement themselves: police! The authoritative body which supposed to protect journalist from threats and fear turns out to be the biggest threat, terrorising and giving journalists nightmares.

Although the rules is not threatening press freedom yet to inveigle press, but we have to realize, -- lean of old and new orde rezim – press freedom in Indonesia just felt when press in honey moon with the authority. The honey moon is always happen in transition post rezim exchanged. After the rezim success to consolidate authority, the press burned down again.

Related of it, there is anxiety in information era about out control of the press as a hard reason to control the press. Its motivation as idea background to revise Press legislations in the meeting between Information and Communication Minister, Syamsul Muarif and the members of the first commision in parliament on December 6, 2001. The reason is Press legislation No. 40 in 1999 considered fail to over come negative excesses of press freedom, therefore Press legislation must be improved.

To face the perception, The Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) which proclaimed as an independent press organization consider that it just concoct and usual wrong. Because basically all negative excesses which made a problems are not press legislation business. Agree or not, negative access problems or law term is press delict has handled in KUHP (Kitab Undang-Undang Hukum Pidana), so it is not press legislation business.

Revision idea seems dangerous, because press legislations revision is interpreted by Information and Communication Minister, Syamsul Muarif and members of parliament of the first commision who enter articles of press delict in KUHP now. More less 37 articles is connected with press delict and rules which transplanted into press legislation revision.

The problem rises when 37 rules which related with press delict was taken from KUHP just like that. Because its rules is colonial articles hatzaai artikelen or articles of spread out hate and hostility feeling to government.

It is related of them, about press freedom, each journalist organization, media company and press parliament should responsible to journalist code ethic enforcement. If somebody violate ethic code, press parliament should become the ethic police every time who ready give moral punishment to media violated ethic.

Certainly, we have to realize that press freedom can give the positive and negative impact, but without press freedom, it is just a great disaster.

Conclusion

The development of the media in the Philippines is no regulations more to hinder press freedom, and the other hands is perhaps unique in Asia, because political rights were established ahead of economic development. In this case, the media acquired a strong political accent and exercised an influential political role. Press freedom did not come after economic development. In other countries of Asia, political liberalization and the militancy of the press followed the reachment of sustained economic growth and a relatively high level of industrialization.

So that, the precedence was given by the Philippine political experience to political rights, there are issues being raised whether this sequence has contributed to strengthening or breakdown of democracy. It is difficult to answer.

In the process of transition from Marcos dictatorship to democracy, the press is on the vanguard of defending constitutional democracy from violent assault. But if democracy is not supported by strong economy from the resources can be used to promote wider and more aquitable distribution of incomes and benefits, such a democracy may not survive the pressures put upon it by social forces which have not be patient with it.

To face many kinds of The Philippine media's problems, skills training for journalists would help a lot in improving of journalist capability. Some media NGOs tried to give training and other cause-oriented groups offer seminars or trainings on specific issues like gender reporting, peace advocacy, conflict reporting, etc. The other hand, professionalization of the media, higher salaries would also show management's support and importance given to the working journalist. So that, the journalists have no reason more to media corrupt and do not have power to be independent to articulate manythings surround them, such as democracy issues included of election, political conflicts, human rights issues, anti-dictatorship, etc.

In Indonesia, reformation era has given a chance to reach press freedom. So the press more free than Soeharto rezim. Morever press freedom is guaranteed on the Constitution (Act. No. 40/1999 on Press Issue), but it is not enough because another regulation of the government can fire press freedom. One side, Indonesian press

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