Food from sources should not influence the media

CEBU, Philippines - One of the country’s most respected journalists who used to cover the Malacañang beat before she became the associate editor of The Philippine STAR said the reporters should not allow themselves to be influenced by news sources who give them food during press conferences during a forum on media etiquette during coverages yesterday.

Although Marichu Villanueva did not categorically say that it would be unethical for the government officials to provide food for reporters covering their offices, she said the concerned reporters should always be fair when it comes to news.

It was Sun Star editor-in-chief Pacheco Seares who brought up the issue because he learned that there are some government officials who always make it a point to feed reporters everytime they have a press conference.

The question raised by Seares triggered laughter among the close to 100 members of the press and Mass Communication students from various schools who attended the three-hour forum yesterday at the Marcelo Fernan Press Center.

The event was sponsored by Aboitiz Equity ventures.

It is already an “open secret” that the reporters covering the Cebu Provincial Capitol, particularly the office of Governor Gwendolyn Garcia, are provided with food during their noontime press conference.

Miguel Belmonte, president and chief executive officer of The Philippine STAR, who attended the forum yesterday, supported Villanueva saying the reporters should always be fair in writing their news.

Villanueva, who has been a journalist for 30 years, advised the members of the press to always be presentable during their day-to-day news coverage and be respectful of their news sources.

Villanueva reminded the participants, particularly those who are already working in the press to honor “off the record” information that their news sources give them.

But some journalists said “off the record” information given to them by their sources can still be written without naming the concerned persons.

Villanueva said the journalists should not argue with the interviewee, but instead they should be courteous and respectful to them at all times. If the reporter fails to understand the replies, they should not be ashamed to let the interviewee to elaborate further.

She said the reporters should have a voice recorder for them to be accurate if they want to make direct quotes of their interview. Villanueva also said before conducting the interview, the reporter must know the background of the persons to be interviewed.

Philippine STAR reporter Christina Mendez also shared her experiences and said the reporters should not be intimidated by news sources, otherwise they can no longer pursue their stories.

The FREEMAN editor-in-chief Jerry Tundag also shared his experience when a former American ambassador destroyed the tape recorder of a female radio reporter.

The US official was answering questions from the reporters in a formal interview in one of the function rooms at the Mactan Cebu International Airport, when a female radio reporter suddenly barged in at the middle of the interview.

She walked fast towards the location of the ambassador while already holding her voice recorder, then thrust it near to the mouth of the speaking US official, who quickly slapped it and said “Take that away!”

For those news sources who will insult the reporters for writing unfavorable stories, Villanueva said the reporters should continue to do interviews with such new sources in a nice way. 

Mass Communication students who attended yesterday’s forum said the event was very useful to them as it gave them stock knowledge on how to be effective members of the press once they finish their studies. — Rene U. Borromeo/BRP (THE FREEMAN)