Media summit tackles press corruption

CLARK FIELD, Pampanga —Media bribery and conflict of interest among prominent personalities and news media owners were highlighted in the first Philippine summit for the news media that ended here yesterday.

Many of the details in the three-day conference were off-the-record due to the sensitive nature of information divulged in the workshops and plenary meetings, with several participants openly talking about problems in their daily grind.

Some provincial journalists said many of their colleagues were forced to compromise their profession due to low or delayed payment for stories. STAR columnist Jarius Bondoc said he was told that in some radio stations, reporters had no need for regular pay as a press card was enough for them to solicit money from news sources.

Delegates from major newspapers and broadcast media stressed that news media need to be profitable and competitive to resist attempts to resort to bribery.

The STAR is one of the convenors of the three-day first summit of the Philippine News Media called "Media Nation: Leading the Way in Our Unfolding Nation."

Philippine Daily Inquirer publisher Isagani Yambot said the company had fired three reporters on corruption charges.

Juan Miguel Luz, a member of Pagbabago@Pilipinas who facilitated the last day of the meeting, raised the issue of conflicting interest among news media owners who had other business affiliations.

"Conflict of interest is at the heart of governance," Luz said, adding that the news media has to scrutinize its ranks in the same way that it examines news subjects.

Many delegates were critical about former media personalities who still maintain television programs after they are elected into office.

Asked about the difference between such officials and relatives or public officials themselves who maintain newspaper columns, Yambot said his company had no rules on the latter but he would look into the issue.

Another lively debate focused on the role of media in molding public opinion, especially in political choices. "We might be asking too much of ourselves," said Inquirer columnist Rina Jimenez-David.

BBC journalist Mike Nugent, who gave the closing speech at the conference, agreed with David’s observation. A veteran of conflict reporting in strife-torn areas such as Afghanistan, Nugent expressed reservations about media trends in Mindanao, where he had just attended a workshop on peace reporting.

"I don’t think we should be advocating peace, but I think we can have an influence in bringing about peace," Nugent said. He stressed that journalists can help clarify various aspects of a conflict situation, but "we cannot always assume that peace will be the outcome of good reporting."

Other delegates pointed out that one of the difficulties of the news media in providing adequate coverage is the varying levels of professional skills in the industry.

George Lewinski from public radio station kqED in the US said that in his country, it would be "virtually impossible for anyone to enter the profession without some sort of basic journalism degree" or training. Reporters have to go through rigorous internship before they can get a break in the American news media, he added.

Media owners need to be conscious about the quality of their reportage, as technological advances such as the Internet have allowed the audience to react in various ways to news.

Despite the problems, some of the most senior journalists in the summit believe that the news media would be able to overcome their difficulties.

"There is still hope. We can be catalysts for change if we think beyond bread-and-butter issues," said Dave Sta. Ana of Radio Veritas.

About 100 delegates, including corporate sponsors and Pagbabago@Pilipinas members, attended the conference at the Holiday Hotel. The participants did not reach any conclusion or issue any conference document.

"This is an open-ended conversation, a conference without an agenda," said Chito Salazar from Pagbabago@Pilipinas.