'Men who matter'

It’s been a long time since a US president enjoyed such a high popularity as Barack Obama has today, with approval ratings still hovering at 58-60 percent levels. From the time he threw his hat into the presidential race, Obama’s phenomenal story has continued to fascinate not only the US media but even global news networks. In his first three days in office, Obama enjoyed an unprecedented 68 percent approval rating — the highest since the presidency of John F. Kennedy and his first 100 days in office.

If one could recall, Obama’s presidential rival John McCain — who once-upon-a-time enjoyed very good relations with the media — was frustrated at the apparent bias being afforded to the democratic candidate during the last leg of the campaign season, with “wall-to-wall” coverage devoted to Obama’s foreign trips. In fact, McCain even accused journalists of having a “crush” on his rival particularly since an NBC reporter had admitted it was “difficult to remain objective” because the energy of Obama’s campaign sorties were so infectious.

As US president, there is no doubt Obama is “a man who matters,” but no other leader today can claim to have “rock star” status worldwide, with throngs gathering to see him anywhere he goes. Obama is undoubtedly the darling of the press, and it’s apparent that the honeymoon period is far from being over. A study by two universities and the Center for Media and Public Affairs revealed that during Obama’s first 50 days in office, more than 1,000 stories or almost 28 hours of coverage were devoted by ABC, NBC and CBS to the presidency. In contrast, George W. Bush only received 7 hours and 42 minutes while Bill Clinton had 15 hours and 2 minutes of coverage. “There is a halo around Obama,” described the research director, echoing the findings by Pew Research Center that in the first two months of the US president, 42 percent of editorials and opinion columns were positive compared to Clinton’s 27 percent and Bush’s 22 percent during the same period.

No question Obama is also gifted with impressive PR skills, giving a surprise visit to the White House press corps, working his way through the maze of news desks asking questions about the media people and their work. The “Obama magic” and “common touch” certainly work well, like the time a 10-year-old girl played hooky just to hear him speak. Upon hearing that she needed a note to explain her absence, Obama tore off a piece of paper, wrote a note to the teacher and handed it to the star struck kid. He can turn embarrassing moments into humorous situations, like the time he swatted a pesky fly during a televised interview and laughingly said, “I got the sucker.” What was astounding was the negative reaction of animal rights activists when in fact, swatting a fly is just a normal reaction among people.

In any case, everything Obama does — whether discussing policy or admitting difficulty in kicking his smoking habit — becomes fodder for news precisely because he is a man who matters, who has the power to help shape the destiny not only of the US but the rest of the world. As a matter of fact, his “new diplomacy” is beginning to thaw frosty relations between the US and Europe.

More importantly, his efforts to improve relations with the Middle East are being viewed with favor especially by Muslim moderates who see his efforts as genuine. In what is considered a bold move — albeit bitterly criticized by conservatives — Obama is appointing an Ambassador to Damascus, something which has not been done in the last four years after the assassination of Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in which Syria was implicated.

In the Philippines, no president has ever enjoyed the same kind of popularity in a long time, especially with the tendency of people to hound a person for his failures rather than his accomplishments.

At our People Asia event at The Podium last Thursday dubbed as “Men Who Matter,” Mar Roxas was honored along with newscaster Mike Enriquez, OMB chairman Edu Manzano, Jaguar chairman Willy Soong and Congressman Irwin Tieng, among others. Our editor-in-chief Joanne Ramirez organized the event as a tribute to these men whose accomplishments have made a positive impact on the lives of others.

Our editorial board chose Mar as one of the honorees for his authorship of a number of legislations like the cheaper medicines bill which made the price of medicines more affordable especially for the poor. Mar already enjoys a high popularity rating among the AB sector mainly for his pedigree and educational background, but his popularity among the masa is quickly picking up due to exposure in media coupled with his attention getting “padyak” ads.

His romance with popular ABS-CBN news anchor Korina Sanchez has unarguably added to the surge in Mar’s ratings, with a lot of media attention given to every detail about the couple’s wedding plans. But over the years, Mar has managed to hold his own and has shown why he is a man who matters. After all, he topped the 2004 senatorial elections on the strength of his experience as DTI secretary, coupled with his catchy and very masa image — “Mr. Palengke.”

As they say, the presidency is a matter of destiny. But at the end of the day, what is most important to Filipinos in choosing a president is a candidate who believes the people’s lives matter to him, and can make a difference in a country whose population is expected to reach 100 million — with close to 40 percent belonging to the lower sector of society.

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