What will be the media’s role during the presidency of Rodrigo Duterte?
It is said that the media is just a messenger, a bearer of good or bad news as well as the watchdog of any administration.
During the martial law era of the late president Ferdinand Marcos, the underground media or “mosquito press” played a very important role in exposing the abuses of the Marcos regime.
But it was during the Marcos regime where some media were corrupted by payola given by those in power. They were in the payroll of the Marcos administration, and it was during that dark age when “envelopmental journalism” first sprouted.
Then there were those crusading journalists who were killed for doing their job of exposing the truth of the Marcos regime’s corruption. Some media outlets like the We Forum, Mr. and Ms. and the Inquirer exposed the Marcos regime’s corruption.
During the time of former president Fidel V. Ramos, the media monitored the deals and projects of his administration while it played a crucial role in the eventual impeachment of then president Joseph Estrada.
When then president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo rose to power, the media helped expose such scandals as the “Hello Garci” controversy as well as the resignation of the “Hyatt 10” and the Ampatuan massacre that killed more than 30 media practitioners.
The media also exposed the corruption of the pork barrel that led to the arrest and detention of some lawmakers and also resulted in the impeachment of the late Supreme Court chief justice Renato Corona during the term of outgoing President Benigno Aquino III.
Today, the media, especially those from Manila, are faced with the new challenge of how to cover President-elect Rodrigo Duterte who brushed aside threats of a media boycott by boycotting them instead.
Duterte was especially irked at media from Manila whom he described as “arrogant” and “full of themselves,” asking questions that he considers senseless.
The President-elect responded by deciding to employ the government’s media arm to promote his programs and refusing to hold press conferences and even interviews.
For how long will this arrangement last and would it be good for the Duterte administration? But then again, it took a president from Mindanao to place the media in Manila in their rightful place.
The media from Manila always lorded it over their counterparts in the provinces. The Manila media always enjoys VIP treatment and retains the privilege of asking the first question.
For the duration of a President’s term, the provincial media is treated as a second-class citizen. But Mr. Duterte has yet to assume office, so we don’t really know what kind of relationship the media will have with him.
But I personally believe that it is important for media to have access to the President especially when it comes to his policies and programs because it is in the public’s interest.
One thing about the incoming president that makes him different from his predecessors is that he speaks his mind and his bold pronouncements have won public support.
Will the media support the Duterte administration in its development activities or go after it following his boycott of them and his accusations of pervasive corruption in the media industry?
Duterte is brutally frank and while his accusations may sting, there is truth to it. There are people in media, like here in Cebu, who also moonlight to augment their meager income. It will indeed be interesting times ahead for the media.