* Speech of Atty. Ronquillo C. Tolentino delivered on the occasion of the Forum On Good Governance sponsored by the Aklan Public Information Officers Association held on September 28, 2007 in Gov. Corazon L. Cabagnot Memorial Tourism and Training Center, Old Buswang, Kalibo, Aklan.
Aklan journalists are well aware off their responsibilities believing as they do that they play a very important role in Aklan development and progress. So many of them would stress the Jeffersonian statements of preference for a press without government than a government without press, firm in their adherence to that democratic principle enshrined by Thomas Jefferson in his Letter which states, thus: “Our liberty depends on the freedom of the press, and that it cannot be limited without being lost.” And Aklanon journalists are wont to remember Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s defense of the freedom of the press when the great American president said: “Freedom of conscience, of education, of speech, of assembly are among the very fundamentals of democracy and all of them would be nullified should freedom of the press ever be successfully challenged.”
I would say with enough candor that Aklanon journalists, whether in the print or electronic media, are firm believers that freedom, to use the words of Carlos P. Romulo, initiates responsibilities and ultimately comes to generate the intelligence, initiative and wisdom that make for restraint and order. And the awareness of that Harvard University President Nathan Pussey phrase of “those wise restraints that make men free.”
Aklanon journalists, as before and now, have considered the freedom of the press as one of the radical rights of men coupled with the awareness that philosophers and constitutionalists from Voltaire to Justice Holmes had enshrined in their writings the validity and need of this freedom.
Earlier Aklan journalists would center their writings more on the history, tradition, customs, and culture of Aklan. But it was not to be so for long albeit Aklan was young. Journalists, having an affection for the printed word even long before the advent of radio and Aklan separation were probably imbued with importance of newspapers. I remember Carlos P. Romulo, former UP president; one time president of the United Nations General Assembly, a former foreign affairs secretary, newspaper editor and publisher and Pulitzer prize winner, once said: “A newspaper has a function all its own. It commands an audience which other types of news media – the radio and TV for example, cannot reach with any commendable effect. The interpretation of events, the interplay of fact and opinion, the color and tension of points of view – these are matters which other media of communication cannot transmit with the convenience and ease, let alone with the authority, of the printed page. In the last analysis, it is perhaps to our intelligence and precisely where that intelligence resides, which is the mind, that the newspaper addresses itself.”
Aklanon newspapermen, like the great Carlos P. Romulo, have their interests in newspapers derived from a long and personal affection with the printed word. And it is an affection cherished by most, if not all, newspapermen. To quote Romulo again: “it is from that love that our society today enjoys a considerable measure of contact with events and with the men and women all over the world that are involved in them. Our newspapers have even gone beyond this. They have consciously, and from day to day, helped us to understand ourselves and the complicated world we lived in.”
Corollary to the law creating Aklan as a distinct and separate province came politics, or if you will, the politics of governance. Political groupings were: formed, each political party seeking the mandate of the Aklan electorate to lead the province even as they saw the rich and vast God-given natural resources of the province then waiting for orchestrated development. In their own respective times and administrations, they have focused on Aklan development albeit on different approaches and targets, on divergent political visions, thinking and perspectives.
Believing that public opinion should be the constant source of liberty and democracy, Aklan journalists have freely commented on the conduct of public officials, inclusive of candidates for public office. The journalists in our province are well aware that “This privilege rest on the sound policy of encouraging discussion as a means of informing the public as to what is happening as to what should be done in public affairs thus, promoting the adoption of sound measures and deterring misconducts by those who administer the affairs of government. It is in the interest of continuing debate on matters of policy and questions of public good that the recognition of press freedom ultimately rests.”
The arrival of radio broadcasting in Aklan expanded the frontiers of press freedom and journalism. Aklanons have realized the importance of radio as a means of communicating their ideas.
And so with politicians to their constituencies. The importance of radio to Aklan progress and development actually needs no further elaboration. Suffice it so say that radio shall remain as the fastest means of transmitting news and other information materials.
On the 47th anniversary of Aklan and on the night of April 25, 2003 on the occasion of the First Community Press Summit sponsored by the Publishers Association of the Philippines, Inc. in cooperation with the Aklan Press Club, Congressman Apolinario Lozada, Jr. Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs, had occasion to state: “Media holds the power to sway minds to influence the opinion of the masses, to convince people that a glass is indeed half-empty or half-full. But, with this power comes the responsibility of accuracy and truth in reportage. Media’s power over the people is most apparent in the broadcast industry-in radio and television-where sound and tone (and image, in the case of TV) contribute to the effective conveyance of emotions for or against persons, things, or ideas. Undispu-tably, media can make or unmake fortunes. It is a small wonder, therefore that so many rich and famous individuals race against each other to gain control of media-related enterprises.”
“Of the three vehicles of mass communications, radio is considered the most potent in our country. This is because radio, being the most affordable, has the widest reach. In rural areas unreachable to print media and televisions, the radio continues to be major source of information and entertainment. In this part of the Philippines, I do believe so.”
“By the sheer size of their publics, therefore, our radio broadcaster should be among the most influential of media practitioners. To them, therefore, the responsibility of truth and accuracy should weigh heavier, not only because of their wider public but also because their medium – the spoken word – has a far more potent effect on their public. We need only to remember that the damage that the spoken word can cause can barely be rectified even when the speaker retracts his statement in a subsequent broadcast.”
Political leaders in Aklan are fully aware of the doctrine of fair comment which assures to the citizen the fullness freedom to express his views and his opinion on public affairs. As it has been emphasized, the constitutional right of speech is basic since it is through public opinion that those who administer the government are apprised of what the people want.
It is admirable that political leaders of Aklan, aware of the high literacy rate of the people, have honored the doctrine of fair comment. I would like to believe that they are cognizant that “The single purpose of the rule permitting fair and honest criticism is that it promotes the public good, enables the people to discern right from wrong, encourage merit, and firmly condemns and exposes the charlatan and the cheat, and hence is based upon public policy.”
Too, it is notable that public officials, with the exception of a few, are open to criticisms from the media. I would venture to say that they are not too thin-skinned with reference to comment upon their official acts. It is my observation that they are aware of the doctrine laid down in U.S. vs Bustos, 37. Phili.731, 740-741 which states: “The interest of society and the maintenance of good government demand a full discussion of public affairs. Complete liberty to comment on the conduct of public men is a scalpel in the case of free speech. The sharp incision of its probe relieves the abscesses of officialdom. Men in public life may suffer under a hostile and an unjust accusation; that wound can be assuaged with the balm of a clear conscience.”
Aklan politics and politicians recognize the fact that media is powerful cognizant of what the English statesman and prime minister Benjamin Disraeli; postulated, thus; “The press is not only, free, it is powerful. That power is ours. It is the proudest that man can enjoy. It was not granted by monarchs; it was not gained for us by aristocracies; but it sprang for the people, and with an immortal instinct, it has always worked for the people.” Rightly, Aklanon politicians consider that “the liberty of the press is the palladium of all civil, political and religious rights.”
Even as Aklan political leaders recognize the awesome power of media and its very potent and influential role, it is with justifiable pride to say that Aklan journalists both in the print and broadcast media have pursued their media careers with dedications, vigor and enthusiasm characterized by truthful and responsible reportage and commentaries.
I would say that Aklan journalists both in the print and broadcast media, in their unwavering quest and commitment to the exalted objectives of journalism, have never been oblivious of their role and responsibilities and never forgot that injunction from the Catechism of the Catholic Church, thus: “The information provided by the media is at the service of the common good. Society has right to information based on truth, freedom, justice and solidarity. The proper exercise of this right demands that the content of communication be true and – within the limits set by justice and charity-complete. Further, it should be communicated honestly and properly. This means that in gathering and in the publication of news, moral law and the nature of their profession, journalists have an obligation to serve the truth and not offend against charity in disseminating information. They should strive to respect with equal care.” /MP
Aklan journalists are well aware off their responsibilities believing as they do that they play a very important role in Aklan development and progress. So many of them would stress the Jeffersonian statements of preference for a press without government than a government without press, firm in their adherence to that democratic principle enshrined by Thomas Jefferson in his Letter which states, thus: “Our liberty depends on the freedom of the press, and that it cannot be limited without being lost.” And Aklanon journalists are wont to remember Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s defense of the freedom of the press when the great American president said: “Freedom of conscience, of education, of speech, of assembly are among the very fundamentals of democracy and all of them would be nullified should freedom of the press ever be successfully challenged.”
I would say with enough candor that Aklanon journalists, whether in the print or electronic media, are firm believers that freedom, to use the words of Carlos P. Romulo, initiates responsibilities and ultimately comes to generate the intelligence, initiative and wisdom that make for restraint and order. And the awareness of that Harvard University President Nathan Pussey phrase of “those wise restraints that make men free.”
Aklanon journalists, as before and now, have considered the freedom of the press as one of the radical rights of men coupled with the awareness that philosophers and constitutionalists from Voltaire to Justice Holmes had enshrined in their writings the validity and need of this freedom.
Earlier Aklan journalists would center their writings more on the history, tradition, customs, and culture of Aklan. But it was not to be so for long albeit Aklan was young. Journalists, having an affection for the printed word even long before the advent of radio and Aklan separation were probably imbued with importance of newspapers. I remember Carlos P. Romulo, former UP president; one time president of the United Nations General Assembly, a former foreign affairs secretary, newspaper editor and publisher and Pulitzer prize winner, once said: “A newspaper has a function all its own. It commands an audience which other types of news media – the radio and TV for example, cannot reach with any commendable effect. The interpretation of events, the interplay of fact and opinion, the color and tension of points of view – these are matters which other media of communication cannot transmit with the convenience and ease, let alone with the authority, of the printed page. In the last analysis, it is perhaps to our intelligence and precisely where that intelligence resides, which is the mind, that the newspaper addresses itself.”
Aklanon newspapermen, like the great Carlos P. Romulo, have their interests in newspapers derived from a long and personal affection with the printed word. And it is an affection cherished by most, if not all, newspapermen. To quote Romulo again: “it is from that love that our society today enjoys a considerable measure of contact with events and with the men and women all over the world that are involved in them. Our newspapers have even gone beyond this. They have consciously, and from day to day, helped us to understand ourselves and the complicated world we lived in.”
Corollary to the law creating Aklan as a distinct and separate province came politics, or if you will, the politics of governance. Political groupings were: formed, each political party seeking the mandate of the Aklan electorate to lead the province even as they saw the rich and vast God-given natural resources of the province then waiting for orchestrated development. In their own respective times and administrations, they have focused on Aklan development albeit on different approaches and targets, on divergent political visions, thinking and perspectives.
Believing that public opinion should be the constant source of liberty and democracy, Aklan journalists have freely commented on the conduct of public officials, inclusive of candidates for public office. The journalists in our province are well aware that “This privilege rest on the sound policy of encouraging discussion as a means of informing the public as to what is happening as to what should be done in public affairs thus, promoting the adoption of sound measures and deterring misconducts by those who administer the affairs of government. It is in the interest of continuing debate on matters of policy and questions of public good that the recognition of press freedom ultimately rests.”
The arrival of radio broadcasting in Aklan expanded the frontiers of press freedom and journalism. Aklanons have realized the importance of radio as a means of communicating their ideas.
And so with politicians to their constituencies. The importance of radio to Aklan progress and development actually needs no further elaboration. Suffice it so say that radio shall remain as the fastest means of transmitting news and other information materials.
On the 47th anniversary of Aklan and on the night of April 25, 2003 on the occasion of the First Community Press Summit sponsored by the Publishers Association of the Philippines, Inc. in cooperation with the Aklan Press Club, Congressman Apolinario Lozada, Jr. Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs, had occasion to state: “Media holds the power to sway minds to influence the opinion of the masses, to convince people that a glass is indeed half-empty or half-full. But, with this power comes the responsibility of accuracy and truth in reportage. Media’s power over the people is most apparent in the broadcast industry-in radio and television-where sound and tone (and image, in the case of TV) contribute to the effective conveyance of emotions for or against persons, things, or ideas. Undispu-tably, media can make or unmake fortunes. It is a small wonder, therefore that so many rich and famous individuals race against each other to gain control of media-related enterprises.”
“Of the three vehicles of mass communications, radio is considered the most potent in our country. This is because radio, being the most affordable, has the widest reach. In rural areas unreachable to print media and televisions, the radio continues to be major source of information and entertainment. In this part of the Philippines, I do believe so.”
“By the sheer size of their publics, therefore, our radio broadcaster should be among the most influential of media practitioners. To them, therefore, the responsibility of truth and accuracy should weigh heavier, not only because of their wider public but also because their medium – the spoken word – has a far more potent effect on their public. We need only to remember that the damage that the spoken word can cause can barely be rectified even when the speaker retracts his statement in a subsequent broadcast.”
Political leaders in Aklan are fully aware of the doctrine of fair comment which assures to the citizen the fullness freedom to express his views and his opinion on public affairs. As it has been emphasized, the constitutional right of speech is basic since it is through public opinion that those who administer the government are apprised of what the people want.
It is admirable that political leaders of Aklan, aware of the high literacy rate of the people, have honored the doctrine of fair comment. I would like to believe that they are cognizant that “The single purpose of the rule permitting fair and honest criticism is that it promotes the public good, enables the people to discern right from wrong, encourage merit, and firmly condemns and exposes the charlatan and the cheat, and hence is based upon public policy.”
Too, it is notable that public officials, with the exception of a few, are open to criticisms from the media. I would venture to say that they are not too thin-skinned with reference to comment upon their official acts. It is my observation that they are aware of the doctrine laid down in U.S. vs Bustos, 37. Phili.731, 740-741 which states: “The interest of society and the maintenance of good government demand a full discussion of public affairs. Complete liberty to comment on the conduct of public men is a scalpel in the case of free speech. The sharp incision of its probe relieves the abscesses of officialdom. Men in public life may suffer under a hostile and an unjust accusation; that wound can be assuaged with the balm of a clear conscience.”
Aklan politics and politicians recognize the fact that media is powerful cognizant of what the English statesman and prime minister Benjamin Disraeli; postulated, thus; “The press is not only, free, it is powerful. That power is ours. It is the proudest that man can enjoy. It was not granted by monarchs; it was not gained for us by aristocracies; but it sprang for the people, and with an immortal instinct, it has always worked for the people.” Rightly, Aklanon politicians consider that “the liberty of the press is the palladium of all civil, political and religious rights.”
Even as Aklan political leaders recognize the awesome power of media and its very potent and influential role, it is with justifiable pride to say that Aklan journalists both in the print and broadcast media have pursued their media careers with dedications, vigor and enthusiasm characterized by truthful and responsible reportage and commentaries.
I would say that Aklan journalists both in the print and broadcast media, in their unwavering quest and commitment to the exalted objectives of journalism, have never been oblivious of their role and responsibilities and never forgot that injunction from the Catechism of the Catholic Church, thus: “The information provided by the media is at the service of the common good. Society has right to information based on truth, freedom, justice and solidarity. The proper exercise of this right demands that the content of communication be true and – within the limits set by justice and charity-complete. Further, it should be communicated honestly and properly. This means that in gathering and in the publication of news, moral law and the nature of their profession, journalists have an obligation to serve the truth and not offend against charity in disseminating information. They should strive to respect with equal care.” /MP
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