ressa, media, flunk test

wazzup, maria ressa?  nagulat, hindi, nagulumihanan, naman ako sa iyong Noynoy Flunks His First Test, published monday sept 6 sa the wall street journal online, then a couple or so days later sa abs-cbn website.   parang at this point in time, ika nga, when we are all, including the bereaved and traumatized chinese, waiting patiently for the results of the DOJ investigation, parang wrong lang yung timing.   why couldn’t it wait until you had something more to say, even if, yeah, some of it may have been new to the international community (and then again maybe not).

nakakapagpaisip tuloy kung bakit mo binanatan si noynoy nang gayon just then, in such a conclusive manner, when really palpak din naman, and even more conclusively, ang media.   sabi nga ni doy santos aka the cusp sa propinoy.net:

“He who is without sin should cast the first stone.” What is conveniently left out here is how the media contributed to the bungled operation. Are they now trying to deflect attention on to the administration because of their own mistakes. A little introspection and reticence would do them some good. –  9 September 2010 at 9:23 am

Maria Ressa’s assessment of PNoy is unwarranted given her own involvement as news director of a station. She has gone from merely reporting to editorializing. You don’t trip someone and then turn around and tell that person that he’s not well-coordinated. Or that it was his fault for not restraining you in the first place. It is a little disingenuous. – 9 September 2010 at 6:25 pm

we all know that ressa’s bosses the lopezes campaigned big time for noynoy, as well as her anchor ricky carandang, now one of the three-headed six-legged communications group.   so i wonder, what’s the subtext of the article?   that the lopezes, the network, are distancing themselves from the president and don’t care if he goes down?   there’s always binay?   ano kayang say ni kris diyan?   or is this just ressa, declaring her editorial independence via a lame last-ditch attempt to “deflect attention” from media?   she wrote it days before tuesday sept 7 when we first heard the damning RMN tapes at the DOJ hearing, so maybe she knew about those tapes, so maybe she was on defensive mode, blame the president na lang, una-unahan na lang?

it’s a pity that ressa couldn’t wouldn’t take the higher ground when she was is in the perfect position to do so.   at least dzmm wasn’t caught interviewing the hostage-taker at any time, even if anthony taberna and gerry baja interviewed, and delayed, isko moreno on his way back from the ombudsman.   at least no abscbn anchor/reporter was seen making gapang, stooping down to the level of, the struggling brother a la gma’s susan enriquez.

seeing now how badly media affected the proceedings and the outcome, i can’t believe that ressa refuses to promise a blackout next time unless all the other networks promise the same.   here’s manuel buencamino (in a comment to an earlier post) on ressa and media:

Maria Ressa’s tweet shows the kind of mentality prevalent in media: “If only one network does it, you would just switch to another. Needed gov’t to ask for blackout from all. We would’ve cooperated.”

Sinisi pa ang gobyerno. Has she ever heard of the term “self-restraint”?

And this is what she said during a forum at the College of Mass Communication of the University of the Philippines last August 28, Friday : “We would have been criticized by the viewers or what viewers would have done is switch stations.”

Ayun mas mahalaga ang ratings kaysa sa buhay ng tao.

Iisa ang takbo ng utak ni Maria Ressa, Erwin Tulfo, at RMN. Ratings is the end all and be all of modern journalists so news is whatever is sensational. Today’s editors use Nielsen ratings rather than substance to evaluate what can be aired or published.

talaga naman, ano?   it certainly doesn’t speak well of the media that they can’t come together like mature adults and speak as one on self-regulation without government sitting in.   i’m surprised that for someone so high-profile, ressa doesn’t have the chutzpah to dare lead the way, promise to not cover or air anything live in a hostage situation without the go-signal of authorities.    i would expect that other networks would at the very least be shamed into following suit.   if not, well, we know who to charge for criminal broadcasting next time around (god forbid).

no-holds-barred?

flunk na flunk din ang media in that panel discussion with the president.   can’t find a complete transcript yet, only a partial one from ellen tordesillas but i’ve watched/listened to the entire thing at least twice and i’m sure not tiangco not failon not bediones asked about the failed attempts to resolve the situation without bloodshed, i.e., by giving the hostage-taker what he was asking for.  the president did volunteer this early on:

Buong araw, mataas ang kumpiyansa na mare-resolba iyong isyung ito na walang pagdadanak ng dugo dahil kakaiba sa normal na—iyong hostage taking situation. Nagkaroon ng pagre-release ng mga hostages bago pa nag-umpisa iyong negotiation.

i would have asked if such optimism — that mendoza would just continue to release hostages even if his demands were not taken seriously — was shared by psychologists familiar with hostage-taker personalities.   were any psychologists consulted?   any psychologist worth his salt would have cautioned against taking anything for granted, especially where so many lives were still on the line.

At some point in the day, I talked to Sec. Soliman, vice chair of the NDCC, kasi I noticed there was only one ambulance. She said that there were several ambulances ready. I asked if doctors familiar with treating gunshot and blast wounds were also available; blood supplies, etc. She told me that it would be Sec. Ona who would be in a better position. She called him up, and they called me back afterwards na these had already been taken care of.

i would have asked why he was already thinking ambulances and doctors, gunshot and blast wounds, even before thinking how to resolve the situation without bloodshed.   i would have asked what he was doing all afternoon after the swearing in of gina lopez and others.   did he ever ask how the negotiations were going?   was he happy enough to hear that isko had a letter from the ombudsman without him having to intervene?    did he regret at all not intervening when the ombudsman’s letter did not do the job?

the promise of a complete transcript on the palace’s website is still that, a promise.   but i’ve listened to that harapan twice and much later into the hour-and-a-half the president vaguely referred to thinking of ordering the ombudsman… i suppose to come up with a document, no matter if bogus… and pinag-isipan daw kung paano bolahin si mendoza … pero paano kung hindi maniwala … and anong epekto later on … it would complicate negotiations in future hostage-taking situations, the credibility of negotiators would be put at risk….

i would have asked: but why should future hostage-takings be more important than saving lives in THIS hostage-taking???   besides, negotiations did not have to be made public.   the public would not have protested being kept out of the loop as long as the hostages were rescued unharmed.   the irony is, all that concern and alalay for future hostage-taking situations brought about exactly what they were afraid of, and more: the loss of credibility all around, not to speak of the loss of precious lives.

Comments

  1. She opted to play the blame-game instead of taking the proactive approach. Her intentions are dubious at best. I prefer GMA network’s approach of issuing new sets of guidelines to improve its broadcasts.

    Her timing is way off. She prematurely wrote her article and late in improving their policies and procedures. Credibility is important in news business and she definitely has major major credibility issues.

  2. SELF-REGULATION…There is such a thing as this one…

    Some agencies have complained that the authorities should have asked media to hold back on live coverage during the hostage-taking incident. However, the forum participants agreed that media should not wait for government to impose regulations; because at all times, only self-regulation upholds the full and untrammeled guarantees of press freedom under the Constitution. Besides, one participant noted, the real test of media’s commitment to ethical standards is to do good, ethical journalism “even when no one is looking.”

    (Emphasis mine.)

    This was copy-pasted from “Media to set own rules on covering crises”
    The Daily PCIJ
    Posted by: Ed Lingao | September 9, 2010 at 11:25 am

  3. Wallstreet Journal, the newspaper read by investment and hedge fund managers, pension administrators, venture capitalists and mutual funds managers.

    And these are the people, Aquino would like to invite for investments in the Philippines during his US visit one week from now. Very timely indeed.

    Ano nga kaya ang sasabihin ni Kris, evil? evil?

  4. Her article is not factual accounts but based from rumors and gossips. She should very well be in tabloid business, not in mainstream media.

    Notice the difference between GMA news website: ‘Insulting’ letter from HK is breach of protocol, says expert…while abs-cbn banner headline reads, “HK chief denies insulting PNoy in letter”.

    I’m not sure what her intentions are, but her reports tend to bring our country down and divide our people. I guess her loyalty is with her chinese boss.

  5. gabbyd,

    ‘cause it’s REALLY old news that GMA-7 is out of KBP.

    here’s a fresh article if you want:

    Common sense compelled the KBP to shred blanket defense of members. Individual stations began internal reviews. GMA-7 has completed and published its new guidelines for hostage coverage.

    from “Bladed fury” by Juan Mercado, Philippine Daily Inquirer, First Posted 21:50:00 09/10/2010

    GMA-7 did their “self-regulation” ahead of the KBP. i’m sure the latter will soon follow…

  6. PNoy buoyed by local stocks’ all-time high

    “After Philippine stocks soared to an all-time high on Thursday, President Benigno Simeon “Noynoy” Aquino III said he is confident that the country’s economy will recover from the impact of the August 23 hostage crisis on tourism.

    In an ambush interview on Friday, Aquino said he was elated that the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) gained 97.98 points or 2.56 percent to close at 3,902.56 Thursday.”

    http://www.gmanews.tv/story/200728/pnoy-buoyed-by-local-stocks-all-time-high

    The filipinos deserve some good news too…despite the gossipmongers within our midst.

  7. China Investments Up

    “MANILA, Philippines – Philippine tourism may have been affected by the August 23 Manila bus hostage incident but investments from China continue to pour into the country, including a P100-million agricultural venture from a giant agricultural firm.”

    http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/276476/china-investments-up

    Sorry na lang sila but you can’t bring a good country down…I have no doubts in my mind the pinoys would rise up from this.

  8. UP nn grad

    I was reading the ellentordesillas-blog entry about Noynoy interview. I can’t help wonder why Noynoy was the one making phone calls (to Versoza, to Soliman (Noynoy did not call Robredo)) — the information should be given to Noynoy by his crisis committee.

    And do you not get the impression that the TV broadcasts were important sources of information for President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III?

    Noynoy and the many Uzis were not the only ones making use of the TV broadcasts. The TV broadcasts were being used by the “on-the-ground” government team, too.

    Then Lim, Puno and others got hungry. Puno, Lim and the government team moved their command center to where there was no access to media-TV broadcasts. Then things turned from awfully-managed to bloody.

    Now I am getting an awful feeling that technology (or lack of it) was why the on-the-ground team did not ask the TV stations for a 15-minute delay.

  9. hi angela. Just two points.

    I’ve said it elsewhere and will say it again. Any good lawyer can prove media’s negligence. They have deep pockets. The question is procedural. Who will sue, and how will they be sued, for big-time damages? I suggest even the family of Mendoza has standing, along with those of the hostages and the owner of the bus.

    Ressa frames the issue to cover up media negligence. You rightly ask the 2-year old question: Why?

  10. Right on orlando. But why limit the lawsuit on the media?
    They are not the only culprits. Why not include the pnp, lim, moreno, dilg…and since ombudsman and the president are immune from lawsuit, lets impeach them. Who would decide in the end? The supreme court of gma?…now that seems promising…let’s all go for it…count me in. This would further expose the ill of the nation and perhaps someting good would come out from it.

    Thanks to mendoza for the wake up call!

  11. @niknok: I’m not sure you can sue the law enforcement agencies when they operate as such. There has to be a law that allows an exception to the general rule that the sovereign is immune from suit.

    But media is something else. They can’t pretend to be part of the state apparatus. Indeed, they thrive from all that ad revenue that ultimately the consumers/viewers/listeners pay for.

  12. It would have been nice if you could sue anyone not covered by impeachment. This would prevent abuse of authority…even in the name of carrying out their duties.

    One thing I’ve noticed, the judicial power of first world countries seem stronger than the executive. Almost everyone here is afraid of lawsuit hence more law abiding citizens.

  13. Mikey Benitez

    While I do think President Aquino needs to do something about the PNP and diplomacy, Maria Ressa’s self-righteous comments infuriate me more.

    What irks me about Maria Ressa is that even in her CNN days, Ressa paints the Philippines as gloomy and beyond hope–exaggerating the news in order to be featured. Even then, she was desperate to be featured.

    Ressa’s previous comments reveals her lack of character: “Let us unite and work together to put in place measures to collectively decide when we stop live coverage in the absence of government presence of mind…” In other words, her news coverage will only stop if other networks do the same. Talk about having no sense of journalistic ethics.

    But then again, why are we surprised? What has Maria Ressa done for this country anyway?

  14. hey mikey ;) orlando ;) speaking of mindsets: “…to collectively decide when we stop live coverage in the absence of government presence of mind…”

    no no no. rather: to collectively decide not to start on live coverage except after government has defined parameters, which could be different from one hostage-taking to another.

    as for the “absence” of the “presence” of government’s mind (lol), it’s the same as saying that if government is not making its presence felt, it’s incumbent upon media to make eksena and fill the void. heh. ok sana kung trained sila in hostage situations and negotiations, ano? e obvious naman na hindi, seeing how aug 23 turned out, thanks to media’s ill-timed and self-serving interventions.

  15. para sa akin, ang nakakairita sa presscon ni pnoy, bakit pa nya binanggit ang “insulting letter” (which, btw, we have no idea if its really insulting), and then say he doesnt wanna make a big deal of it. why mention it at all? hay…. there is no gain to mentioning it at all. it was a silly, amateurish mistake.

  16. manuelbuencamino

    @angela,

    “Let us unite and work together to put in place measures to collectively decide when we stop live coverage in the absence of government presence of mind…”

    In effect Ressa is taunting the government to exercise presence of mind. She should be careful of what she wishes for; the government might just demonstrate presence of mind by intervening and putting controls on media.

    Maria cut her teeth at CNN. That’s the station that rah-rahed America’s invasion of Iraq, an invasion based on lies about yellow cake, wmds, and Saddam’s link to 911. I guess CNN along with America’s major media outlets felt the presence of mind of the Bush administration. Maybe Maria misses that sort of guidance.

  17. UP nn grad

    I believe that’s an incomplete way of saying things.

    A more thorough way (in my opinion) would be this:
    (1) For media to establish guidelines on when to do “X” (e.g when to do 1-hour delay of ,say, a Presidential speech before a group of graduating students or, when to ignore for TV where an aggrieved congressman has shot his karibal inside a church);

    Government, too, should establish guidelines on when to do “Y” (e.g. arresting students and nurses meeting in a private property in Morong or when to ask media to do 30-minute delay broadcast of Kris Aquino getting arrested for drunk-driving in Taguig).

    If government-guidelines and media-guidelines coincide, then no problem.

    If there are no government guidelines, then media follows media-guidelines.

    If government guidelines and media-guidelines differ, then the government gets handcuffs and batons to get media to obey (after the on-the-ground crisis committee gets approval from either Ochoa or Lacierda), and then next day or next week or next month, the courts decide.

  18. UP nn grad

    Of course, Pilipinas bestest and brightest namely the more level-headed of Pilipinas citizens — those elected as senators and congressman — can write laws (which either media or government can ignore if willing to pay the penalties or in order to test the constitutionality of the laws).

  19. UP nn grad

    Executive — gets people to do what they are supposed to do, based on existing laws, for business-partners, for relatives. Oh, yeah, also “…. for the greater good”.

    Congress —- writes laws for their constituents, for business-partners, for relatives. Oh, yeah, also “…. for the greater good”.

    Supreme Court — (1) if asked to do so by a citizen or by Congress or under its own initiative, Supreme Court determines if actions by Malacanang violate the Constitution. (2) if asked to do so by a citizen or by Congress or under its own initiative, Supreme Court determines if (portions of) laws written by Congress violate the Constitution. “For the greater good” and “for business partners” or for “religious inclinations” can happen, too.

    Media — call attention to what is happening around the country and abroad. Media can also do advertising/propaganda for Malacanang or for Saudi Arabia. Media can also advertise for GMA, Mar Roxas, the Ampatuans, the Ayalas, Lucio Tan, former President Estrada, Syria, New Zealand, the Vatican, USA, Japan, Iglesia Ni Kristo, for Trillanes, for Ping Lacson, and of course “…for the greater good”.

  20. Amelia H.C. Ylagan: “Why would Maria Ressa of ABS-CBN News have run to The Wall Street Journal (TWSJ) Asia on Sept. 10, 2010, to belatedly belabor her perception of Aquino’s culpability for the hostage crisis, so nakedly bristling that “his first instinct was to blame the national media for covering the event live”? It is pathetic that a seasoned journalist would have used a national embarrassment like the hostage crisis to be a lead-in for a personal attack on the President — like a hanging participle would have been to a grammatically ill-constructed statement. And we might wonder, too, what malice might have crept into the thought process of accessing TWSJ, a foreign-readership paper on whom such parochial comments on “bungling” presidential appointees would only translate into less regard for us Filipinos? It is all about ruthless, soulless competitive marketing — media wresting for scoops at the hostage-taking scene and media feasting on the dregs of comments and speculations about what happened and what might yet happen, including dirty pitches to intimidate President Aquino on his “bungling” appointees in government. Yes, intimidate, by biased comments hissed through clenched teeth who it should be that he should choose instead of whom he has chosen. The monster, Power, speaketh.”
    http://bworld.com.ph/main/content.php?id=17592

  21. UP nn grad

    Well, that one makes sense. Why air dirty linen in public?

    Media in general and the females of media in particular should be part of the institutions that should heed this —- “If you can’t say anything nice about the president of Pilipinas, then don’t say anything at all.” Kaunti namang delikadeza, huwag ninyong hihiyain ang pangulo ng Pilipinas.

    GMA TALSIK DIYAN!!!!

  22. UP nn grad

    August 23 Quirino grandstand, the cameras were rolling and TV broadcasts were continuous since 3PM at least.

    Where is this idea coming from that the media could foretell the future? The TV cameras were continuously rolling and TV broadcasts were ongoing for several hours already. To suggest that media would know to shut down the broadcasts 5 minutes or 30 minutes before some event that was going to make Captain Mendoza go crazy is nonsense. Media did not have access to psychologists much less astrologers; crisis committee did. And media are less intelligent and skilled than the crisis-committee with regards hostage situations. And it is the crisis committee that had the people who are more knowledgeable and experienced on how policemen think. The crisis-committee had the personnel who are better-equipped to know Captain Mendoza’s hot buttons.
    ——-
    As for Ressa’s piece in Wall Street Journal — Thou shalt sanitize. Thou shalt not write anything that puts the sitting president in a bad light.

    Sounds awful.

  23. joji umali-riyadh

    I suspect Maria Ressa is not a blue-blooded Filipino and hopes that just like Willie-Wowowee, she be dumped into oblivion for self-righteous stand even though it is very obvious media was the escalating factor towards this tragedy.

  24. Still, there are those who believe that it’s the broadcast of Gregorio’s arrest that trigger the killings. Actually it’s just a part of Rolando’s escalating anger and it’s not even the ultimate reason.

    Two guys were directly involved in maddening Rolando to murder innocent lives. These are:

    1. The inept negotiator – who’s not in control of the whole negotiation; erroneously employing (a) the ombudsman (who already tired out Rolando’s patience for almost a year) and (b) Gregorio (whose motives are already suspect the first time he entered the scene); and
    2. The meddlesome or interfering radio broadcaster – who inadvertently was made to be an instant “replacement” negotiator (by circumstance AND by his choosing)

    No. 1 contributed to the first 2 strikes that angered Rolando (ombudsman’s unacceptable offer and negotiators’ lie). The 3rd strike (and only the penultimate one!) being Gregorio’s arrest seen by Rolando on TV. (Note that all these can still be reversed by proper negotiations.)

    With his distrust to the negotiator, Rolando easily shifted his confidence to No. 2 who stood as “replacement” negotiator…considering that No. 2 is still on the mobile phone line.

    Unable to deliver his promise to Rolando that the police are listening to him, No. 2 somehow pulled the trigger by not being an effective conduit of the demands/commands of Rolando.

    Please remember (looking through Rolando’s eyes and thinking as he was then), the snipers were not seen withdrawing and the SWAT team was not seen pulling out. These were specifically commanded (through the “replacement” negotiator) by Rolando to happen. His life is already in danger and he thought there’s no way out anymore.

    Adding to those threats is the fact that “dinere-derecho na ng mga pulis si Gregorio” (a threat this time to his brother) which Rolando also particularly ordered to be stopped. This is the Strike 4…the unmet instant demands which require immediate affirmative actions.

    Parang wala nang nakikinig sa kaniya.” This is the final reason why he started to shoot the hostages and then fight it out with the authorities.

  25. Key to negotiation is DIALOGUE.

    He needed to talk. He got Orlando.
    He needed to communicate better. He got phones.
    He needed aircon for the hostages. He got fuel.
    He needed food. He got Jollibee.

    He needed answer to his primary demand. He got none.
    He needed a trusting negotiator. He got none.
    He needed to remove the threat to his life. He got none.
    He needed to remove the threat to his family. He got none.

    From dialogue to MONOLOGUE.

    It cost nine to be dead and bitter shame to the living.

  26. Her article drags his mother (the icon of democracy) into this mess. It leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Considering she miserably failed to see that media have played a big role in the bungled hostage.

    Who would forget how she handled davila’s plagiarism issues. I didn’t like her then and I certainly don’t like her now. She might have seen far and wide but she failed to see what’s right under her nose.

  27. Could Ressa be a “coconut” writing in a foreign press? Could she be adopting a stance of being highly critical of the shameful situation in order to be accepted by her foreign peers and perhaps be glorified? Is she so ashamed of the whole thing that she puts one down just so she can prop herself up?

    If only one can shed his/her native skin and be un-Filipino for a change, Ressa could probably be the first one to do it.

    Maria Ressa, the quintessential anti-Pinoy.

  28. jojie umali-riyadh

    To baycas & Lourdes :=) i agree 100%. both represent the intellectual elite who is disconnected with the Filipino masa,unfortunately a people with damaged culture surviving in a quagmire of “freedom of speech” and the right to be silent”.

  29. “Maria Ressa, the quintessential anti-Pinoy.”-baycas

    benignO and BongV would be proud to have her in their flock, quacking this anti-pinoy songs with them:

    “we are pigs living in pigsty, quack, quack
    we are idiots, we are morons, that’s fact
    matangkad lang pag naka-upo, quack, quack
    we are Flip bloggers, we are quacks”

  30. “but i like bert’s take. flip bloggers as ducks quacking..”-Orlando

    Just a little clarification, Orlando. That is not my take, that’s their take…the anti-pinoy song. If you’re familiar with the anti-pinoy group you’ll know what I mean, if not, you’ll have to visit their blog site to know what I meant. I think there is a good possibility that you’ll have a good vibration with that group. Give my regards to my two favorite dudes in the group, benignO and BongV, two very likable fellas, those two, :).

  31. Media admit lapses in Manila hostage coverage

    http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view/20100914-292178/Media-admit-lapses-in-Manila-hostage-coverage

    “ABS-CBN senior vice president Maria Ressa cited at least two instances that the network should not have done during the hostage drama.”

    The whole world is used to accept lying politicians and honest media. This time it’s the other way around. She only told the truth when she’s under oath. Talk about credibility. She should be fired from her job, then we would know who really flunk.

  32. Yep, Orlando. Read it at Malkin’s:

    Quick primer for those of you unfamiliar with the “coconut” insult:

    If you are a conservative with Latino/Pacific Islander/Filipino heritage, you’re a coconut (brown on the outside, white on the inside).

    If you are a conservative with Asian heritage, you’re a Twinkie or banana (yellow on the outside, white on the inside).

    And if you are a conservative who happens to be black, you are an Oreo (black on the outside, white on the inside).

    Okay, who is getting hungry?

    Here’s the link: “The old “coconut” smear: Another white liberal bigmouth with race issues.”

    Over at BBC, there was a report in June of a black councillor who called an Asian colleague a “coconut” was convicted for racial harassment.

    I never knew that the wonder fruit (from the “tree of life”) could be derogatory until I read this last year: “Bananas, Oreos and Coconuts: Would You Identify as White on the Inside?

    Now, I’m afraid the Aug23 (or Uhg23?) disgraceful incident will increase Filipino “coconuts” abroad especially if they are being ostracized or being made fun of as result of the debacle. I certainly hope not!

  33. Talk about SELF-REGULATION…

    “Our hope was that the people in-charge, the police would have taken action, that would have controlled the situation. When we realized that that wasn’t quite happening , we then started talking to authorities about it,” Ressa further said.

    Self-regulation means from one journalist point of view: “to do good, ethical journalism even when no one is looking.”

    “Please keep in mind that when that happened, our cameras were already live before he went to us…He was (panicking) and pleading for his life. So we’re at the dilemma,” Ressa also said.

    Would one think that suddenly stopping the coverage then would NOT cause worry to the already-glued-on-TV Rolando? Panic to Rolando could also happen by suddenly creating a news blackout or an immediate shift in coverage.

    Again, that panic would certainly mean lots of demands and commands through the ineffective-conveyor-of-messages-and-instant-negotiator Michael. The panic that can make a very confused, agitated Rolando go berserk!

    —–

    “Kung meron man kaming major major na kamalian dito, it would be at the point what we perceived to be a normal interview na sasabihin nya lang ang prolema, magpapaliwanag ang hostage taker (If there is a major, major mistake that we made, it would be at the point what we perceived to be a normal interview that he would just air his problems, the hostage taker would explain),” Maderazo said when he testified at a joint hearing by the Senate committees on public information and public services.

    “Pero ang nangyari po na-witness namin ang negotiation. Hindi namin alam na nag away ang negotiators at si Mendoza (But what happened was we witnessed the negotiation. We had no idea there was already a fallout between the negotiators and Mendoza),” he said.

    Jake Maderazo owned up to their mistake…but, of course, only partially! Self-regulation and prudence (and even covered by the Broadcast Code of 2007) will dictate that Michael Rogas (possibly on orders from Jake Maderazo) SHOULD HAVE STOPPED the interview when the negotiator is already approaching the bus.

    YET, the RMN broadcasters CHOSE to be witnesses (even broadcasting it live on air) just to feed their hunger for news.

  34. It’s easier to accept there are pinoys abroad who are torn between two cultures. What’s hard to absorb are local pinoys with colonial mentality like ressa. Our govt was forcibly brought in conflict with China by this incident and some pinoy bloggers chose to side with them.

    Brown on the outside and yellow on the inside? Maybe they are the self-righteous ones who are quick to blame someone but failed to see their own mistakes.