I’m risking here my honor as UP Los Baños’ 2011
Outstanding Alumnus for Creative Writing.
Monday, 04 May 2020, the 25-year franchise of ABS-CBN expired[1]; Tuesday the Cease & Desist Order, CDO, of the National Telecommunications Commission, NTC, was issued for ABS-CBN to shut down immediately. You could say that this was the first time in Philippine media history that thunder & lightning struck twice in the same place, with devastating effects – such as 11,000 employees lost their jobs in one terrifying instant!
I did not think like that before this. Then I saw the above Facebook sharing of Susan Gomez titled “Statement Of The University Of The Philippines’ College Of Mass Communication On The Order Stopping ABS-CBN Broadcast Operations,” and the Editor In Chief in me saw the media misreading its own signals!
In UP Diliman’s College of Mass Communication, MassCom’s Statement on NTC’s CDO:
You can read the anger in those words.
That is not what I know as world-class journalism!
There is no subtlety shown, no beauty shared.
That is not what I know as world-class journalism!
There is no subtlety shown, no beauty shared.
UP Los Baños has its College of Development Communication, DevCom, and it has not issued any statement about the matter. Which is not half as bad as MassCom’s:
The University of the Philippines (Diliman) College of Mass Communication strongly decries the action of the NTC’s cease-and-desist order (vs) ABS-CBN operations.
Again, the current (Duterte) Administration demonstrates the lengths it will go to silence critical media voices.
Using UP Think, I must decry NTC’s CDO against ABS-CBN: NTC took away ABS-CBN’s academic freedom.
Differently, a senior citizen at 79, a self-taught journalist and a Facebook hound, with everyday half-a-day surfing the Web, I have not seen ABS-CBN among the “critical media voices” vs President Rodrigo Roa Duterte. A mislabeling I cannot forgive UP Diliman’s MassCom for!
Has MassCom been watching and/or listening to ABS-CBN’s diverse media offerings? Neither have I, so I say it is wrong for MassCom to classify ABS-CBN as among the “critical media voices.” Logically: You claim it, you prove it.
There is something else. UP Diliman’s MassCom is one of modern journalism, and I can see, based on the statement above, that it sees the role of ABS-CBN wronglyas “a platform for the diversity of voices to be heard, and more importantly the public’s watchdog of inept, abusive and corrupt governance.”
ABS-CBN was designed for entertainment! I must say ABS-CBN has been playing its role beautifully, even if I don’t watch its shows – I am not a TV addict (and our TV set died months ago). Shut down ABS-CBN and you make millions of viewers of its shows your enemies.
President Duterte is much better off rescuing ABS-CBN from threatened death. He has the power; all that he needs to do is the greatest good for the greatest number, including himself.
You don’t like ABS-CBN? I myself don’t.
But think of this, Mr President, especially
during this Enhanced Community Quarantine:
With ABS-CBN dead, PH media is dead,
and millions of Filipinos will hate that!
And you!@517
But think of this, Mr President, especially
during this Enhanced Community Quarantine:
With ABS-CBN dead, PH media is dead,
and millions of Filipinos will hate that!
And you!@517
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