Analyzing the Analysis

Analyzing the Analysis

(Book Review on News for Sale:
The Corruption & Commercialization of the Philippine Media 2004 Edition)

News for Sale: The Corruption & Commercialization of the Philippines Media (2004 edition) was written by Chay Florentino-Hofileña to document the psychology of Philippine elections and make the reader understand the interplay between politics and media in these times. In addition, the author aimed to present solutions to the existing situations which happened during the previous election period in the Philippines by involving the government, the media and the voting public.

The public expects media to deliver without bias the news regarding events of national interest especially the coverage of elections. The book documents how things were done in the past to establish that corruption in Philippine media started during the reign of President Ramon Magsaysay. One chapter is dedicated to each of the biggest media forms - television, radio and print. These chapters show that power and fear are the strongest motivations why politicians and media people perform their corruptive acts. The acts of the few good men are also mentioned to show that, provided the media person and the publisher/station manager stood by their convictions, buying media can still be reduced, if not totally eliminated.

Considering the title of the book, it shows what should be expected in the content. The cover which shows a cartoon illustration of how media people are usually depicted, i.e., wearing vests on top of shirts, one of them with a laptop, one with a sling bag holding a microphone, and the other one holding a video camera. They neatly fall in line. It is disturbing to note that a hand is putting money into the tops of their heads, which are opened by them willingly. The first and last persons in the line are partially hidden, giving the illusion that it is the practice, it has gone on for some time and will continue on for who knows when. It is also disheartening to note that no one is making them fall in line, no one resists falling in line and no one is doing anything to stop it.

The Editor’s Note establishes the credibility of the book by telling the measures on how the information presented were collated. It also mentions the goal of the book, to document how corruption is institutionalized during election period. Since this is a revised edition, it gives a brief history of what can be found in the previous edition through a summary, and gradually paced into the revised edition. It is a good teaser on what to expect in the book. It presents the reasons behind the events. It shows how political machineries fed on the need of TV and radio executives, and newspaper editors to gain profit. It also showed how corruption is legitimized in all media forms during elections. Another goal of the book is to educate the public of the laws which should be referred to in the given situations. It shows the public’s responsibilities in strategic places.

Throughout the book, it is apparent that the motivation of the people who do these malpractices is fear, i.e., fear of what politicians can do to media people and fear of what media people can do to candidates’ images. The book gives detailed accounts of events which actually happened, mentions big names in Philippine media and politics. When the source declined to be identified, the book establishes his/her credibility by mentioning the position held or roles played in certain circumstances.

Hofileña employs a consistent form of writing. She gives an overview of what to expect in all subtopics and since I have been reading it critically, it leads me to pose questions. I have consistently found the answers to them. However, Hofileña is fond of using “mental quotes.” At first, it appears witty but since she uses it abundantly, it makes me feel that she has left too many matters for the readers’ inference. The book also quotes political analysts’ insights, though they remain unnamed.

As the topic is corruption, Hofileña mentions the exceptions to the rule, those who did the right things and what happened to them as well. She mentions the faults of press people, how rampant corruption is, with detailed accounts of events in Metro Manila, but that is understandable considering the Philippines’ political set-up. Some accounts were brief glimpses of what have happened which makes me almost want to read the source articles. (If I had the time, maybe I would look for the books mentioned in the End Notes.) Since many statistics come from surveys, the author uses different sources of statistics.

Hofileña also shows the importance of the print and TV station’s management’s support when reporters are pushed against the wall regarding some issues, how Chino Roces, then Manila Times publisher and then young business reporter Satur Ocampo, dealt with a threatening situation and how the daily BusinessWorld deals with it on a consistent basis. Even if reporters stand by their convictions, they are powerless when big people approach the bosses.

Chapter Two is entitled Television Is King. It establishes the reach of television in terms of audience in comparison to other media forms, hence the title. It shows how politicians use TV so they will be remembered best. I agree with the writer that since the reporters, the incumbent and those seeking positions are in constant contact, it sometimes makes it hard when to draw the line between friendships and official matters. This is still not a valid justification in seeing wrong things as acceptable, at the very least. The book humanizes media people in an objective manner.

In the same chapter, I almost wanted to skip the passages where Lolit Solis is cited as the source of information because I doubt her credibility considering the many scandals she gets in to. However, since it covers four pages, I was forced to pore over it. In the end, I was enlightened that she was a good source considering she managed big celebrities such as Lorna Tolentino, Christopher de Leon and Judy Ann Santos, among others, who were endorsers of politicians in election times. It also shows the effects when showbiz and politics mingle, how a taboo practice in political beat reporting such as distribution of envelopes with money is widely accepted in the entertainment world.

Another personality which held my interest was Loren Legarda. Her ways of swaying reporters to her side stood out to me because she used to be part of the media that she tries to buy off. Instead of taking the lead on correcting the wrongdoings, she was a victim as well of the system of bribery in order to secure her place in politics.

The chapter Airwaves for Sale is another striking matter for me. Here, the radio players are the ones who approach politicians so they would buy air time in “bargain and discounted” prices. As all candidates have media strategists, it shows how the appropriate medium grooms the right image for a politician.

The last media form discussed is Paying for Print. It shows that processes and standards in place in a system are the best recourses to fight off corruption as it boils down to consulting the right document when one is in doubt. A Glossary of Media Corruption is documented at the end of the chapter.

On the whole, the book is depressing to read because it presents the harsh realities during elections. The last chapter presents welcome topics as it shows the measures put in place by the media to set as standards and guidelines to curb the wrong processes. The solutions presented are realistic as it calls for the accountability of the government, media and the voting public. Enforcing these measures is the hard part as it goes against the “rules laid out by traditions.”