WHAT HAPPENED TO THE PHILIPPINE DAILY INQUIRER?

As journalists who embrace the Society of Professional Journalists’ “Code of Ethics,” we at the Institute of Ethical Media Standards have been horrified at what has become of the Philippine Daily Inquirer. During the current administration of President Benigno Aquino, the PDI has thrown out every principle of responsible journalism and has become no more than an attack dog for powerful vested interests.

We witnessed in horror the hatchet job they did on Chief Justice Corona that began with an inundation of PDI front page reports. We felt queasy as we saw three powerful opposition senators jailed with a demolition job on their reputations that began once again with an inundation of PDI “news” reports. The country’s Vice-President Binay, once far in the lead as a presidential candidate, has also been on the receiving end of an inundation of PDI reports. Before the country knew it, all three branches of government in the Philippines were placed under the control of the President, with no small part played by the Philippine Daily Inquirer and their power to shape opinions.

And to what end has all this power been concentrated in the hands of so few? Apparently for the suppression of one of the most fundamental rights that a government should guarantee its citizens: freedom from religious oppression. Our national hero and a model for all journalists, Jose Rizal, stood for what the PDI wants to squash.

The Philippine Daily Inquirer’s recent headline news hurling accusations against a church indigenous to the Philippines makes for surprising headlines: “INC leaders face US raps.” When did such topics become national news? While we understand that the Iglesia ni Cristo has their own reasons for voting as a political bloc, such negative news with questionable wording of its headline with an election so near smells extremely fishy.

Let us then hold up the PDI’s story to the light of the Society of Professional Journalists’ “Code of Ethics”:

1. Seek Truth And Report It.

Our first principle in this category states the following: “Journalists should take responsibility for the accuracy of their work. Verify information before releasing it. Use original sources whenever possible.”

Whatever the INC jargon may for Vincent Florida’s former titles in the INC, as the source for this article, he is basically a disgruntled ex-employee. Putting him at the center and quoting from him so much already shows bias. In fact, everything Florida says is obviously biased. If you asked us our opinion about any job that we left on bad terms, you won’t hear much from us that isn’t biased. That is, of course, unless we had an ethical duty to fulfill as responsible journalists. It is clear that Florida does not have such an ethical quandary.

Reporting everything Vincent Florida says, then, can be potentially damaging and hurtful. If you examine the facts as reported, all Florida did is fill up a form, IRS Form 3949A. According to U.S. law, anyone can fill up this form, especially anyone bearing a grudge. Flordia has a grudge. As a rule, then, submission of such a form should not be equated with a criminal charge on the one being accused. That is what makes the title, a front headline at that, so questionable.

Even the facts themselves are poorly researched and contradictory. Florida left the organization on July 30, he filed a report for the INC’s failure to pay taxes in August. Since Florida was no longer under the employ of the INC in the month of August, then he has no source for facts on the INC’s activities for the month for which he made his report.

Also not addressed in this article is if the INC has to pay these taxes at all. Under U.S. law, religious organizations have tax-exempt status. The INC is a religious organization. Therefore, the INC must be tax exempt. Or is it? We do not know, but a reporter making a front page headlines article should have done the research.

2. Minimize Harm

With the lack of research on the topic of a church paying its taxes or not, many claims coming from said disgruntled ex-employee, which read more like a Dan Brown novel, were printed but no verification was made of any of them. At the same time, the membership of the INC in the Philippines is in the millions. This news item has the potential to be both hurtful and insulting. This is why extra care and comprehensive research should be demanded of such a topic. In the “Code of Ethics,” journalists should balance the public’s need for information against potential harm or discomfort. Pursuit of the news is not a license for arrogance or undue intrusiveness. Show compassion for those who may be affected by news coverage.”

3. Act Independently

“Journalists should avoid conflicts of interest, real or perceived. Disclose unavoidable conflicts.” Perhaps this is something that PDI President, Maria Alexandra Prieto Romualdez, or PDI Editor-in-Chief, Letty Jimenez-Mansanoc, should be pondering on. Their close ties to the President are, hopefully, not the reason for their unrelenting attacks on all whom Aquino perceives as threats or hindrances to his plans.

4. Be Accountable And Transparent

We can only hope that the PDI top brass can atone for themselves here. Will they apologize for their questionable front page headline attacks against a religious organization or will we see such attacks increase like they did against Binay when, for nearly two months, there was a constant barrage of front page accusations.

#pdi #philippedailyinquirer #iglesianicristo #antonioebangelista