Stop, Read and Listen
by John Michael Samuel
There are a bunch of people who are telling us that we, editors of this publication, are a bit negative and sometimes overly critical with our written arguments in our columns. There are even some people who make threats and try to file complaints against us.
Well, I don’t mind them; this is the life of a journalist. But, please tell me, who are you to tell us what to do? Was it ever written in Republic Act 7079, the Campus Journalism Act of 1991, that we cannot write our negative opinions regarding a certain issue? According to Sec. 2 of RA 7079, “It is the declared policy of the State to uphold and protect the freedom of the press even at the campus level and to promote the development and growth of campus journalism as a means of strengthening ethical values, encouraging critical and creative thinking, and developing moral character and personal discipline of the Filipino youth.” Personally, with what is stated above, I do think that we, as campus journalists, are encouraged to criticize relevant issues around us, whether it is institutional, local, national, or international.
In the news section, we always have something positive to tell and barely even putting something negative because this is campus journalism and we are discouraged to blurt out bad news about the school. It is the opinion section that balances things out. It is where we have the right to express our opinions, provided that we do not violate Art. III Sec. 4 of the 1987 Philippine Constitution or what we simply know as Freedom of Expression. As we are taught by our most valued professors, this right is limited by slander, libel, rebellion and sedition. Other restrictions include the Anti-Obscenity Law, Invasion of Privacy Laws, Law on National Security, Contempt of Court, and the Copyright Law. As long as we do not violate any of those, as long as we don’t name names — and so far, I checked and we haven’t — then we’re not doing anything wrong.
There was even a time when someone asked why there is negative feedback of students in our “Dominican Speaks” section when we should’ve put only positive ones. What will we do if that is what the students’ opinions tell us? Should we, dubbed as the voice of the students, lie about what they have to say? They’re the ones who are paying us (200 pesos to be exact which is the publication fee) and not you; it is just right that we serve them and favor them.
Accept the fact that in this world, whenever there is light, there is darkness and neither one can exist without the other. They are what keep our world in balance. Remove the other and there would be chaos.
“I believe that a journalist should write only what he holds in his heart to be true,” a line in the Journalists’ Creed written by Walter Williams. And everything I said above is what my heart tells is true.
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