Attorney Joseph Donato Bernedo, administrator and chief executive officer, Phividec Industrial Authority, reminds media practitioners the truth needs them to be exposed. (Photo by Jessica Dingcong]
MindanaoToday.com | ‘Hold all accountable, regardless of politics’
By: Uriel Quilinguing
CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, Philippines – Amid rampant abuses of press freedom and deliberate spread of misinformation, often fueled by monetary considerations and political influence, journalists must not hesitate to make tough calls even if doing so would antagonize the powerful.
Lawyer Joseph Donato Bernedo, administrator of Phividec Industrial Estate, said this in his speech after administering the oath of Cagayan de Oro Press Club (COPC) officers and board directors Friday, March 7, at Philtown Hotel in this city.
A responsible press, he said, must be free from political bias and that “this means covering all sides of the story, not just ones that fit an agenda, but to hold all leaders accountable regardless of political affiliations.”
He said while press freedom is meant to ensure neutral, balanced, and fair reporting and yet there are media organizations who have aligned themselves with political parties and politicians for the May 12 midterm elections, pushing political platforms instead of reporting the facts.
“Some media practitioners serve as mouthpieces for governments or opposition parties, shaping narratives to fit their interests,” said Bernedo, a practicing lawyer who handled cases for over two decades, including those brought before the International Court of Arbitration (ICC) in Singapore.
His legal expertise served well in the resolution of cases involving the Philippine International Air Terminal Company (PIATCO) and the Malampaya Natural Gas Project.
He said that public trust is eroded as media credibility becomes entangled with political propaganda, kowtowing to politicians and their shenanigans, leaving the public ignorant as the core issues have been obscured and relegated to the dustbin.
The Phividec top executive encouraged the COPC to help educate the public in analyzing issues, and in distinguishing truth from propaganda, facts from opinion, and balanced from biased reportage.
Bernedo said that while the media demand accountability from government, they too must also be held responsible for spreading false and harmful information, for the public to draw the lines between journalists and bloggers.
He said that in the current media landscape, money from corporations and advertisers can dictate the news, influencing what gets reported and what gets ignored. “Investigative journalism is sometimes suppressed if it threatens powerful business interests,” he added.
“Do not fall into the trap of false balance,” Bernedo advised practicing media practitioners of the COPC, that “of treating all voices as equal when one is backed by evidence and the other is propped up by lies.
Journalism, he said, is not about neutrality—it is about truth, of holding the line against propaganda, about refusing to be mere amplifier for those who seek to manipulate and deceive.
“Every journalist who came before you, who dared to challenge corruption, who exposed the lies, who stood up to tyranny—they stand with you. The truth is on your side,” the Phividec administrator assured about a hundred COPC members and guests.
Earlier, Bernedo thanked those who took time for coverage of projects at the Phividec Industrial Estate in Misamis Oriental, such as the expansion of the Mindanao Container Port, integrated steel mill project, bulk-water and solar power facilities, and socialized housing project. [Uriel Quilinguing/MT]
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