Volume 1, Issue No. 41
OPINION/COMMENTARY
/ News That Fears None, Views That Favor Nobody /
. . . . . A community service of The Filipino Web Channel (TheFilipinoWebChannel@gmail. com) and the Philippine Village Voice (PhilVoiceNews@gmail.com) for the information and understanding of Filipinos and the diverse communities in North America . . .
Our latest as of Tuesday, May 5, 2020
~ No tears for a giant that had shaped minds, regaled young and old, nourished hunger for information, and gave opportunities to shine. Yes, no tears for ABS-CBN network as it shuts down, hopefully temporarily. As of May 5, 2020, Manila time, the broadcast and media empire bade farewell to the nation and people it had served for many years. As it shutters, the freedoms of speech and of the press in the Philippines remain robust, contrary to claims by government critics.
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ABS-CBN IN MANILA
A Philippine Media Empire Shuts Down
By ROMEO P. MARQUEZ
Editor, The Filipino Web Channel
“You endure what is unbearable, and you bear it. That is all.” ―
For this broadcast giant's officials and employees, they knew long before that the expiration of its legislative franchise was coming, and thus they had ample time to prepare for the eventuality. Any reasonable man would brace for a fallout, especially knowing the business is heavily bolted on politics.
Except that they had pinned their corporate fate on their projected outcome of the May 2016 presidential election which, unpredictably and surprisingly, Rodrigo Duterte won. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rodrigo_Duterte). He tossed ABS-CBN's preferred candidate, and thus begun their calvary.
Not once did Duterte complain about ABS-CBN's bias towards his candidacy then, and later as president, in portraying him in the local media as an authoritarian ruler. The distortions are evident in the reporting which leads his supporters to call it ABias-CBN. (https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/05/world/asia/philippines-abs-cbn-duterte.html)
The Johnny-come-lately advocates, notably the leftist sympathizers now in bed with ABS-CBN, have been trying to frame the controversy as a fight between a supposedly repressive regime of President Rodrigo Duterte, on the one hand, and practitioners and proponents of the freedoms of speech and of the press ostensibly exemplified by the Lopez-owned media company, on the other.
Nothing could be farther from the truth. (More info at: https://www.manilatimes.net/2020/05/05/news/latest-stories/palace-abs-cbn-free-to-exhaust-all-legal-remedies-available/722809/).
I was a young student when hired at The Manila Chronicle, a sister company of ABS-CBN, as a metro Manila correspondent, then proofreader, then staff reporter covering the police and health beats.
The Plaza Miranda bombing of August 21, 1971, that caused the death of nine people and injury to 95 others was literally my baptism of fire as a police reporter. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plaza_Miranda_bombing).
That attack on the Liberal Party campaign rally was blamed on President Ferdinand Marcos with whom the Lopez brothers - Vice President Fernando "Nanding" Lopez and Eugenio "Eñing" Lopez Sr. - had a falling out. Many believed it was a prelude to the imposition of martial law, which actually came eleven months later on September 21, 1972.
The Chronicle had been a ferocious critic of Marcos and his government. It painted him and first lady Imelda Marcos in the most ignominious light. One highlight of its attacks was the series of cartoons by editorial cartoonist Liborio "Gat" Gatbonton that asked, "Who is the richest man in the Philippines?".
The Chronicle combined with ABS-CBN had been the dominant print and broadcast outfit that had made the Lopezes so powerful they practically controlled the airwaves and the propaganda scene. It was, to all intents and purposes, a mighty media empire.
Although martial law was hinted at the time, nobody knew Marcos would dare impose it so stealthily; in fact, two days (September 23, 1972) after its declaration. That was a big surprise. We would report for work at the Chronicle building in Pasig only to find out it had been taken over by soldiers.
While employees knew then that the Chronicle - actually the entire Lopez empire - was waging a war of attrition against Marcos, the general feeling was that Marcos would give in, and the opposing camps would renew their friendship.
In that context, the shutdown was not quite expected. Only the Lopezes and their close allies could predict the outcome. But Marcos was not less powerful, he had the armed forces and the government machinery behind him.
With martial law, Marcos confiscated the crown jewels of the Lopezes that included The Manila Chronicle, ABS-CBN, Meralco and several other companies. The Lopezes were spoiling for a fight and Marcos just handed it to them.
Shuttering ABS-CBN now gave its supporters reason to scream repression of the freedom of the press. That is absolutely false, or how else prior to this shutdown would the network continue to broadcast its distortions without being threatened with arrest and incarceration similar to the time of martial rule in the 70s?
The point is that ABS-CBN had its faults that no president in his right mind would tolerate to such an extent that it would cause his downfall. Marcos did it in the 70s and curtailed the media. Duterte did it too and the press thrives. (Copyright 2020. All Rights Reserved).
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Meanwhile, the office of ABS-CBN-TFC in Toronto issued this statement:
Philippine entertainment and broadcasting company ABS-CBN Corporation (ABS-CBN), on May 5, 2020, was issued a cease and desist order by the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) prohibiting ABS-CBN from continuing to broadcast on free-to-air TV and radio in the Philippines, effective immediately.
For Filipinos overseas, ABS-CBN through its international subsidiaries and flagship channel TFC has always been their bridge back home as a source of comprehensive and timely news and entertainment. TFC assures its many subscribers around the world that it will remain and continue to deliver relevant news and information, TV shows and movies across our different channels and platforms via cable and satellite, IPTV, and TFC Online.
As we have earlier stated, we trust that the Philippine government will decide on our franchise with the best interest of the Filipino people in mind, recognizing ABS-CBN’s role and efforts in providing the latest news and information, especially during these challenging times.
We will continue our commitment to be of service to Filipinos, worldwide.
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