Kalinga Rep. Allen Jesse C. Mangaoang appealed to the members of the media, whether in the mainstream or social media, to contribute for the common good by making use of the opportunities of a highly democratized media market by upholding the highest ethical standards.
In his message during the induction of the new set of officers of the Baguio Correspondents and Broadcasters Club (BCBC) led at the Camp John Hay (CLH) clubhouse last Saturday, Mangaoang reminded the members of the media to always be a source of reliable information and not be peddlers of fake information, hate speech and disinformation which are now in abusive levels, especially in the social media.
He pointed out that people have high expectations from the media to write and broadcast only about the truth even when the truth most of the time is ugly.
“Truthful information is important for people to make choices regarding their participation in every undertaking and it helps them to decide rationally and take the right course of action beneficial to them,” Congressman Mangaoang stressed.
He claimed that the importance of journalism in developing regions like the Cordillera can seldom be over emphasized.
The Kalinga lawmaker disclosed that for media practitioners, it assumes special significance today with the government’s renewed focus on accelerating development in the rural areas.
According to him, the role of media in promoting good governance is clear as all aspects of good governance are facilitated by a strong and independent media within a society.
“Only when journalists are free to monitor, investigate and criticize the public administration’s policies and actions can good governance take hold. Independent media are like a beacon that should be welcomed when there is nothing to hide and much to improve,” Mangaoang quipped.
He stipulated that indeed, it is the said concrete link between the functioning of the media and good governance, thus, the media allow for ongoing checks and assessments by the population of the activities of government and assist in bringing public concerns and voices into the open by providing a platform for discussion.
If the media is to function for the public interest, Mangaoang argued that governments have to protect the independent functioning of the media and allow various viewpoints to flourish in society.
He explained that clearly, in the light of increasing importance of the media, print and electronic media, there is a need to give adequate support for the practitioners because their works facilitate rural transformation and development which will be instrumental in achieving the desired development in the countryside.
The 2023 BCBC officers are Joseph S. Cabanas of Radyo Pilipinas – president, Dexter A. See of Herald Express and Manila Times – vice president for print, Denver L. Bastingo of MPBC-DZWT – vice president for radio, Jessa Mardy Samidan of PIO Baguio – secretary, Dionisio Dennis, Jr. of MPBC-DZWT – treasure, Ofelia C. Empian of Baguio Midland Courier – auditor and Roderick Osis and Miguelito Velarde, Jr. – business managers. The Board of Directors are Joseph Manzano of Herald Express, Jordan Tablac of Bombo Radyo and Primo Agatep of Amianan Balita.
