The Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility

in cooperation with the

Asian Institute of Management Policy Center

with a grant from the

National Endowment for Democracy

invites you to a forum on the

Competition Policy

Invited Speakers

• Atty. Anthony A. Abad (Trade Advisory Services)
• Dr. Ronald U. Mendoza (Asian Institute of Management Policy Center)
• Atty. Lai-Lynn Barcenas (Asian Institute of Management Policy Center)
• Asec. Geronimo L. Sy  (Department of Justice and Senate Technical Working Group on the Anti-Trust Legislation)
• Dr. Rafaelita Aldaba (Philippine Institute for Development Studies)
• Anthony Ian Cruz (TXTPower)
• Roel Landingin (Financial Times)

Aug. 18, 2011
10:00 AM – 4:30 PM
Korean Case Room
Asian Institute of Management
123 Paseo de Roxas, Makati City

RSVP Lara or Carol
894-1326/894-1314/840-0903
840-0889 (telefax)
staff@cmfr-phil.org

Lunch and snacks will be served.

The Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility with a grant from the National Endowment for Democracy invites you to a policy forum on the Freedom of Information.

Invited Speakers:

• Carolyn O. Arguillas (MindaNews)
• Nepomuceno Malaluan (Right to Know, Right Now! Coalition)
• Malou Mangahas (Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism)
• Ronald U. Mendoza (Asian Institute of Management Policy Center)
• Manuel L. Quezon III (Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office)
• Rep. Lorenzo “Erin” Tañada (4th District, Quezon)
• Luis V. Teodoro (Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility)

July 27, 2011
10:00 AM – 4:00 PM
JV 2-5
4/F AIM Conference Center Manila
Benavidez corner Trasierra Sts.
Legaspi Village, Makati City

RSVP Lara or Carol
894-1326/894-1314/840-0903
840-0889 (telefax)
staff@cmfr-phil.org

Lunch and snacks will be served.

The Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility is looking for two staffwriters/reporters. They must be:

-Graduates of Journalism, Mass Communication or any related course
-Knowledgeable in journalism principles and ethics
-With above average written and oral communication skills in English and Filipino
-Updated in current events, trends and general information
-Highly proficient in Microsoft Office applications

Knowledge and skills in website management is an advantage.
Fresh graduates are welcome to apply.

Interested applicants can send their comprehensive resume and other materials to: staff@cmfr-phil.org. For more information, please contact us at: (+63 2) 840-0903/894-1326/894-1314/(Telefax) 840-0889.

CMFR’s flagship publication, the PJR Reports (formerly the Philippine Journalism Review) is the result of a continuing monitoring activity of how the press covers and reports events and issues.

As part of our efforts to give you a better PJR Reports, the Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility (CMFR) would be happy to receive your feedback regarding our bimonthly publication.

1. Do you read the hard copy edition of PJR Reports? Why or why not?

2. Do you check CMFR’s website to regularly browse PJR Reports issues? Why or why not?

3. Should CMFR continue to publish the hard copy edition of PJR Reports? Or would you prefer an online edition of PJR Reports? Why or why not?

4. What sections in the PJR Reports do you like the most and should be kept? What sections need reviewing?

5. What issues would you want to see tackled in the PJR Reports?

6. What do you think PJR Reports should do to become more effective in monitoring the media?

Please kindly send your answers to staff@cmfr-phil.org. Please also include your name, organizational/institutional affiliation, and position in your organization/institution.

The Philippine press registered a number of improvements in its coverage of the 2010 campaign and elections.  The leading media organizations broadened their coverage of independent candidates and small parties, and provided the electorate information on the advocacies and/or programs of individual candidates.

However, some lapses were still evident, among them the uncritical use of propaganda spin and character assassination in the coverage, as well as scant coverage of the vice presidential, senatorial and party list elections.  Government media’s mistaken concept of public information as public relations led to biased coverage in favor of Arroyo administration candidates.

These are among the findings of the CMFR Monitor of the News Media Coverage of the 2010 Campaign and Elections, which contains the overall findings of the CMFR’s 2010 election coverage monitoring project.

CMFR has been monitoring media coverage of Philippine elections since 1992, and in every instance has recommended changes in media coverage.  These efforts have not been unrewarded. Changes in media coverage incorporating some of the recommendations of the CMFR monitor in 2004 were evident, for example, in the media coverage of the 2007 elections.

In its 2010 findings, CMFR noted that modern technology also influenced the manner and conduct of the 2010 campaign and election coverage. The press prominently used social networking tools and citizen journalism initiatives in their reporting; but CMFR expressed concern over the integrity and quality of information online.

The Monitor recommends that the sources of funding of radio blocktimers  be made known, and  blocktimers identified  during campaign and election periods.

The CMFR Monitor report also recommends the amendment to the Fair Elections Act  to rescue it from the changing and seemingly whimsical interpretation of its provisions by the Commission on Elections. The amendments should include clear rules on TV airtime limits for candidates.

The Monitor report contains CMFR’s findings on the coverage by Manila-based newspapers, television news programs, special and public affairs shows, news and blog sites, radio stations, and tabloids of the 2010 campaign and elections.  It also contains analyses of:

• The coverage of local elections by Cebu-based English and Bisaya dailies;
• The coverage by the broadsheets and leading networks of the automation of the elections, and civil society initiatives in keeping the elections fair and honest;
• The  extent and impact of political advertising on electorate choices; and
• The quality and quantity  of election day coverage

CMFR published the project findings with a grant from the National Endowment for Democracy

For inquiries about the book, please contact CMFR at (+63 2) 894-1326/894-1314or email staff@cmfr-phil.org.

THE VICTORY of Benigno Simeon Aquino III in the 2010 presidential elections was widely expected to usher in a new era of governance. Aquino was also perceived as committed to ending the culture of impunity that encourages the killing of journalists, human rights workers and political activists.

The Philippine Press Freedom Report 2010, an annual review of the state of press freedom published by the Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility (CMFR), looked at the new Aquino administration’s attitude and response to press freedom issues during its first six months.

The Report also reviews the legal environment and the prospects for the successful prosecution of the killers of journalists and the brains behind them, in addition to a scan of the media situation prior to Aquino’s inauguration as President on June 30, 2010, and to updates on the ongoing trials of the suspects in the Ampatuan Massacre as well as other cases of slain journalists.

Of interest to media organizations and advocacy groups are the bills on the press and the media, the working conditions of journalists and media workers, freedom of expression, and access to information in the Philippines pending before the 15^th Congress.  Ongoing efforts to assure the safety and protection of journalists and media workers in 2010 are also among the issues the Report addresses.  The Report  also looks into how the public views media’s performance in the coverage of major events in the Philippines, and gauged how students view mass communication studies.

The Philippine Press Freedom Report is an annual CMFR publication. The first Report was issued in 2004. The 2010 Report will be available in selected bookstores and the CMFR office at the Second Floor of the Ateneo Professional Schools at 130 H.V. de la Costa, Salcedo Village, Makati City.   Inquiries may be addressed to staff@cmfr-phil.org, or via telephone numbers (+632) 894-1314 or (+632) 894-1326.

CMFR Monitor of the Media Coverage
of the 2010 National and Local Elections
(April 12-16 and April 19-23, 2010)

There are striking differences in the elections coverage of radio when compared to other media. While the elections occupied a substantial amount of airtime and space in television, print and online media, the coverage of AM radio was consistently minimal – the number of election-related reports barely reached a fourth of the news hole (total number of reports).  There were even entire days when there was no single election-related report from any of the three radio programs monitored, namely Boses of DZRB, One on One with Igan kasama si Lala Roque (OOI) of DZBB and Tambalang Failon at Sanchez (TFS) of DZMM. These three news and 7public affairs programs were monitored for two weeks, from April 12 to 16 and April 19 to 23.

Yet, there are also similarities. As in television, the senatorial and party-list elections were barely discussed in radio. And if they were, the reports and commentaries were limited to the known and/or moneyed candidates.

Click this link to read the rest of the report. Visit the Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility’s “Media and Elections” microsite to read other reports.

A statement by the Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility (CMFR) on the sixth month of the November 23 massacre of 32 journalists and media workers

[[petition-1]]

The CMFR Monitor of Media Coverage of the 2010 Elections
Broadcast Discourse Analysis (For the period April 12-16 and 19-23, 2010)

From April 12 to 16 and 19 to 23, almost five out of ten reports by TV Patrol World (ABS-CBN 2) were about the elections. In the case of 24 Oras (GMA 7) and Teledyaryo (NBN 4), it was three out of 10 and four out of 10, respectively. The three news programs, however, devoted more than half of their coverage to the presidential election, at the expense of the senatorial and party-list campaign.

Click this link to read the rest of the report. Visit the Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility’s “Media and Elections” microsite to read other reports.

CMFR/PHILIPPINES-The Manila-based Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility (CMFR) supports the call of media advocacy groups and other concerned sectors to spare media organizations and journalists from threats and attacks while covering the clashes between Thailand’s security forces and protesters.

Violence related to the occupation of portions of Central Bangkok by the Red Shirt partisans of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, had worsened in the last few days, forcing the government to declare an 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew on May 19. Reports said several buildings were set on fire and there were at least four dead and 40 injuries recorded. According to The Bangkok Post, there have been 71 deaths and 1,306 injuries related to the political crisis since April 10.

Journalism can be a dangerous profession especially during crisis situations.

Click here to read more.