STATEMENT: Our Bias is for the Truth

(A collective statement on the harassment of journalists in the police operations to arrest Pastor Apollo Quiboloy)

During the 16-day police-KOJC standoff inside the Kingdom of Jesus Christ compound here in Davao City, we witnessed how disinformation, half-truths and lies spread like wildfire on social media, even before we could bat an eye and check where they came from and verify.

Those who covered the standoff experienced verbal abuse, threats, harassments, intimidation and humiliation from members of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC) who insisted that their version of the incidents is the only version that media should report on.

We experienced being bullied or cajoled and used by one party of the conflict to outsmart another. We documented these incidents of harassments and even went to the police for the blotter.

We are aware where this disinformation came from: they came from interest groups who wanted to control the narrative by manipulating the media. In their bid to control the narrative, they harassed and threatened us when we wrote or broadcast stories that did not match or follow their storyline.

We want to send these people a message: It is not our role to carry your propaganda line or push your own agenda.

Our role is to deliver timely, relevant, accurate information to the public, information that will allow them to take part meaningfully as citizens in a functioning democracy.

Do not expect us to accept hook, line, and sinker whatever it is you tell us. As journalists, verification is our discipline. We verify, we countercheck, we seek various sources to try as best as we can to ferret out the Truth.

Councilor Bonz Militar, you are barking up the wrong tree. As chair of the Committee on Information and Technology,  you know who the sources of disinformation are.

Let us in the media do our job and if you truly care about the public good, it would do well for the City Council to help foster an environment where journalists can perform their duties without the constant threat of intimidation, harassment, or other forms of attacks.

It is essential to recognize that crafting a safe and supportive space for journalists to report freely and accurately is critical to ensuring the integrity of the information that reaches the public.

Despite those extremely difficult circumstances from August 24 to September 8, journalists who reported from the field and the news desks that vetted their stories, were unfazed because of our adherence to the essential principles and practices of journalism, our Code of Ethics and our respective editorial policies.

As Kovach and Rosentsiel say, our first obligation as journalists is to the Truth and our first loyalty is to the Citizens.

Our bias is for the Truth.

We urge all parties to be transparent with the facts and to respect media’s independence to report  beyond the narratives they wish to promote.

We call on our colleagues in the media to join forces in confronting disinformation and to always be on the alert against those who aim to manipulate the Truth.

We believe that an unchained press is the bedrock of a peaceful and robust Davao City.

16 September 2024

CAROLYN O. ARGUILLAS/ Special Reports Editor, MindaNews/ chair, DCMCC; AMALIA B. CABUSAO/ Editor-in-Chief, Mindanao Times; CRISTINA E. ALIVIO/ Editor-in-Chief, SunStar Davao; NEIL BRAVO/ Editor-in-Chief, Edge Davao; EDITHA Z. CADUAYA/ Publisher,Newsline Philippines/ President, MIPC; PAUL PALACIO/ News Chief,Newsline Philippines; CHE PALICTE, Regional Head, Philippine News Agency; VINA ARANETA-PILAPIL, Head, News Operations and Administration, PTV Davao/Mindanao Media Hub; BOBBY TIMONERA/ Editor-in-Chief, MindaNews; RYAN ROSAURO/Chief, Philippine Daily Inquirer Mindanao Bureau; HERNEL TOCMO/ Davao Regional Correspondent, ABS-CBN News; GERMELINA LACORTE/ Desk Editor, Philippine Daily Inquirer; JOSELLE BADILLA/ Editorial Assistant, Philippine Daily Inquirer; PATMEI BELLO RUIVIVAR, Columnist, Mindanao Times; KATH CORTEZ/ Reporter, Davao Today; TY VELEZ/ Davao Today; LUCELLE BONZO/ Davao Today;   MARILOU AGUIRRE-TUBURAN/ Davao Today; DANILO ADORADOR/ Board Member, MIPC; EUGENE DANGO/ Cameraman, Newsline Philippines; EUGENE HINUTAN/ Reporter, Newsline Philippines; ANTONIO L. COLINA IV/Reporter, MindaNews; MANMAN DEJETO / Photojournalist, MindaNews; IAN CARL ESPINOSA/Reporter, MindaNews; TOTO LOZANO / Photojournalist, MindaNews; ROJEAN GRACE PATUMBON/ Reporter, SunStar Davao; KARL BRYAN PORRAS, Reporter, SunStar Davao; RHODA GRACE SARON / Reporter, Mindanao Times; NOVA MAE FRANCAS/ Reporter, Mindanao Times; MAIMONA WANDA LAO/ Reporter, Mindanao Times; BING GONZALES/ Photojournalist, Mindanao Times; ARMANDO FENEQUITO/ Reporter, Radyo Pilipinas Davao; DAVAO CITY MEDIA-CITIZENS COUNCIL (DCMCC); MINDANAO INDEPENDENT PRESS COUNCIL (MIPC); NATIONAL UNION OF JOURNALISTS OF THE PHILIPPINES (NUJP-Davao chapter)